Waste Not, Want Not
Sewage is a vital part of a circular economy—and we have the tech to make good use of it. Why don’t we?
Yes, Mass Observation Still Wants to Know about Your Life
The organization has collected interviews and diaries recording ordinary life in Britain over the course of decades. A pandemic won't stop it now.
The Linguistic Anatomy of a Political Firestorm
The prime minister of Australia has a background in marketing, but with the bush fire crisis, his manipulation of language is only getting him so far.
Cancel Culture Is Chaotic Good
Cancel culture may prove to be the most memorable linguistic trend of the past decade.
This Isn’t the First Baby Bust
And it's unlikely to be the last. One scholar looks at the factors that contributed to the increase in childlessness at the turn of the twentieth century.
What Makes a Fair College Admissions Process?
In the wake of the college admissions scandal, scholars go back to the drawing board to answer this most central question.
Where Witch Hunts Began
Although witch hunts are associated with 17th-century Salem, tens of thousands of "witches" were killed in Europe from the 13th century on.
Lesbianism (!) at the Convent
Mother Superior Benedetta Carlini, a visionary nun of Renaissance Italy, was accused of heresy and “female sodomy.”
Why Didn’t the Rodney King Video Lead to a Conviction?
The grainy pictures speak for themselves. Or so thought many Americans who watched the video of the March 3rd, 1991, beating of motorist Rodney King by Los Angeles police officers.