Posters reading "Is your child vaccinated? Vaccination prevents smallpox"

The Smallpox-Fighting “Virus Squads” That Stormed Tenements in the Middle of the Night

In the 1800s, they helped lay the groundwork for the anti-vaccine movement.
a artistic human face photo

Bring Back the Nervous Breakdown

It used to be okay to admit that the world had simply become too much.
Skiers queuing to get on The Dollar lift.

How a Railroad Engineer From Nebraska Invented the World's First Ski Chairlift

The device was part of an elaborate plan on behalf of Union Pacific to boost passenger rail travel in the American West.
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We’re Catching More Diseases From Wild Animals, and It’s Our Fault.

Scientists explain how viruses, like Covid-19, spill over from animals to people, and what we must do to stop the next pandemic.
A painted picture of someone receiving a vaccine

History Shows Americans Have Always Been Wary of Vaccines

Even so, many diseases have been tamed. Will Covid-19 be next?
COVID-19 dashboard
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Covid-19 Dashboards Are Vital, Yet Flawed, Sources of Public Information

Unlike our car dashboards, covid-19 dashboards do not give individuals actionable information.
A hand holding a stethoscope and knife.

The Blackwell Sisters and the Harrowing History of Modern Medicine

A new biography of the pioneering doctors shows why “first” can be a tricky designation.
Louise Hay

Another Hayride

Self-help guru Louise Hay’s “Hayrides” drew in thousands during the hopelessness and government neglect of the AIDS crisis.
Children receiving a vaccine.

Throughout History, Mass Vaccine Rollouts Have Been Beset by Problems

As the country scrambles to distribute COVID-19 vaccines, the process has been hindered by many of the same issues that impeded other mass vaccination rollouts.
Statue of Mary Seacole by Martin Jennings in front of St Thomas' Hospital, London.

African Americans, Slavery, and Nursing in the US South

Following backlash to the construction of a statue for Mary Seacole, Knight describes the connection between nursing and slavery in the US South.
A man hooked up to receive shocks as part of the Milgram experiment
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The Hidden Meaning of a Notorious Experiment

In Stanley Milgram's studies of obedience, people believed they were giving shocks to others. But did their compliance say much about the Nazis?
Artwork that says "Bury me fiercely" and features imagery of a face mask and cross

You Are Witness to a Crime

In ACT UP, belonging was not conferred by blood. Care was offered when you joined others on the street with the intent to bring the AIDS crisis to an end.
The Pfizer headquarters sign.
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Years of Medical Abuse Make Black Americans Less Likely to Trust the Coronavirus Vaccine

Reckoning with our past is crucial to getting buy-in for the vaccine.
Horses standing next to a car.

What Extremely Muscular Horses Teach Us About Climate Change

You can’t understand the history of American energy use without them. A new visual history puts them in context.
Engraving of a vaccinated child.

An Eradication: Empire, Enslaved Children, and the Whitewashing of Vaccine History

Enslaved children were used in medical trials for early smallpox vaccines. They have been forgotten.
A gravestone.

Cicely Was Young, Black and Enslaved – Her Death Has Lessons That Resonate in Today's Pandemic

US monuments and memorials have overlooked frontline workers and people of color affected by past epidemics. Will we repeat history?
Newspaper scraps from the Flu Pandemic of 1918.

We're Celebrating Thanksgiving Amid a Pandemic. Here's How We Did it in 1918 and What Happened Next.

Many Americans were living under quarantines, and officials warned people to stay home for the holiday.
Tepary beans, squash, and corn against a black background

Returning Corn, Beans, and Squash to Native American Farms

Returning the "three sisters" to Native American farms nourishes people, land, and cultures.
A group of nurses.

Susie Walking Bear Yellowtail and Histories of Native American Nursing

Yellowtail, the first Crow registered nurse, fought for the inclusion of Native medicine and healing knowledge in reservation hospitals.
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Health Risks of Vaping: Lessons From the Battle With Big Tobacco

Like cigarette manufacturers decades ago, e-cigarette makers have pitched their products as fun and safe. But nobody knows what the risks are.

How Americans Came to Distrust Science

For a century, critics of all political stripes have challenged the role of science in society. Repairing distrust requires confronting those arguments head on.
One man in white surgical coat and cap examines a cow in an enclosed pen.
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The Idea of Herd Immunity to Manage the Coronavirus Should Ring Alarm Bells

The Trump administration reportedly could be taking us down a dangerous path.
A drawing of a person with a facial expression of pain with "Simple Bodily Pain" written above

The Fifth Vital Sign

How the pain scale fails us.
A pen drawing an eye.

The Cheap Pen That Changed Writing Forever

The replacement of fountain pens was a stroke of design genius perfectly in time for the era of mass production.

How Eugenics Shaped Statistics

Exposing the damned lies of three science pioneers.
Forest on fire with two firefighters spraying water

A Note from the Fireline

Climate change and the colonial legacy of fire suppression.
Ketamine bottles

The Many Lives of Ketamine

Neuroscientist Bita Moghaddam traces the history of ketamine from the battlefield to the dance floor.
Doctor helping a patient

Trump’s Doctor Comes From a Uniquely American Brand of Medicine

Osteopathy was founded by a 19th-century healer who believed the body was a self-healing machine.

Grapefruit Is One of the Weirdest Fruits on the Planet

From its name, to its hazy origins, to its drug interactions, there's a lot going on beneath that thick rind.

Trump's Touting of 'Racehorse Theory' Tied to Eugenics and Nazis Alarms Jewish Leaders

President Trump has alarmed Jewish leaders by appearing to endorse 'racehorse theory' — used by eugenicists and Nazis last century.