Imagine a time when sugar was prescribed, not avoided. For much of its early history, sugar was considered a valuable medicinal ingredient. Today, its overconsumption is linked to some of the world’s most widespread diseases. How did sugar go from being a healing luxury to a global health concern? The answer is a story spanning […]
What do Richard the Lionheart and sugar have in common? Read More »
Figure 1. Wetland landscape, Topsakanaapa, Lapland, Finland. Photo by Harri P on Unsplash. Walking through the countryside have you ever stepped off the path only to be confronted with an area of damp, soggy, muddy terrain that is too wet and unstable to step onto? Was that area called fen, marsh or bog? Most likely
‘Mud, glorious mud’ – Can peat help our planet? Read More »
The importance of bodies—and control thereover—has been recognized much longer and holds more sway than you would think. Habeus corpus (lit. “you shall have the body”) is a foundational concept of many legal systems, and is intended to guard against the physical detainment of a (living) body without just cause. But even dead bodies have
How much is your body worth? Read More »
When was the last time you took a photo of a loved one or a selfie of yourself? It is probably not too long ago! But did it cross your mind that this image could still be around in a few hundred years, telling a story about you and your life? If yes, you have
Carving Memory: What Palmyra’s Portraits Reveal About Ancient Craft Read More »
This snack was first posted on the Scisnack website in June 2023. There are many curious misconceptions about life in the past, but a particularly common one is the idea that people just didn’t live very long. With the relatively recent improvements to the quality of life and reduction in infant mortality thanks to modern
Life ends at 40? Mythbusting ideas of age in the past Read More »
This snack was first posted on the Scisnack website in April 2022. As a person living in England, the COVID-19 lockdowns of 2020-21 meant a lot of comfort eating and not a lot of movement – two years later and I am still working to reverse the effects this has had on my health and
