A Mesoamerican Ball Game Returns
An ancient ball game called Ulama is making a comeback in Mexico. What do we know about the earlier iteration of the game?
Why Would Scientists Give an Octopus Ecstasy?
In a perplexing recent study, researchers dosed octopuses. Turns out, scientists have long studied the similarities between cephalopod and human brains.
What Happened to the Night Children?
A hundred years ago, it was quite common for working-class children to roam the streets freely at night.
The First True Ornithologist
Though he was once dismissed as a dilettante, naturalist Francis Willughby was in fact part of the vanguard of observation-based modern science.
Governing Fisheries in the High Seas
Overfishing is a huge problem in international waters. Some suggest a fishing ban. Others stress a shared shift toward cooperation and long-term thinking.
What Sports Reveal about Society
Sociologists find that sports are inextricably intertwined with the people, countries, and politics surrounding them.
A History of Police Violence in Chicago
At the turn of the century, Chicago police killed 307 people, one in eighteen homicides in the city—three times the body count of local gangsters.
Did A Star is Born Make Judy Garland a Gay Icon?
One scholar argues that Judy Garland's role in A Star is Born was so pivotal because it involved both gender impersonation and “racial drag."
When Breastfeeding Was a Civic Duty
Think people are judgmental of mothers now? In the 18th- and 19th-centuries, mothers who bottle-fed their babies were blamed for many of society's ills.
How Conflicts of Interest Are Changing Medical Research
Federal funding for medical research has declined, leading academics to seek alternative funding sources, sometimes from drug companies.