Ronald Reagan v. UC Berkeley
In the late 1960s, gubernatorial candidate Ronald Reagan made political hay by picking a fight with UC Berkeley over student protest and tenured “radicals.”
Plant of the Month: Hibiscus
Nearly synonymous with the global tropics and subtropics, hibiscus symbolizes the Caribbean’s transnational past, present, and future.
The Pitfalls of the Pursuit of Happiness
The pursuit of happiness is often considered an ideal, but it may be possible to have too much—or the wrong kind—of a good thing.
The Meaning of Tanning
The popularity of tanning rose in the early twentieth century, when bronzed skin signaled a life of leisure, not labor.
Mao Zedong: Reader, Librarian, Revolutionary?
Before becoming leader of communist China, Mao was an ardent library patron and then worked as a library assistant.
O Canada: A Refuge for LGBTQ+ People Worldwide?
Canada welcomes those facing persecution for sexual orientation or gender identity—but the process to claim asylum may not be straightforward.
The A-to-X of Olive Quick Decline Syndrome
The syndrome, caused by the bacterium Xyllella fastidiosa, was first detected in southern Italy in 2013. Can ancient olive orchards survive its effects?
In Search of Einstein’s Brain
After Albert Einstein’s death in 1955, a pathologist—searching for the secret of genius—removed, dissected, and ultimately stole the mathematician’s brain.
Object Lessons from the Modern Environmental Movement
This Earth Day, we're looking at the ominous slash beautiful material culture of the modern environmental movement.
The Paris Agreement: Annotated
Adopted by almost 200 parties at the 2015 UN Climate Change Conference, the Paris Agreement captures international ambitions for cooperative climate action.