The Game Is Changing for Historians of Black America
For centuries, stories of Black communities from the past have been limited by racism in the historical record. Now we can finally follow the trails they left behind.
Features
Black America’s Neglected Origin Stories
The history of Blackness on this continent is longer and more varied than the version I was taught in school.
We Should All Be More Afraid of Driving
Two terrifying car accidents taught me that, despite what we like to believe, we can’t control what happens on the road.
Artificial Intelligence Is Misreading Human Emotion
There is no good evidence that facial expressions reveal a person’s feelings. But Big Tech companies want you to believe otherwise.
The Tyranny of the Female-Orgasm Industrial Complex
What one woman’s quest for sexual satisfaction reveals about desire, hysteria, feminism, and capitalism
The Dark Side of the Houseplant Boom
American culture is becoming more and more preoccupied with nature. What if all the celebrations of the wild world are actually manifestations of grief?
A Kidnapping Gone Very Wrong
In 1974, John Patterson was abducted by the People’s Liberation Army of Mexico—a group no one had heard of before. The kidnappers wanted $500,000, and insisted that Patterson’s wife deliver the ransom.
What Was America Doing in Afghanistan?
The U.S. itself didn’t know—and that was the problem.
Return the National Parks to the Tribes
The jewels of America’s landscape should belong to America’s original peoples.
The Nature You See in Documentaries Is Beautiful and False
Nature documentaries mislead viewers into thinking that there are lots of untouched landscapes left. There aren’t.