Distillations

A novel swimsuit reveals that faster isn’t necessarily better.

The blaze that sparked the modern environmental movement . . . or did it?

Do you think of poison ivy as a scurrilous weed to be avoided at all costs? Think again! There was a time when the daring and curious found promise in poison ivy and its rash-inducing relatives.

Many of us think pumping is a new part of motherhood, but some fascinating 19th- and 20th-century objects from our collections show the practice has been around (in some form) for a long time.

How do we think about a world that doesn’t yet exist?

How searching for alchemy’s secrets helped create modern science.

From Paracelsus to OSHA.

The first climate change believer.

Sophisticated drugs have enabled those with HIV to live long lives—as long as they take their medication.

The disputed origin story of one of the 20th century’s most important inventions.