Talking with Machines: Computer Programming as Language
The proliferation of different types of computing machines in the 1950s enabled—or perhaps forced—the creation of programming languages.
French Canadians in the New England Woods
Immigrants from Quebec held a distinct position in an American labor landscape in which experts viewed different “races” as being suited to different kinds of work.
Thomas Jefferson: A Vote for Cutting Off Your Nose
To reduce Virginia’s use of the death penalty, Thomas Jefferson proposed using permanent disfigurement as a punishment for rape, polygamy, and sodomy.
The Chinese Movie Theater in Shanghai’s “No Man’s Land”
The Isis Theater of pre-war Shanghai occupied a unique space as a Chinese-run cinema in an international “contact zone.”
Nuclear France’s Empire of the Bomb
The first French nuclear bomb test took place in the Sahara in 1960 in the midst of the Algerian War, but French history doesn’t connect the two events.
Existentialists in Malawi
Proverbs and popular songs from Malawi examine and express ideas similar to those found in European existentialism.
Autocratic Capitalism: An Introduction
Americans are taught that capitalism and democracy go together like motherhood and apple pie. It may be time to unlearn that lesson.
Cerbera odollam: “The Suicide Tree” That Harms and Heals
Even before The White Lotus, people feared the poisonous pong-pong tree, Cerbera odollam. But there's another way to look at the plant and its effects.
Art Deco: 100 Years Since the Paris Exhibition That Revolutionized Modern Design
The landmark event displayed competing interpretations of “the modern” in design, art, and architecture.