Lisa Bitel, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
There are many myths associated with St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. But Patrick’s own writings and early biographies reveal the person behind the legend.
Working together on a once-a-year project feels festive and special.
Flotsam/Shutterstock.com
Holiday traditions – whether culinary, religious, decorative or musical – help families bond and individuals feel stable and content.
Libby’s continues to fiercely compete with pumpkin pie peddlers Borden’s, Snowdrift and Mrs. Smith’s for a place on the Thanksgiving table.
Jean Beaufort
Australia has few public rituals around death, leaving people to figure out how to process grief alone. But Mexico’s Day of the Dead, with its focus on art and community, could help us cope better.
In the movie ‘Goat,’ a fraternity puts pledges through gruesome and dangerous rituals.
Killer Films
With the fall term underway and an ongoing case over the death of a Penn State pledge in February, colleges are trying once again to figure out why hazing happens and what should be done to stop it.
His particular brand of foolery is proving highly effective – and destructive.
Making death masks of notorious criminals was common in the 19th century, such as this cast of murderer William Burke at the University of Edinburgh’s Anatomy Museum.
David Cheskin/PA
Our panel discusses the benefits of gathering for an annual holiday meal. Traditions and rituals give us a sense of identity and closeness with those we love – and come with mental and physical health benefits too.
Albinism is a genetic condition that can cause problems with eyesight such as photophobia (sensitivity to light), involuntary eye movements, and skin sensitivity to the sun. But it is also life-threatening…
Symbolic behaviour like burial brings us and Neanderthals of the past closer.
Gareth Fuller/PA
William Rendu, Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS)
Ever since the discovery of the well preserved, nearly complete, 50,000-year-old Neanderthal skeleton in a pit dug in a cave in La Chapelle-aux-Saints, southwest France, it has been long debated as to…
Back, sperm, back: a human egg on the tip of a pin.
Flickr/wellcome images
Elephants in the room, part two For all our schemes and mantras about making our lives environmentally “sustainable”, humanity’s assault on the planet not only continues but expands. What are the deep…
Senior Research Fellow, Muslim Philanthropy Initiative at IUPUI and Journalist-fellow, Religion and Civic Culture Center, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences