The Cold War Origins of Interactive Cinema
The world’s first interactive cinema system, the Kinoautomat was the brainchild of Radúz Činčera, a Czech cinematographer.
How Natural Gas Helped Make our Industrial World
Gas was in fact one of the first readily available fuels, and shaped spaces and politics in Regency-era London.
The Strange Story Behind Your Breakfast Cereal
Kellogg's Corn Flakes were originally created by a doctor who believed bland food would reduce people's urge to masturbate.
How the Brownie Camera Made Everyone a Photographer
Eastman Kodak used folklore to sell a modern technology, and ended up creating new communities and forms of expressions along the way.
The Marvelous Automata of Antiquity
Centuries before the computer, whimsical automata pushed the uncanny boundary between human and machine.
Fixing the Grassroots of the American Lawn
A citizen scientist bred low-mow, slow-grow grass that needs little water and fertilizer.
The Soaring Symbolism of Moscow’s Subways
Lofty ceilings, massive slabs of marble, and colorful mosaics celebrated Soviets in all their incarnations, from military leaders to collective farmers.
Treadmills Were Meant to Be Atonement Machines
America’s favorite piece of workout equipment was developed as a device for forced labor in British prisons. It was banned as cruel and inhumane by 1900.
Better Writing Begins with the Right Tools
Word processing software has not only changed the way we write; it's changed the way we read. It pays to think about what we want from our writing tools.
Jan van der Heyden and the Dawn of Efficient Street Lights
17th-century Amsterdam was the first city in Europe to have an efficient system of street lighting—thanks to a Golden Age painter called Jan van der Heyden.