The Man Behind the USA’s Decision to Build the Bomb
FDR's "czar of research," an electrical engineer named Vannevar Bush, was working on an atomic bomb months before Pearl Harbor.
When Shoes Were Fit with X-Rays
Fluoroscopes were used in shoe stores from the mid-1920s to 1950s in North America and Europe -- even though the radiation risks of x-rays were well-known.
The Controversy Around the First Museum Dinosaurs
Dinosaur bones on display at the American Museum of Natural History always balanced conveying objective truth with promoting science to the public.
The Secrets of the X Chromosome
Most people know that the X chromosome is one of the two sex chromosomes. But it does more than just determine if you're born male or female.
The San Zeno Astrolabe Tracked Time by the Stars
The astrolabe was a revolutionary tool for calculating celestial positions and local time. The device's design dates back to Islamic antiquity.
The Popular, Lucrative, and Legally Questionable Fossil Trade
Middlemen sell fossils to the highest bidder, whether it’s a museum or a wealthy collector who wants their own stegosaurus.
The Racialized History of “Hysteria”
Even three decades after “hysteria” was deleted from the DSM-III, some of the word’s diagnostic power obviously still remains.
Solar Eclipse Tourism: The Victorians Were the Pioneers
People have been planning for this month's total solar eclipse for years. They aren't the first to do so: the Victorians pioneered eclipse tourism.
Why Hot Air Balloons Never Really (Ahem) Took Off
More than two centuries after the invention of ballooning, Steve Fossett became the first person to solo circumnavigate the world in a balloon.
Scientists Have Always Been Political
Science has always been political, with questions about who pays for research, and who gets to do it, influencing the type of work that gets done.