Edmund Burke and the Birth of Traditional Conservatism
Edmund Burke (1729-1797) is one of the philosophical fountainheads of modern conservatism. But he didn't start out that way.
Meet the Secretary Bird, Snake Nemesis
If snakes have nightmares, they most likely include secretary birds (or secretarybirds)—so-called because the birds’ crests, when flattened against the head, ...
How the Word “Shoddy” Became an Anti-Semitic Slur
Shoddy came to have anti-Semitic overtones during the American Civil War.
The History of Graduation Ceremonies and Other School Rituals
Graduation ceremonies and traditions have certainly changed over the past 100 years.
Nineteenth-Century Rappers, Corn Laws, and the Rise of Free Trade
The strange intersection of corn laws, rap, poetry, and free trade.
A Tobacco Plant that Could Cure Cancer?
Finding anti-cancer agents inside tobacco may seem like a pretty strange coincidence, but it’s not unheard of to find help in harmful places.