Young girl using tablet in homemade fort at home

Screen Time Guilt During the Pandemic?

Consider this: people once thought too much reading was bad for kids.
Anita Louise chats on the telephone in a scene from The Gay Lady, 1935

When the Telephone Was Considered Feminine

Being difficult to understand on the other end of the line was a badge of masculinity.
An illustration depicting two regency-era women speaking with an iMessage bubble

Is Jane Austen the Antidote to Social Media Overload?

Racking up likes and followers today resembles the nonstop friending of 19th-century England. But Austen's characters figured out how to disengage.
A woman wearing a non-existent dress

How Much Would You Pay for a Nonexistent Dress?

Not too long ago, digital-only clothing might have been decried as a scam. But our "extended selves" are increasingly invested in virtual goods.
A fetus inside of an artistic depiction of an artificial womb

On the History of the Artificial Womb

Will outside-the-womb gestation, increasingly viable for animal embryos, lead to a feminist utopia? Or to something like Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World?
The google G drinking champagne with balloons

Google Is Old Enough to Drink

Since its first birthday, in 1999, the celebrated technology company has defined how we allocate our attention.
A child and old man sitting at a table with their respective music technologies

The Importance of Technological Change in Shaping Generational Perspectives

If we name each generation based on the technological conditions it experienced, generations may soon encompass only a few years apiece.
Marco Polo's caravan

China’s New Silk Road

China's ambitious Belt and Road Initiative involves significant funding for infrastructure projects around the world, aiming to improve trade and more.
The Cast of Dave Malloy’s Octet. Photo by Joan Marcus

The Art of Digital Addiction

Digital addiction is inspiring plays, books, films, and art -- just as other forms of addiction have in the past.
The Leader of the Luddites

Why Luddites Are Fashionable Again

Today we call anyone with a flip phone a Luddite. But the term has radical origins.