A Belief in Ghosts: Poetry and the Shared Imagination
An essay from poet Dorothea Lasky on poetry, ghosts, and the shared imagination.
The Voynich Manuscript: Crowd-Sourcing An Uncrackable Cipher
The Voynich Manuscript has mesmerized people ever since the man it's named after, bibliophile Wilfred Voynich, brought it up for sale in 1912.
“Stranger Things” and the Psychic Nosebleed
Where did we get the idea that using psychic or telekinetic powers makes a person's nose bleed?
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.
America’s Workforce Runs on Uppers
Uppers like Benzedrine and cocaine provided a willing workforce for our capitalist economy. Now, Americans are turning to ADHD medications.
The Tully Monster, Monstrous No More
The identity of the Tully monster, a 50-year-old paleontological mystery, has been solved.
The Star-Studded Life of Ms. Dorothy Bennett
The wacky life story of the astronomer, author, children's book publisher, and anthropologist who restored an old barge on the Gowanus Canal in 1937.
What Happens To The Body in Orbit?
Scott Kelly has returned from a year in orbit. How has he fared? Turns out space flight really does do a number on the body.
The Internet Before the Internet: Paul Otlet’s Mundaneum
Belgian information activist Paul Otlet envisioned some of the possibilities of today’s Web more than a century before its existence.
Charles Darwin In His Own Words
Some collected letters and observations from the great naturalist, Charles Darwin.