March 21, 2019

By Eva Amsen

A composer among chemists

March 21, 2019

By Eva Amsen

Known more as a musician than a scientist, Alexander Borodin was a friend and colleague to many famous scientists of the nineteenth century. Sometimes those just outside the limelight have their own stories to tell.

March 21, 2019

By E.L. Meszaros

Philosophy & History, Issue 31

Writing in entangled languages

March 21, 2019

By E.L. Meszaros

Philosophy & History, Issue 31

The otherwise unrelated ancient languages of Sumerian and Akkadian share a writing system. This led to cultural mixing and exchange that make their relationship hard to define.

December 17, 2018

By Hilary Bowman-Smart

Issue 30, Philosophy & History

Moon bugs: astronauts under quarantine

December 17, 2018

By Hilary Bowman-Smart

Issue 30, Philosophy & History

On Earth, quarantines help to contain outbreaks. During the Apollo Missions, NASA took precautions to make sure no alien germs hitched a ride back to Earth.

October 8, 2018

By Christopher DeCou

Philosophy & History, Issue 29

When whales were fish

October 8, 2018

By Christopher DeCou

Philosophy & History, Issue 29

Taxonomy in the 18th century struggled with how to define whales and dolphins. But even after science had reached a consensus, popular imagination continued to wonder: is a whale a fish?

August 8, 2018

By Larissa Fedunik

Philosophy & History, Issue 28

Gold, forgery and redox reactions

August 8, 2018

By Larissa Fedunik

Philosophy & History, Issue 28

Since antiquity, alchemists tried (and failed) to create gold out of base metals. Instead, their work laid the foundations for modern chemistry.

June 3, 2018

By Andrew Urevig

Philosophy & History, Issue 27

What old maps say about environmental racism

June 3, 2018

By Andrew Urevig

Philosophy & History, Issue 27

What old maps say about environmental racism

Maps drawn by the US government in the 1930s made racial segregation an official promise of public policy. Those maps, and the policies they underpinned, paved the way for today’s segregated cities – and ongoing environmental degradation for Black Americans.

April 1, 2018

By Thomas Hornigold

Philosophy & History, Issue 26

Science in the Sharashki

April 1, 2018

By Thomas Hornigold

Philosophy & History, Issue 26

The Russian Revolution of 1917 promised to bring a new, scientific approach to governing Russia. Twenty years later, scientists were detained in Sharashki – technical prisons where they were forced to work on weapons of war.

February 26, 2018

By Lauren Fuge

Philosophy & History, Issue 25

The wake of the Edinburgh Seven

February 26, 2018

By Lauren Fuge

Philosophy & History, Issue 25

Despite intimidation from male peers and powerful institutions, a group of 19th-century women lead the charge for gender equality in medicine education.

February 5, 2018

By Jennifer Tsang

Issue 25, Philosophy & History

Zapping our fears

February 5, 2018

By Jennifer Tsang

Issue 25, Philosophy & History

They may seem innocuous now, but microwaves have been mired in controversy since their inception in the 1940s — with many people fearful of radiation, cancer, and Chernobyl-style disasters.