Mt. Ontake spews volcanic ash on September 28, 2014 in Otaki, Japan

After the Volcano Erupts

The catastrophic eruption of Japan’s Ontake-san allowed residents to reconsider and reinvent their relationships to the mountainous landscape.
The video game "Doom 3" is displayed on a computer and game store shelf August 4, 2004 in New York City

Roger Ebert vs. Video Games

The film critic’s unconsidered observation about Doom touched off a firestorm that continues to burn for gamers and digital media critics.
Annie Londonderry, 1896

The Hunt for the Massachusetts “Wild Man”

In a tale with as many false identities as supposed crimes, investigative reporter Annie “Londonderry” Kopchovsky gets her man (maybe).
A man sweeps cooked rice still in the husk into piles to dry at a rice mill July 18, 2008 in Srinigar, Bangladesh

Food Price Inflation and Health

Periods of concurrent economic downturn and high food price inflation can exacerbate health threats for infants and children in developing countries.
Dara Shikoh and Mian Mir

Popularizing Meditation in the Mughal Empire

The methods of Sufi meditation were regarded as secret during the early Mughal empire. Why, then, did Dara Shikoh feel the need to write them down?
Bugs Bunny

Bugs Bunny Scholarship Is a Wascally Wesearch Wabbit Hole

In this edition of Research Rabbit Hole, we dig up scholarship about what one academic calls "the signifying rabbit."
From The Mountains of California, by John Muir (New York: The Century, 1898)

Plant of the Month: White Sage

An important part of Indigenous spirituality and identity, the aromatic evergreen shrub is being threatened by poachers and over-commercialization.
A North American Beaver - Castor Canadensis - sitting in the grass grooming itself

Beaver Politics in Oregon

Reintroduction of the beaver may help mitigate the effects of climate change, but the obstacles between these toothy rodents and their ponds are many.
Lily pollen at a magnification of x750

Sea Gardens, Gun Laws, and Secrets of Pollen

Well-researched stories from Quanta Magazine, Atlas Obscura, and other great publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.
Earl Stewart (L) and Michael Veal (R)

The Scholars Charting Black Music’s Timeline: Earl Stewart and Michael Veal

Earl Stewart and Michael Veal explore African American music from the Civil War and the evolving sounds of the Black Atlantic.