Pathologizing Distress
One bioethics scholar wonders if modern medicine is in danger of pathologizing what are painful, but normal, human experiences.
The Last Vigil of the Octopus Parent
For some species of octopus, reproducing is a lonely act that ends in death.
Marking the Grave of the First African American Landscape Artist
Robert S. Duncanson was among the first African American artists to gain international fame. And yet his grave has stayed unmarked for 146 years.
Valentina Tereshkova and the American Imagination
Remembering the Russian cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, and how she challenged American stereotypes.
Real Placebos, Brutal Progress, and Paleolithic Myths
Well-researched stories from Longreads, The Atlantic, and other great publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.
100 Years of Fox News
When it began as Fox-Movietone News, the company was known for appealing to viewer's tastes by leaving out upsetting news, including the rise of fascism.
When Is Cooking Fun?
Is cooking a daily grind necessary to keep a family fed, or a fun hobby? The answers lies largely in how home cooks approach the tasks at hand.
Wollemi Pine, Dinosaur Tree
The Wollemi Pine is an ancient tree, virtually unchanged since herbivorous dinosaurs last munched on them.
Painter, Proust Scholar, P.O.W.
Józef Czapski was a painter, writer, and Proust scholar -- as well as one of the few Polish military officers not executed by the Soviet Union in 1940.