The Swooning Knights of Medieval Stories
In romantic literature of the fourteenth and fifteen centuries, fainting wasn’t just for ladies.
Nice Guy Spinoza Finishes…First?
The Dutch Jewish philosopher Spinoza died in 1677, which is when the battle to define his life—and work—began.
Shakespeare’s First Published Work
Celebrated for his plays, Shakespeare actually opened his writing career with a derivative poem.
Birth of the Corporate Person
The defining of corporations as legal “persons” entitled to Fourteenth Amendment rights got a leg up from the fight over a California anti-Chinese immigrant law.
Total Solar Eclipse, 2024 Edition
A total solar eclipse crosses North America on Monday, April 8. Be prepared!
Marbled Money
Marbled paper was a way to make banknotes and checks unique—a critical characteristic for a nascent American Republic.
Dragon Swallows the Sun: Predicting Eclipses in China
China had a long history of astronomy before the arrival of Europeans, but the politics of absolute rule led to the eventual embrace of Western methods.
Charting the Music of a Movement
Galvanized by an act of racial violence, the band A Grain of Sand brought a new version of Asian American activism and identity to the folk music scene.
How Astronomers Write History
Scientists’ approach to dating past eclipses changed when they stopped treating classical texts as authoritative records.