An 18th Century pornographic cartoon featuring Marie Antoinette and the great French General and politician Lafayette, c. 1790

No Joke

Using humor to mask and normalize hatred and bigotry has a long, ugly history.
A firefighter runs so not to be surrounded by fire as he tries to extinguish a wildfire burning near the village Vlyhada near Athens on July 19, 2023 in Athens, Greece.

The Social-Ecological Nature of Wildfire

How do we meet the challenge of increasingly devastating wildfires?
A devestating shot of plastic waste in the ocean. Water Pollution.

Eating Plastic, Improving Vision, and Making Movies

Well-researched stories from Knowable Magazine, Sapiens, and other great publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.
Soldiers fighting in the Battle of Bennington during the American War of Independence

Revolutionary Atrocity

For the Americans, narratives about the savagery of the British became an important part of nation-building and a moral justification for armed rebellion.
Wat Thai in Los Angeles, 2008

Thai American Life in Los Angeles

Or, what the Wat Thai temple tussle in the San Fernando Valley teaches us about public space in America.
Elementary Students Taking Standardized Test

Educate Thy Neighbor: Missouri’s Accidental Desegregation Win

The 2010 Turner v. Clayton judgment was a milestone on the path toward reimagining education as a community’s responsibility.

The Blu’s Hanging Controversy

Some have argued that the 1997 novel Blu's Hanging perpetuates East Asian racism against Filipinos while undermining criticism through violent sexuality.
Illustration accompanying an account by Lawrence Banck of the 1644 coronation of Pope Innocent X. The pope is having his testicles felt by a cardinal in order to confirm that he is a man.

The Myth of the Papal Toilet Chair

Legend holds that newly elected popes in the Middle Ages had to present their genitals for inspection to confirm that they were male.
Crystal Eastman

“Now We Can Begin”: Annotated

To mark the 1920 ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment to the US Constitution, activist Crystal Eastman described the path to full freedom for American women.
Spoonful of soil

The Question of Geophagy: Why Eat Dirt?

Scientists have three theories about why people and animals eat dirt.