A Brief History of Chairs

On the Paris Review, an excerpt from Witold Rybczynski’s forthcoming book “Now I Sit Me Down: From Klismos to Plastic Chair: A Natural History,” delves into the development of chairs as we know them. Beginning with a survey of how cultures across the globe choose to sit (and how it pertains to their region, climate and more), Rybczynski then segues into the history of the …

Prince’s Paisley Park to Open to the Public

Most people will remember exactly where they were when they heard that His Royal Badness, Prince, passed away. The tragic news then led to many wondering what would happen to his immense backlog of work, and his beloved home/studio Paisley Park. The trust that’s running the late musician’s estate announced that—starting 6 October—Paisley Park will be open daily for public tours. The Minneapolis complex is …

Our Nearest Habitable Planet

As the Atlantic puts it, the exoplanet Proxima b exists in its galaxy’s “Goldilocks” habitable zone: “No one will ever find a closer alien world than this.” The reason this happens to be a big deal: all signs point to the planet being able to support water and arguably existing life. There are still plenty of variables that could negate all of this wondrous news: …