Blame the Gerbils, and More

The bubonic plague initially spread not by rats, but by gerbils.

Theater tickets and copies of Playbills are by definition ephemeral. But they also serve as a history – a record that’s vanishing... more »

The bubonic plague’s origins were in the Tien Shan mountains in modern Kyrgyzstan. It spread not via rats and ships, but with gerbils... more »

Margaret Fuller had “a predetermination to eat this big universe as her o…