The Origins of the CDC
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began during World War II to prevent the spread of malaria to troops stationed in the South.
The Weird Ways People Have Tied Blood Types to Identity
Scientific racism. Paternity tests. And mass tattooing, just in case of nuclear attack.
Ye Olde Morality-Enforcement Brigades
The charivari (or shivaree) was a ritual in which people on the lower rungs of a community called out neighbors who violated social and sexual norms.
The Library That Walked Across Belgium
What two scholar-artists learned from taking ninety books on a very, very long walk.
Zoom Fatigue, Bold Rats, and Drive-in Church
Well-researched stories from Quartz, Wired, and other great publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.
How Not to Teach Grammar
When people with opinions and a platform rant about bad grammar, they're not helping, write two English professors.
Baseball History and Rural America
Baseball’s creation myth is bunk, and historians have shown how important cities were to the game’s development. But it was still a rural passion.
These Plants Are Ready for Their Closeup
Move over cats of the internet, here comes something greener.
Dean Mahomet: Travel Writer, Border Crosser
The author of what is considered the first English-language book by an Indian writer was neither a rebel nor an accommodationist.
The Soup of British Colonialism
Mulligatawny soup started as a simple South Indian broth but was changed to appeal to British palates.