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History & Society
Trace how culture, power, and ideas shape societies across time.
The father of relativity understood that “not everything that counts can be counted” — as do today’s most impactful leaders.
He is only out-sold by William Shakespeare and Lao Tzu.
Only nine weeks later, the Wright Brothers achieved manned flight. The pathologically cynical always will find a reason to complain.
Even if a leading theory of consciousness is wrong, it can still be useful to science.
Rejecting romanticism, these famous paintings depict war as it really is: sadistic and senseless.
Considering the astronomical occupational risks, life insurance was prohibitively expensive for the first NASA astronauts.
Hermann Minkowski called Einstein a "lazybones" with a "not very solid" education. Less than 10 years later, he would eat his words.
China has always been one of the world’s wealthiest nations, but Chinese wealth looks different across the country’s eventful history.
The Universe, although violent, is filled with creation events following destructive ones. 1850 light-years away, both types are unfolding.
This minimalist map unties Asia’s mountainous geography, centered on the “Pamir Knot.”
The toilet “is a portal to a mysterious otherworld.”
If the "self" is not real, then we are slaves to a billiard ball universe, trapped in a nihilistic nightmare in which we cannot change our fate.
John Templeton Foundation
In war zones, aggressors steal art to eradicate the cultural heritage of others. Victims, meanwhile, sell stolen art in order to survive.
From unexplained tracks in a balloon-borne experiment to cosmic rays on Earth, the unstable muon was particle physics' biggest surprise.
You are much more likely to die in a car crash than from terrorism. Yet, philosopher Eran Fish says fearing terrorism more is justified.
The Pan-American Highway began a century ago with a vision of unfettered motor-vehicle access between Alaska and Tierra del Fuego. What happened to the dream?
Traditionally, the long history of Japanese thought has not been viewed as “philosophy” — even by Japanese scholars. It’s time for a rethink.
The Persian Constitutional Revolution made unlikely allies and enemies of missionaries, ayatollahs, the shah, and his Russian ambassadors. Its legacy shaped modern-day Iran.
If you find yourself on one of these roads, it might be a while before you see another fellow traveler.
Dive into five philosophical schools that have faded into obscurity but still whisper through the ages.