“Microcosms of Empire” in the Colonial Grand Hotel
While Singapore's iconic Raffles Hotel may be marketed as a tranquil throwback to a bygone age, it also reveals the complicated truths of imperialism.
Women, Partition, and Violence
The 1947 partition of India and creation of Pakistan came with a hefty price—especially for the subcontinent’s women.
1610: Dawn of the Extraterrestrial
Galileo's telescopic view of the Moon sparked a giant transformation in the way human beings thought about the natural world.
When the Government Tried to Flood the Grand Canyon
In the 1960s, the government proposed the construction of two dams in the Grand Canyon, potentially flooding much of Grand Canyon National Park.
How Bengal’s Nineteenth-Century Art Defined Women
Women’s roles as icons ranged from being seductive and erotic to mythical and religious as they imparted social, political, and ethical values.
How Rocks and Minerals Play with Light to Produce Breathtaking Colors
Rocks and minerals don’t simply reflect light. They play with it and interact with light as both a wave and a particle.
Should Environmental Policy Commodify Nature?
The White House is calling for the integration of natural capital accounting frameworks into land-use decisions, putting nature on the balance sheet.
When Lord Byron Tried to Buy a Twelve-Year-Old Girl
The English poet fell in love with Teresa Makri while he was traveling in Greece and subsequently tried to purchase her from her mother.
When Being an Unemployed Teenager was a Crime
Seventeenth-century teenagers faced criminalization for refusing to take on jobs as live-in farm workers, but many pursued their interests despite the threat.
Native Origin Stories As Tools of Conquest
In the nineteenth century, the Euro-American “Lost Tribes of Israel” theory was one of the most popular explanations for the existence of Indigenous peoples.