The game of Jai-Alai and the hall, Havana, Cuba

Hi, Jai Alai

Once popular across the United States, jai alai lives on in American sport culture mostly thanks to its history as a legal option for gambling.
Cricket in the United States, 1920

Endangered: North American Cricket

Cricket was played and cheered in the United States and Canada in the nineteenth century. Why did it fall out of favor with sports fans?
A chivalrous gentleman helps his lady friend onto the towpath from a punt at Richmond, London, 1925. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

The Complex History of American Dating

While going out on a date may seem like a natural thing to do these days, it wasn't always the case.

Brunei: A Tale of Soil and Oil

With an economy based almost exclusively on the oil industry, Brunei offers its citizens a high standard of living—but it comes with limitations.
A woman gently applying skin cream to her face with the tips of her fingers, circa 1955

The Coldest Cream

Cold cream has been around since ancient Greek times. But what’s it actually for?
Illustration of a man catching a catfish with his arm.

Doing Some (Catfish) Noodling?

Remember to leave the hooks at home.
A General View of the Falls of Niagara by Alvan Fisher, 1820

The Fashionable Tour: or, The First American Tourist Guidebook

Offering advice for visiting Sarasota Springs and other sights, Gideon Davison combined the travel narrative and road book to create a new type of travel guide.
Three female animals posing for photograph on an alpaca farm in Central Oregon

The Alpaca Racket

Why are alpacas everywhere, and why are they so expensive?
American Mink in Surrey, England.

Take Back Your Mink

Could lab-grown fur be an ethical alternative to fur farming?
Two beer glasses

Drinking with Intellectual Humility

What happens when you mix alcohol with intellectual humility? A philosopher asks a writer and former bartender to share her thoughts.