History

"Hegel was right when he said that we learn from history that man can never learn anything from history." — George Bernard Shaw

Anatomy of a Neo-Noir Masterpiece
A richly detailed new study of the best movie ever made about Los Angeles.
Rob LathamFeb 24, 2020
- Film
- History
The Wilde Woman and the Sunflower Apostle: Oscar Wilde in the United States
Victoria Dailey looks back at Oscar Wilde’s wild ride through the United States in the early 1880s.
Victoria DaileyFeb 8, 2020
Quantum Conversations, Entanglement, and the American Cold War “Physics Bubble”
Historian of science Michael D. Gordin reviews his former lab partner’s new book on the fuzziness of the quantum world.
Michael D. GordinFeb 7, 2020
- History
- Science & Technology
Whose Utopia Gets to Be Built?: An Interview with Eric Nusbaum
Chavez Ravine is one of L.A.’s most venerated spots, and also one of its haunted places.
Sam RibakoffFeb 6, 2020
- History
- Politics
The Keys to Paradise: On Children, Martyrdom, and War
An Iranian American’s reflections on Flight 752.
Amir SoltaniFeb 2, 2020
Libraries and Authoritarianism 1940, 2020
Jeremy Braddock on Archibald MacLeish and the campaign to make libraries a bulwark against fascists.
Jeremy BraddockJan 28, 2020
- History
- Politics
Writing Together
Briallen Hopper appreciates "The Mutual Admiration Society," a new book from Mo Moulton.
Briallen HopperJan 27, 2020
Historicizing the Self-Evident: An Interview with Lorraine Daston
Jack Gross interviews historian of science Lorraine Daston about her early work on rules, which has become newly salient in the age of algorithms.
Jack GrossJan 25, 2020
- History
- Science & Technology
Small Culture, Big Mistakes
Philip Ó Ceallaigh reviews a well-researched and compelling study of intellectual life in 1930s Romania.
Philip Ó CeallaighJan 24, 2020
Selling a Charismatic Technology
Historian of technology Patrick McCray reviews Morgan Ames’s new book on the MIT Media Lab’s One Laptop per Child program.
W. Patrick McCrayJan 23, 2020
The Old in the New: Introducing “How Yiddish Changed America and How America Changed Yiddish”
Ilan Stavans and Josh Lambert introduce their new anthology, “How Yiddish Changed America and How America Changed Yiddish.”
Ilan Stavans, Josh LambertJan 21, 2020
A Century of Fighting for Civil Liberties
Stephen Rohde reviews "Fight of the Century: Writers Reflect on 100 Years of Landmark ACLU Cases."
Stephen RohdeJan 19, 2020