History continues to lurch forward every day. We are all part of history, though much to some people's dismay, we don't all have the power to make or alter history. But historical forces continue to shape our world and as long as there are tensions and clashes between opposing sides, history will move forward.

In 1989, however, Francis Fukuyama declared that history has ended by which he meant that Western liberal democracy has conquered all other ideologies of the world.

Perhaps, it is the case that capitalism is the main mode of production today. However, looking at the situation of the world right now, there are factors that shape societies not just in economic terms but also in political and social aspects.

Fukuyama’s 1989 article contained notes of surprising melancholy. ‘The end of history will be a very sad time,’ he wrote. ‘The worldwide ideological struggle that called forth daring, courage, imagination and idealism will be replaced by economic calculation, the endless solving of technical problems, environmental concerns and the satisfaction of sophisticated consumer demands.’

For all the subsequent ridicule, Fukuyama’s original idea resonantly captures our era of fragmenting grand narratives and dissolving cultural movements. ‘In the post-historical period,’ he went on, ‘there will be neither art nor philosophy, just the perpetual caretaking of the museum of human history. I can feel in myself, and see in others around me, a powerful nostalgia for the time when history existed.’

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Back when there weren't any airplanes or big ships to deliver goods and other high-value products, people had to use other means like caravans to transport such products.

In the case of Britain's diplomatic mission to the Shah of Persia, there were many fragile items including crystal chandeliers. So, in order to bring them safely to their destination, the head of the mission, Edward James Matthews had the items carried on men's shoulders the whole way.

The journey took five months – ‘an undertaking of infinite difficulty… I may say danger’. Thankfully the glassware arrived intact, and was ‘most graciously received by the King.

His Majesty expressed his approbation and praise of the great care and diligence evinced by Mr Matthews’. Letters of thanks from both the Shah and Mirza Abul Hassan Khan arrived back in London with Matthews, together with a gift to the Company of the Shah’s portrait.

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When you go to the gym, the equipment you see will usually be big and bulky, not really something that would pop or be eye-catching. They're just your ordinary gym equipment. But Work in Use, a Rhode Island-based design studio, has created gym equipment with a minimalist aesthetic that not only looks visually stylish but is also quite functional.

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The term "alt-right" has become quite popular during the past several years due to their increasing influence in the political arena. But what is the alt-right and who can be considered as the alt-right? Michael Anton explores these questions and more as he takes a deep dive into the concept of the alt-right.

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It's not a secret to most people that James Buchanan most likely had an intimate relationship with his bachelor friend William Rufus King as the two have been stuck together throughout most of their lives like two peas in a pod.

But historian Thomas Balcerski examines the personal documentation left by Buchanan and comes to the conclusion that, contrary to popular speculation, he wasn't gay.

Buchanan’s purported homosexuality has inspired considerable literary and scholarly output in the last few decades, including a 1987 article in the noted historical journal Penthouse.

The question arises because Buchanan spent a good portion of his political prime, coinciding roughly with the 1830s, in a very close friendship with another lifelong bachelor: William Rufus King of Alabama — a senator, diplomat, and finally vice president under Franklin Pierce (for a month and a half, until King died of tuberculosis).

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It is said that our universe has existed for more than 13 billion years and despite the issues we are currently facing in our world, the universe will continue to exist until it eventually has to face its own end as well. What that end might look like can be seen through a simulation created by John Boswell.

"For the first time in her life, the universe will be permanent, immutable. Entropy finally stops growing, since the cosmos cannot get messy anymore. Nothing happens and nothing will ever happen again."

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In a joint project between NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Arizona State University, they have launched robot arms which will do minor tasks in space.

To do this, they launched a rocket along with smaller payloads into space and then sent the cubesats after them. From there, the cubesats did all the work of locating the components and assembling them.

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My first encounter with wasps was a bit scary. I saw one coming in through the window and thinking that it was a bee, I swatted it away. Eventually, it signaled to its friends to come to its aid. Before long, I was faced with a swarm coming in. It was a terrifying experience.

In parts of southern United States, they experience even worse encounters. So in response to this, scientists at Washington State University are conducting research in collaboration with the US Department of Defense to learn more about the ways wasps learn in order for them to create better traps for them.

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We rely on journalists and the news media to receive information about the daily happenings around the world and for the most part, we get what we need. But there is no denying the fact that news media in general can be an ideological device. It all depends on the way the news and other information is presented.

In his piece, John R. MacArthur tries to elucidate just a bit of the news media's role not just in bringing the news to the public, but also in shaping the public's perceptions of what goes on in the world.

Not having the resources to “contradict these facts” or to reduce “the great gap between the real and the ideological,” the people remain at the mercy of the news media. Sauve qui peut, save yourself if you can.

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The television is one of the modern inventions that have changed the way we receive information. It has also heavily influenced our consumption habits and lifestyles. Moreover, it has also given us other ways of entertaining ourselves and telling stories.

Today, there are so many shows that try to grab our attention and there is even a group of people who give awards to those who make some of the best and most relevant TV shows. We are inevitably in the age of "Peak TV". But that doesn't mean that the medium itself has been revolutionized.

Adam Wilson tries to unpack that concept of the Golden Age of TV, and how it was brought about by more of a confluence of market and technological forces rather than a massive paradigm shift in the medium. Listen to the podcast wherein Violet Lucca talks with Wilson about the Golden Age of TV on Harper's Magazine.

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Though plastic waste is arguably one of the most pressing environmental concerns today, there are other types of waste to which we should also give our attention. Like cigarette butts. 

Here where I live, when you walk down the streets, whether it's early in the morning or late in the night, especially around busy districts, you will see a lot of cigarette butts on the ground. There aren't a lot of plastic bags, bottles, or cans, but cigarette butts abound. And well, there are a lot of consequences for that too.

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There are some people who believe that sentient reptilian humanoids are ruling the earth behind the scenes and making all the political decisions in the world. Though these lizard people have been stuff of legends since ancient times, the modern conception of the lizard people conspiracy theory actually originated in 1929, with Robert E. Howard's story "The Shadow Kingdom".

This and subsequent works by Howard would go on to popularize some version of these Lizard People, including in works by a close friend of his, H.P. Lovecraft. The concept caught on from here and has shown known signs of stopping in science fiction since.

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Dexterity is one skill I find very useful for a number of things and one which I would like to have more of. Just look at this guy who does a pretty impressive contact juggling routine with his dragon balls. Watch his remarkable feat on Geekologie.

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Oils obtained from animals like whales and sharks are usually marketed as healing products or remedies for an assortment of conditions. But during the 16th to 19th centuries, there was another popular oil treatment which was extracted from earthworms.

This foul-sounding tonic was brewed up by apothecaries across Europe, who would store it in these fancy syrup jars. Each jar has a shortened version of the words OLEUM LUMBRICORUM — Latin for ‘oil of earthworms’ — painted boldly on the front.

This labeling was important so the apothecary didn’t mix up your treatment with, say, the oil of puppy dogs or the oil of sperm whale heads (both real things!).

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Video games aren't just mindless entertainment. They're not merely violence-filled bloodbaths either. Many video game designers and developers are including more socially, morally, and politically-relevant content in games that could educate and inform players about the realities and contexts of the games which they play.

Perhaps the most obvious way that developers incorporate these types of content are in the games’ narratives. Developers use space, dialogue, plot, and other narrative tools to deliver games with prominent social, moral, and political dimensions. Some games are fairly explicit in their politics.

Don Daglow’s Utopia (1982) is about being a better political ruler than your opponent—even if that means bankrolling a guerrilla insurgency against them. Other games take a more subtle approach.

In Far Cry II (2008), for instance, the player contracts malaria and their advancement depends on how well they manage the symptoms. The game’s creative director noted that this was intended to make players aware of the perniciousness (and persistence) of the disease in Africa.

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