Batman’s holy grotto: The psychic resurrection of Bruce Conner February 02, 2023 Bohemian San Francisco gained a new gathering place in 1960 when the deep-pocketed aspiring painter Billie Jahrmarkt and his wife Joan decided to found a gallery for the benefit of their artistic and literary friends. Two such, artist Bruce Conner and poet/playwright Michael McClure, took the project in hand. Read More
What does it mean to resist surveillance? January 28, 2023 If you talk to a long-haul trucker about why they chose their occupation, there’s a high likelihood they’ll mention autonomy and freedom—that they didn’t want someone looking over their shoulder all the time. Read More
The long past of seaweeds January 27, 2023 Algae are one of life’s most diverse and least appreciated groups, and their rise—and the story of how seaweeds evolved within them—offer a key with which to unlock some of life’s most intricate secrets. Read More
David Drewry on The Land Beneath the Ice January 25, 2023 For some years I had felt need to produce a coherent story about the “big science” project to map the ice thickness of Antarctica and the land that lies beneath. This is truly the last place on Earth to be surveyed. Read More
Betty S. Lai on The Grant Writing Guide January 24, 2023 Grant funding can be a major determinant of promotion and tenure at colleges and universities, yet many scholars receive no training in the crucial skill of grant writing. Read More
Yes, the Chinese care about the Western classics January 24, 2023 Much as in Europe and the US, the ancient Greeks live on in China through their works—at least, recently so. Over the past century, the philosophical and political texts of western antiquity, especially those of classical Athens, have sparked the interest of Chinese intellectuals, journalists, reformers, and nationalists. Read More
The curse of long-ruling autocrats January 18, 2023 In October 2022, during the 20th Party Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, Xi Jinping is likely to be “reelected” as the party’s chairman, paving his way for a third term as China’s top political leader. Read More
An excerpt from The Aesthetic Cold War January 17, 2023 In “Africa and Her Writers,” a feisty Chinua Achebe begins by proclaiming, “Art for art’s sake is just another piece of deodorized dog shit.” The joke, of course, comes at high modernism’s expense, and he was neither the first nor the last figure from decolonizing regions of the world to rail against writing for a privileged few. Read More
On the misuse of legacy: The Struggle for the People’s King January 14, 2023 On a humid day in late August 2010, the right-wing Tea Party activist and Fox News television host Glenn Beck held a rally to “Restore Honor” at the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Read More
Flipping failure January 09, 2023 “Failing big” has been much in the news—it’s part of an exciting strategy that also includes “move fast and break things” and “no risk, no reward!” But what about failing small? Read More
Lessons from the past about the future of capitalism January 02, 2023 The capitalist economic system has delivered wealth to the world population on an unprecedented scale. At the same time, many people feel unhappy about how little the economy does for them. Read More
Daisy Hay on Dinner with Joseph Johnson January 01, 2023 Joseph Johnson was an extraordinary man, who brought together an extraordinary range of people. But Dinner with Joseph Johnson is not straightforwardly a biography of him—or even a book about him. Read More
What Hollywood gets wrong (and right) about neuroscience December 23, 2022 Become a martial arts expert by uploading the ability to fight directly to your brain. Build a new body and insert the mind of a lost loved one into this newly created person. Read More
In dialogue: Perspectives on migration December 14, 2022 Few phenomena sway global politics today as does migration. Economic volatility, violence-laden crises, and climate change produce millions of migrants annually and collectively threaten to displace much of the world’s population in the coming century. Read More
Why prove it? December 13, 2022 Years ago, a student in an introductory math class asked me: “Why do you prove everything; why don’t you just tell us?” Ever since, I have pondered that question. Read More
