Tag Archives: Arts & Entertainment

Very tiny neurons.

Scientists have solved a classic optical illusion–and the answer’s in your neurons

There is a famous optical illusion with two gray lines inside a number of black and white bars. The gray bars are the same color, but they appear lighter or darker depending on which bars are around them. Science was never sure why, but it seems the answer lies in you brain’s neurons and how fast they can fire.

Chinese-style dragon statue in temple.

How the Costumes of ‘American Born Chinese’ Straddle Fantasy and Reality

The imprint of Greek and Roman mythology is all around us, from the names of our shoes (Nike, the goddess of victory) to the names of the planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars, etc). And maybe a certain recent movie series has made you familiar with a little Norse mythology, like Thor and Loki, too. Now a new show is introducing Western audiences to Chinese mythology. Find out how costume designers approached dressing ancient Chinese gods for a modern American audience.

Disappointed football player in blue sitting on pitch after losing on a clear day.

What Are the Yips? The Unfortunate Phenomenon Impacting Athletes

Have you ever seen an accomplished athlete suddenly perform as if they’ve completely forget how to play their sport? If so, you’ve seen “the yips”–the sudden and unexplained loss of an athlete’s typical skills–in action. The yips are basically the opposite of achievement. Learn more about a term that started in golf, quickly moved to other sports, and is increasingly being used in other fields like politics, business, and education.

9 Legends of American Folklore

Words like “myth” and “legend” often make you think of stories from thousands of years ago, but new legends are always being created. America is no exception, with a number of popular myths spreading during the 1800s as the country expanded westward. This article provides a high-level summary of nine of the most well-known American frontier legends–some entirely fictional, but some based on exaggerations around real people and events.

A Brief Introduction to Gothic Literature

You may have heard of ‘Gothic horror,’ but do you know what makes a story ‘Gothic’ or not? This resources provides a quick, high-level breakdown of key elements, themes, and techniques that can earn a story the label of ‘Gothic,’ as well as a few examples of famous Gothic horror stories you can read on your own.

Talos the First Robot

There’s a lot of talk in the news these days about advances in robotics and artificial intelligence. But, while the technology is new, the ideas for it are not. Many scholars consider the Greek myth of Talos to be the first representation of a robot in literature and art. Watch this video to learn more about this ancient, and powerful, mechanical man.

The zombie fungus from ‘The Last Of Us’ is real — but not nearly as deadly

There’s been a lot of fungus talk in the news after the popular Last of Us video game became a popular TV show. In the show, people are turned into zombies by a new form of fungus that takes over their brains. And guess what? It’s real! Well, sort of–it’s only real for insects. Should we be worried? Or do fungi do more to help humans than harm them?

Adventures in 21st Century Copyright — AI-generated comic artwork loses US Copyright protection

It seems artificial intelligence is everywhere these days, and the world of art is no exception. This has led to many questions, such as “can AI-generated art be copyrighted?” Courts have started to weigh-in and so far, the answer seems to be that machine generated art should not get the same protections as human-created images.