Ronald Reagan’s Library Legacy
Archival material shows the hefty and careful investment the president and his team put into crafting his image for perpetuity.
The Vital Near-Magic of Fire-Eating Fungi
As wildfires grow in size and severity, researchers are learning more about the burn scar pioneers that are foundational to ecosystem recovery.
Pakistan’s Ambiguous Islamic Identity
Pragmatism, not faith, drove Muhammad Ali Jinnah to lead the call for the founding of the new Islamic state of Pakistan.
The Development of Central American Film
A new collection of essays examines the reasons behind the recent boom in feature and documentary film-making from Belize to Panama.
I Hear America Singing
Japanese American poet Garrett Hongo is a guiding spirit to a glorious cacophony, an exuberant collective thrum made of different tongues and peoples.
Vulture Cultures
By turns worshipped and reviled, the bird frequently associated with death has appeared in art works for thousands of years. Here’s a short history.
NASA’s Search for Life on Mars
It’s a rocky road for its rovers, a long slog for scientists—and back on Earth, a battle of the budget.
A Garden of Verses
As commonplace books evolved into anthologies, they developed reputations as canonical works, their editors curating tomes as vibrant as the loveliest bouquets.
From Saint to Stereotype: A Story of Brigid
Caricatures of Irish immigrants—especially Irish women—have softened, but persist in characters whose Irishness is expressed in subtle cues.
Prisoners’ Pastimes
Isabella Rosner’s Stitching Freedom showcases embroidered works made by the incarcerated and examines this craft’s historical popularity behind bars.