Mata Hari, nee Margaretha Geertruida, was considered to be the ultimate femme fatale for much of the 20th century. Making waves as an exotic dancer in the years before the First World War, Mata Hari became known as a seductress of powerful men who used her feminine wiles as a spy for the Germans.Mata Hari […]
Mata Hari – the Ultimate Femme Fatale Read More »
Of the many shady undertakings committed by Helen Duncan, witchcraft was not one of them. But nonetheless, during the Second World War the Scottish Spiritualist and show-woman was convicted under the 1735 Witchcraft Act. Duncan spent nine months in jail, and was the last person prosecuted in Britain under this legislation.An irony is that Duncan
Helen Duncan and the 1735 Witchcraft Act Read More »
In our theme this week of “women who were famous for something they didn’t do,” I turn to the well-known and macabre story of the alleged death of Catherine the Great of Russia (d. 1796). The incredibly successful monarch had her husband assassinated, suppressed many rebellions, and was a patron of the arts. But she
The Rumor of Catherine the Great’s Death Read More »
You are looking at a rare Medieval illustration of the anatomy of a uterus. It is highly schematic/abstract, obviously, but the important bits for Medieval people were all there. At the top, you see a fetus (the Latin words used were “embryo,” “conceptus,” and “fetus”), and straight below it is the entrance marked “hec eat
Medieval Uterus Anatomy Read More »
We know that women in the Middle Ages wanted to have control over their ability to conceive, and medical texts from these centuries show that while women wanted to know how they could avoid getting pregnant, many were also concerned about infertility. After all, bearing children was considered the central function of women in this
The Trotula Test for Medieval Infertility Read More »
This week we are looking at Medieval birth control. This terrifying object, known as a “chastity belt,” was once thought to have been developed by men during the Middle Ages to lock up their wives or daughters’ genitalia, thereby controlling not just women’s reproduction, but their sexuality. The good news — they were probably mostly
The Fake Creation of Chastity Belts Read More »
You are looking at a page out of the Voynich manuscript, an as-yet untranslated text from the first half of the 15th-century. Shown is an illustration of what may be a type of sage plant. Many types of common herbs were likely taken as a means of birth control in the Middle Ages, but knowledge
Sage as a Contraceptive and Abortificant Read More »
The study of the history of birth control in the Medieval Isalmic world breaks a lot of stereotypes.According to the Islamic tradition recorded in the _Hadith_ (sacred Islamic scriptures accounting the sayings or deeds of the prophet Muhammad), sexual pleasure was something that married women (as well as men) had a right to. Although the
Birth Control, Sex, and Abortion in the Medieval Islamic World Read More »
This week, I am teaming up to do a crossover-post series on fashion statements that made history with my friend (and former student) Katie McGowan! (@katiemaecrochet ) Following is her write-up featuring Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s “Dissent” collar.Fashion can be used to express opinions, and no one did that more effectively than the late Supreme Court Justice,
Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Her Judicial Collars Read More »
In the second cross-over post for the week, I bring you an analysis of President Nixon’s gray suit that helped him lose the 1960 election to JFK. Katie McGowan wrote up this fashion decision that influenced history:America’s first Presidential debate in 1960 was unprecedented in many ways, but perhaps most importantly for giving live faces
Richard Nixon and His Grey Suit Read More »
In this third crossover history post on “fashion statements that made history” with Katie McGowan, I feature one of the most famous beards in history, worn by the Pharoh Hatshepsut, which means “foremost of women.” Yep, you read that right: Hatshepsut dressed in drag.Hatshepsut (c. 1503-1482 BCE) had been wedded to the powerful ruler Thutmose
Queen Hatshepsut and Drag Read More »
On our third crossover post in “fashion statements that made history” with myself and Katie McGowan, I am featuring Joan of Arc and her male attire for battle.Jeanne d’Arc, aka “the Maid of Orleans,” was highly conscientious about the way gender played into her self-perception as the military leader chosen by God to lead the
Joan of Arc – “The Maid of Orleans” Read More »
In the final crossover post this week in “fashion decisions that made history,” by Katie McGowan and myself, I am featuring the fabulously intricate imperial robes called _caftans_ worn by the Sultans of the Ottoman Empire.In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, the Ottoman Dynasty governed an area around Anatolia (modern Turkey and environs), controlling some
Extravagance of Sultan Caftans of the Ottoman Empire Read More »
Near Big Spring State Park in central Pennsylvania lies the Hemlocks Natural Area. Made up of about 120-acres of rare old-growth forest, the region became a National Natural Landmark in 1972. There, Hemlock trees over 100 feet tall and hundreds of years old grow amidst tulip poplar, black gum, oak, and basswood trees.A small stream
Central Pennsylvania’s Hemlock Natural Area Read More »
Evolutionary history is the focus of my posts for a while, and what better place to start than CRISPR? Last week, Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna’s work in using CRISPR for gene editing made news headlines – this is the first time the Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to two women. The future
CRISPR Gene and The Nobel Prize in Chemistry Read More »
This is St. George Jackson Mivart, and he ruffled the feathers of proponents of every side of the evolution debates of the 19th century. The second slide is a fossil of a ancient species called Archaeopteryx, and its ruffled feathers were at the center of evolutionary debates of the 19th century.Mivart was raised Anglican but
St. George Jackson Mivart and the Archaeopteryx Read More »
Meet Julia Barlow Platt (1857-1935), who in her 70s was elected as the first female mayor of Pacific Grove, California. She spent her late years galvanizing efforts to create a nature preserve on Monterey Bay, which is still one of the most lovely areas on California’s northern coast. Behind these achievements, however, is a story
Julia Barlow Platt, Embryotic Cells, and California Politics Read More »
This is Marie-Claire King (born 1946), and just reading about her accomplishments makes me tired. Besides earning her Ph.D. from UC Berkeley, she has six other honorary doctorates in science from the most prestigious universities in the world. From her work in discovering the genetic foundations of breast cancer, schizophrenia, and hearing loss, to her
Marie-Claire King and Genetic Studies Read More »
A few days ago I did a post featuring a fossil of a creature called Archaeopteryx, famed for having traits both bird- and dinosaur- like: it filled in a gap in the evolutionary record. The photo you see here is of the paleo-biologist Neil Shubin with a model of a creature whose fossils he found.
Neil Shubin and the Tiktaalik Read More »
Historians are frequently enchanted by things discarded as useless by the general public. But I think anyone interested in evolution would find the study of non-gene coding DNA fascinating, including the scientist featured here. This is Susumu Ohno, one of the United States’ foremost geneticists and evolutionary biologists, and he came up with the term
Susumu Ohno’s “Junk DNA” Read More »
