Suggested Readings: Brexit, Magic, and Aging Monkeys
Extra Credit: Our pick of stories from around the web that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.
Racism, the South, and Helen Keller
As one of her day’s most famous Southerners, Helen Keller was uniquely poised to point out—and challenge—that troubled racial heritage.
Where in the Solar System is Vulcan?
A hypothetical Planet Vulcan was the best explanation for strange astrological phenomena—until Einstein, that is.
Quantifying Rape
Rape has costs beyond the physical and emotional: Emergency room visits, therapy, rehab, wasted tuition, lost wages, and lifestyle changes expensive.
Why We Obsess Over Other People’s Mansions
Gilded Age mansions were remarkably public places. Newspapers breathlessly followed their construction and the social lives that happened within them
Video Games, Italian Revolutionaries, and Anne Tyler
Our Friday Reads are these new books out this week, and related content you won't find anywhere else.
Neanderthals Were Smarter Than You Think
Neanderthals, suggest recent studies, had complex societies and even some culture.
What’s in a Name (Of An Element)?
Chemists recently announced the names of four newly discovered elements. Naming elements is serious business, and not without controversy.
“The Culture of the Copy”: Victorians’ Obsession With Wax Flowers
Wax flowers were a major obsession of Victorian women, allowing them to combine art and industry.
The Great Sparrow War of the 1870s
The "sparrow war" in the United States in the 1870s ended with a resounding victory… for the sparrows.