Plant of the Month: Cascarilla
Epidemics revive old remedies and accelerate experimentation with new ones.
Redlining, Scrolling Exhaustion, and Down Syndrome
Well-researched stories from Wired, The Atlantic, and other publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.
How (Not) to Teach Kids about Native Cultures
Even well-intentioned books for children can romanticize (or demonize) Native Americans. But better materials exist.
Tea Parties for Temperance!
Behind the Victorian movement to replace tippling alcohol with a very British ritual.
Rare 1969 Story from The Queen’s Gambit Author Walter Tevis
In this short story a graduate student makes a deal with the devil: Write my dissertation and my soul is yours.
The Bizarre Theories of the American School of Evolution
The paleontologist Edward Drinker Cope condemned women's suffrage and Black Americans through an evolutionary lens.
How Yellowstone Extremophile Bacteria Helped With Covid-19 Testing
The heat-resistant enzyme from Thermus aquaticus is used in PCR testing to detect pathogens.
The Horseshoe Crab: Same as It Ever Was?
The seemingly static appearance of these ancient-looking arthropods presents a challenge for scientists who want to study their evolutionary history.