France
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Parisian Women Legally Allowed to Wear Pants for the First Time in 200 Years
On January 31, France's minister of women's rights made if officially impossible to arrest a woman for wearing pants in Paris
February 05, 2013 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Sweet Potato Genes Say Polynesians, Not Europeans, Spread the Tubers Across the Pacific
Sweet potato samples preserved in centuries-old herbariums indicate that Polynesian sailors, rather than Spanish or Portuguese explorers, introduced the now-ubiquitous yam across Southeast Asia and the Pacific
January 23, 2013 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Hankie Coated in Beheaded Louis XVI’s Blood Found in Dried Squash
Two centuries after King Louis XVI's execution, researchers think they've found a revolutionary souvenir from that fateful day
January 02, 2013 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Take a Tour of Victor Hugo's Paris
As a film version of his Les Miserables hits theaters, consider traveling in the French writer’s footsteps
December 24, 2012 |
By Nina Fedrizzi
Blame Napoleon for Our Addiction to Sugar
Prior to 1850, sugar was a hot commodity that only society's most wealthy could afford
December 04, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Happy Birthday Rodin, Sculptor And Breaker of Women’s Hearts
Rodin's contribution to society lives on in his artistic works, but he wrecked a few lives in his time
November 12, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Napoleon’s Army May Have Suffered From the Greatest Wardrobe Malfunction in History
Historians still puzzle over Napoleon's catastrophic Russian defeat, but materials scientists think the army's buttons may be to blame
October 25, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
French Bees Are Making M&M-Contaminated Blue And Green Honey
In northeastern France, bees have been turning up with abdomens swollen in colors of blue and green, an unnatural rainbow that was also reflected in their honey
October 05, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Cartoons of Mohammed, Anti-Jihad Subway Ads and Other Provocations, Past and Future
Today, as protests continue across the Muslim world in reaction to a translated movie trailer posted on YouTube, French Magazine Charlie Hebdo announced that it was publishing cartoons depicting the prophet Muhammad
September 19, 2012 |
By Mary Beth Griggs
New Tech Identifies that Special ‘Je Ne Sais Quoi’ That Makes Paris Paris
Science provides an answer on what details in an urban street scene clue people in on what city it is from.
August 09, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Could a Whale-Powered Bus Be the Future of Transportation?
Visionary postcard artists illustrated around 90 fanciful cards between 1899 to 1910 that imagined what the future held in store for France in the year 2000.
July 31, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Today’s the Shared Anniversary of Ruin Porn Poster Children Detroit, Machu Picchu
July 24th marks double jackpot for the intrepid explorers of years past as well for as fans of the latest photographic trend, "ruin porn."
July 24, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
World’s Coolest Animal Bridges
Animal bridges, aka ecoducts or wildlife crossings, allow wildlife to safely cross potential death-traps like highways and are are popping up all over the world.
July 23, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Things That Are Surprisingly New: Forks, Lunch, Huge Drinks
Who knew that there existed a time when some of our staples of modern eating habits — the use of forks, the existence of lunch, and, unfortunately, the ubiquitous super-sized drinks found at every fast food chain around the U.S — did not exist. Forks are taken for granted in modern western eating, yet relatively [...]
June 27, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Who Was Casanova?
The personal memoir of history's most famous lover reveals a misunderstood intellectual who befriended the likes of Ben Franklin
April 2012 |
By Tony Perrottet
Ride a Stage of the Tour de France
You may not be wearing the yellow jersey, but taking a bicycle on the world’s most famous race is still thrilling
July 28, 2011 |
By Jeanne Maglaty
Stolen: How the Mona Lisa Became the World’s Most Famous Painting
One hundred years ago, a heist by a worker at the Louvre secured Leonardo’s painting as an art world icon
June 16, 2011 |
By James Zug
Jeu de Paume: Holding Court in Paris
Court tennis, the quirky game of finesse and speed that once dominated France, is now kept alive by a small group of Parisians
May 19, 2010 |
By Jonathan Brand
Rick Steves’ Europe: Rue Cler, Paris, France
The “best little street in Paris” offers tasty cheese, delectable pastries, vegetable stalls and old-fashioned merchants as an irresistible slice of authentic neighborhood life
May 01, 2010 |
By Rick Steves
Circling in on Paris’ Arc d’Triomphe
On the eastern end of the Champs-Elysees, the iconic memorial arch is a traffic nightmare but a tourist’s lesson in French history
August 01, 2009 |
By Rick Steves
