The Mayaguez Incident: The Last Chapter of the Vietnam War
Reeling from defeat in Vietnam, the US invaded a Cambodian island to rescue a US freighter—just before its crew members, who were elsewhere, were released.
Spider in the Telescope: The Mechanization of Astronomy
John Flamsteed’s vision of an astronomer's skill set clashed with existing ideas about observing, paving the way for a new mindset based on mechanical objectivity.
Quebec, Louis Hémon, and Maria Chapdelaine
Louis Hémon’s Maria Chapdelaine grew from his views as a French immigrant writer on the rural life of early twentieth-century Quebec.
Teaching Peace Between the Wars
In the years between the world wars, the League of Nations attempted to change how history was taught to emphasize commonalities across national lines.
Carry On, Karaoke
Karaoke became a global phenomenon after its invention in the 1970s, the wide embrace of it exemplifying transnational flows and hybridization.
NASA’s Europa Clipper
The spacecraft will investigate whether an icy moon of Jupiter can support alien life.
Archimedes Rediscovered: Technology and Ancient History
Advanced imaging technologies help scholars reveal and share lost texts from the ancient world.
Verbatim: Fredric Jameson
Marxist cultural critic Fredric Jameson offered a philosophy of late capitalism that gave us a language for talking about globalization and the end of modernism.
Zelda Fitzgerald on F. Scott’s Writing
Zelda’s satirical review of F. Scott's second novel, The Beautiful and the Damned, revealed much more than her wit.
Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Lust
The turn from punishing sexual activity outside of marriage toward the idea of personal sexual freedom began in the West between 1600 and 1800.