Credit: John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

Read the Poems of “Genius” Grant Recipients Ellen Bryant Voigt & Ben Lerner

We've made available two poems each by Ellen Bryant Voigt and Ben Lerner, 2015 recipients of the MacArthur "Genius" Grant.
Imagine John Lennon Memorial

The John Lennon Memorial

Strawberry Fields, the John Lennon memorial in Central Park, has become somewhat of a pilgrimage for Beatles and non-Beatles fans alike.
By *christopher* (Flickr: dalailama1_20121014_4639) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Remembering the Dalai Lama’s First U.S. Tour

The Dalai Lama has been admitted to a hospital and has cancelled his schedule U.S. tour. We look back to 1979, the first year His Holiness came to America.
Portrait of American Author, Poet, and Naturalist Henry David Thoreau

The Myth of Henry David Thoreau’s Isolation

The famous writer-observer of nature, Henry David Thoreau, fills the popular imagination. But have we mythologized the image of him as a recluse?
Logo for Janus Films

In Praise of the Messenger: Janus Films & The Criterion Collection

William J. Becker, co-owner of Janus Films, was instrumental in bringing art house and foreign cinema to American audiences. We reflect on his influence.
Gyre installation featuring Andy Hughes' and Cynthia Minet's work

Eco-Art: Where Art Meets Education

In the case of eco-art, the artists have become educators and translators of environmental science and data.
Disco ball with blurred purple lights in the background

Do the Hustle: How Disco Was Marketed

Disco changed the way the music industry marketed music to the public. The genre innovated an industry and changed our interaction with popular music.
"Juan felipe ferrera 9150360" by slowking4 - Own work. Licensed under GFDL 1.2 via <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Juan_felipe_ferrera_9150360.jpg#/media/File:Juan_felipe_ferrera_9150360.jpg" target="_blank">Wikimedia Commons</a>

The History of the Poet Laureate

Juan Felipe Herrera is the new U.S. Poet Laureate. It is a position that has had a long life, dating back to the Greeks.
Pieter Brueghel the Elder (1526/1530–1569) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Syllables Without Vowels? Pfft, Inconceivable!

Is the syllable universal? Maybe. We look at how languages use (and don't use) syllables, and what this says about language itself.
Francesco Hayez [Public domain or Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Wordsworth and the Invention of Childhood

Prior to the 18th century, children were considered little adults. It was only during the Romantic Era that the concept of childhood emerged.