Paper Nautilus, Octopus of the Open Sea
Why the argonaut, or paper nautilus, may be your new favorite cephalopod.
When Doctors Took Opiates To Gain Credibility
Long before today's opioid epidemic, doctors shared stories of their own experiments with the drugs they prescribed their patients.
Denisovans and Neanderthals Interbred in a Giant Cave
New findings shed light on how humans' ancestors interbred, but the Denisovans remain quite mysterious.
Rachel Carson’s Critics Called Her a Witch
When Silent Spring was published, the response was overtly gendered. Rachel Carson's critics depicted her as hysterical, mystical, and witchy.
W.E.B. Du Bois Fought “Scientific” Racism
Early 20th century intellectual W.E.B. DuBois countered the then-popular idea that African-Americans could be scientifically proven to be inferior.
The History of African-American Casting in Ballet
Ballet has been slow to accept African-American dancers in major companies, and those who make it tend to be offered limited roles.
The Free People of Color of Pre-Civil War New Orleans
Before American concepts of race took hold in the newly-acquired Louisiana, early 19th-century New Orleans had large population of free people of color.
Scientists Are Putting Mosquitoes on Human Diet Drugs
Humans and mosquitoes share a surprising amount of genes and have similar hunger controls.
Whitewashing American History
One of the National Park Service's first historic preservation projects, the Colonial National Monument, wrote people of color completely out of the story.
Can Wildlife Adapt to Heat Waves?
Heatwaves have led to widespread deaths of animals like big-eyed tarsiers and flying foxes. Is there hope for species like this as temperatures rise?