Similar to today’s backpackers, clutching their travel guides and setting out on great adventures to see the Eifel Tower, Great Barrier Reef or Machu Picchu, Hellenistic travelers in the 4th Century longed to catch a sight of one or all of the seven great, manmade wonders all located in...

One might be surprised to learn that historically, women have always played a crucial role in the field of science, serving as observers, experimenters and even teachers. As early as the prehistoric times, women gathered food for their families and communities, learning by experimentation to distinguish between and classify...

Click here to see the graphic! By some measures, student debt passed the $1 trillion mark this year, eclipsing American credit card debt and putting a stunning figure on an absolutely overwhelming sum of money. The fact that students are suffering tremendously from this burden has been a news...

The Cherokee Nation is today the largest Native American tribe with over 300,000 members. According to the Nation’s 2010 annual report, the tribe has a $1.3 billion economic impact, and has seen job growth even during the recent economic recession, especially in the Cherokee Nation Entertainment and Cherokee Nation...

Over the past 100 years higher education has gone from a rarity to an expectation in American life. But with the abundance of schools, what is really being taught today? In this guide, we assemble a snapshot portrait of higher education in contemporary America for the non-expert reader, and link to...

As modern Western philosophy has evolved since the 19th Century, it has split into two rough schools: an "analytic" school in the Anglosphere, and a "continental" school in continental Europe.  In this non-expert's guide, we explore what continental philosophy is, discuss some of the recurring themes and major philosophers...

If you scan the history section of your local library, you’re likely to find significant sections on monarchs and rulers, military conflicts and the national borders they changed. For many centuries, history was essentially the study of great men and the wars they fought. Yet in recent years, historians...

You put your foot to the brakes on your car as you approach a red light. You tap the arrow on your mp3 player to make your music start. You start to accelerate when the light turns green. You know to stay between the yellow lines painted on the...

The Great Exhibition of the Works of All Nations was also called the Crystal Palace Exhibition, so named for the massive temporary glass structure in which it was held. Britain’s monumental project was fashioned after the successful French Industrial Exposition of 1844. From 1798 to the mid-1800s, France hosted eleven such Expositions in...

Political cartoons have a deep root in American media and have provided humor as well as critique of politics and government for generations. The era of American History known as the ‘Gilded Age,’ following the end of the Civil War, saw a growth in the usage of political cartoons....

Classical or ancient Athens was named after its patron goddess Athena, the goddess of wisdom, and is considered to be the birthplace of both democracy and Western Civilization. Between the time period of 508 to 322 BCE, Athens was a democracy, with Athenian hegemony reaching its height during the...

The American West was marked by heavy struggle, cultural conflict, physical drama, exploration, and lots economic of stimulation. Over time tales of the frontier have captivated and mystified citizens, and even today the Old American West is thought of  as a lawless space outside of the reaches of society...

Long ago in a different age, in a kingdom far away, nameless storytellers sat down by the fire and wove their tales for hungry imaginations.  The people listening looked different depending on the time and their location, and the stories varied, too -- while West Africans listened to how...

The study of demographics is the gathering and analysis of the statistical data relating to a given population. In the United States, the U.S. Census Bureau is without question the most useful resource for information about American demography. From its home page, you can access the current population of the nation...

Here is a brief look at three of the largest and most influential Native American populations in North America, along with resources to gain a far more complete knowledge of the Navajo Nation, the Sioux Tribes, and the Iroquois Confederacy. The theory of the origin of the Athabascan people, including...

It is well know that historically, women were often prohibited from attending college and attaining advanced degrees in any subject. Women who pursued mathematics were discouraged from formal learning, and it is for this reason that many were forced to educate themselves.  It was also deemed inappropriate for those...

In light of its long tradition of immigration, the U.S. today takes in more legal immigrants than all other countries in the world --- combined.  Approximately 60 million Americans are first or second generation immigrants, nearly one out of five citizens. The grand influence of immigrants from all over...

Bridget O’Donnel was lying on the floor in a fever and behind on the rent when the authorities came to take her. Fortunately, her two neighbors carried her out and laid her in a cabin to recover. During the eight days she lay in fever, she gave birth to...

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a serious anxiety disorder that currently affects one in fifty adults in the United States. It is marked by repeated and upsetting thoughts (obsessions) as well as rituals and activities that sufferers feel compelled to complete (compulsions). Often depicted in television shows and feature films,...

The Federalist Papers were a series of 85 papers, essays, and articles written between 1787 and 1788. The true name of this essay series is The Federalist; the term The Federalist Papers is a 20th century concept that is now the more popular name for the collection. The main...