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The Attic
FOR A KINDER, COOLER AMERICA
THINKING OUTSIDE THE TOOLBOX
THINKING OUTSIDE THE TOOLBOX

Matthew B. Crawford, Ph.D can fix your Harley, but can he fix the American malaise?

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BOOK-ISHThe AtticDecember 4, 2025Matthew B. Crawford, Shopcraft as Soulcraft, The World Beyond Your Head, motorcycles, motorcycle mechanics, American work Comments
SEQUOYAH AND THE "TALKING LEAVES"
SEQUOYAH AND THE "TALKING LEAVES"

The miracle of writing evaded the natives until one man made the leap.

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HEROES, BOOK-ISHThe AtticNovember 21, 2025Sequoyah, Cherokee, Cherokee language, Cherokee syllabary Comments
WHERE LIGHT AND LIGHTNING RULE
WHERE LIGHT AND LIGHTNING RULE

Lightning may not strike often, but “The Lightning Field” electrifies the New Mexico desert.

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ART-ISHThe AtticNovember 6, 2025Walter De Maria, The Lightning Field, Earth Art, 1970s art Comments
CELEBRATING SCHLOCKY SENTENCES
CELEBRATING SCHLOCKY SENTENCES

Beyond “dark and stormy night,” “bad lit” contests made purple prose proliferate.

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BOOK-ISH, WITSThe AtticOctober 23, 2025Bulwer-Lytton Contest, Hemingway contest, Faulkner contest, parody Comments
"MR. URBAN LEGEND" AND THE LIES THAT BIND
"MR. URBAN LEGEND" AND THE LIES THAT BIND

When Jan Harold Brunvand heard the same stories from students, he began collecting “urban legends.” They are too much with us now.

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Battling the B.S., BATTLING THE B.S.The AtticOctober 10, 2025Jan Harold Brunvand, Urban legends, The Vanishing Hitchiker, Immigrants eating pets, fake news, moral panics, BS, Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, Folklore, Modern folklore Comment
SWINGIN' WITH THE SWEETHEARTS
SWINGIN' WITH THE SWEETHEARTS

Big Bands were all male, all white. Then from the shadows of Jim Crow came the International Sweethearts of Rhythm.

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ART-ISHThe AtticSeptember 25, 2025International Sweethearts of Rhythm, Big Band Music, Women in jazz, female musicians Comments
A LEARNED JUDGE AND HIS "POETRY OF LIBERTY"
A LEARNED JUDGE AND HIS "POETRY OF LIBERTY"

With America at war, Judge Learned Hand deftly defined “The Spirit of Liberty”

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HEROESThe AtticSeptember 11, 2025Judge Learned Hand, Spirit of Liberty, "Spirit of Liberty" speech, Tolerance, immigrants Comments
AUGUST ENCORE:  ONCE MORE TO THE BEACH
AUGUST ENCORE: ONCE MORE TO THE BEACH

One last weekend, one last summer -- remembered.

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WONDERS, WondersThe AtticAugust 27, 2025Labor Day, Summer, Beach summer, Parenthood, Kids at the beach Comments
AUGUST ENCORE: HOW BURNING MAN GOT SO HOT
AUGUST ENCORE: HOW BURNING MAN GOT SO HOT

From a small bonfire on a beach, Burning Man has grown to 75,000 joyous Burners in the Nevada desert. Why not?

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American Places, DREAMERSThe AtticAugust 21, 2025Burning Man, Larry Harvey, Black Rock City, Burning Man 2021 Comments
AUGUST ENCORE:  "IN PRAISE OF BOREDOM"
AUGUST ENCORE: "IN PRAISE OF BOREDOM"

Dartmouth grads expected the usual boring commencement speaker. But Joseph Brodsky spoke about boredom itself, aka “your window on time.”

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BOOK-ISHThe AtticAugust 14, 2025Joseph Brodsky, Nobel Prize, American literature, Boredom, In Praise of Boredom Comments
THANK YOU, RAY BRADBURY!
THANK YOU, RAY BRADBURY!

Born into a world of radios and Model T’s, he envisioned a fantastic future. And you can’t say he didn’t warn us.

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DREAMERS, BOOK-ISHThe AtticAugust 7, 2025Ray Bradbury, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Martian Chronicles, Fahrenheit 451 Comments
"THE SHAPE OF WONDER"
"THE SHAPE OF WONDER"

Science used to be respected and trusted. What happened and how can we move beyond the BS and back to the facts?

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BOOK-ISHBruce WatsonAugust 4, 2025The Shape of Wonder, Science education, Alan Lightman, Martin Rees, Science stereotypes Comments
THE AMERICANS WHO SAID 'NO!' TO EMPIRE
THE AMERICANS WHO SAID 'NO!' TO EMPIRE

When war made America a colonial power, eloquent voices recalled “the spirit of 1776.”

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REBELSThe AtticJuly 25, 2025Anti-Imperialist League, American Anti-Imperialist League, anti-imperialism, Spanish-American War, Mark Twain, William James, Jane Addams Comments
THE WOMAN WHO BUILT THE GRAND CANYON
THE WOMAN WHO BUILT THE GRAND CANYON

Back when women did not build, Mary Jane Colter wove the ancient and the modern into canyon wonders.

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The AtticJuly 7, 2025 Comments
NO QUESTION TOO STRANGE OR STUPID
NO QUESTION TOO STRANGE OR STUPID

What if the sun went out? What if we all aimed laser pointers at the moon? Got a question? Ask Randall Munroe, “thing explainer.”

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WITSThe AtticJune 24, 2025Randall Munroe, What If?, What If 2?, xkcd, physics Comments
BATTER UP FOR BANANA BALL
BATTER UP FOR BANANA BALL

How the Savannah Bananas became the hottest, and hip-hopping-est team in baseball.

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WITSThe AtticJune 12, 2025Banana Ball, Savannah Bananas, American baseball Comments
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