Friday, March 29, 2019

Hrdlička’s Alaska diary

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Alois (later Aleš) Hrdlička, a pioneer of North American anthropology and evolution studies, was born 150 years ago today. While curator of ...
Saturday, March 23, 2019

The father of American botany

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Born 320 years ago today, was John Bartram, the father of American botany. He was made King George III’s botanist of North America, and Carl...
Sunday, March 17, 2019

Life on an ocean steamer

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‘This is a very fine steamer, and the ocean is so quick - at times today, as smooth a sea as I ever saw any where - that we dont seem to rea...
Saturday, March 16, 2019

Lofty idealism, artistic perfection

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‘Midnight; I had dinner with young people; an hour in the cafe: lost time, nonsense, boredom. Is this nothing but an evening of life? I did ...
Thursday, March 14, 2019

As big as the West

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‘Married once again and - I swear - for the final time.’ This comes from the diary of Edward Abbey, a controversial American writer - ‘as bi...
Wednesday, March 13, 2019

Why Ever Did I Want to Write

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‘Why am I writing this autobiography of sorts, this collection of stories about myself, this patchwork of a life? I’m no celebrity, and I’ve...
Thursday, March 7, 2019

First US balloon flight

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Jean-Pierre Blanchard, a pioneer of balloon flight, died 210 years ago today. His first successful flight was made in Paris in 1784, but by ...
Wednesday, March 6, 2019

Best president Nigeria never had

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Today marks the 110th anniversary of the birth of Obafemi Awolowo, a Nigerian politician some describe as the best president Nigeria never h...
Tuesday, March 5, 2019

Trungpa’s escape from Tibet

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Chögyam Trungpa, the Tibetan monk who became a renowned lay teacher of Buddhist teachings in the United States and founded the Shambhala org...