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Arts & Culture / Books

How Did Computers Uncover J.K. Rowling’s Pseudonym?

Forensic linguistics can use powerful programs to track written text back to its author

Kerouac Alley in San Francisco

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This Minimalist Travel Guide Gives Detailed Directions for Recreating Kerouac’s On the Road

As mapped out by Google, the trip would take about 272 hours and 15 minutes

A Book’s Vocabulary Is Different If It Was Written During Hard Economic Times

Books published just after recessions have higher levels of literary misery, a new study finds

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A Close, Intimate Look at Walt Whitman

A haunting image captures America’s quintessential poet, writes author Mark Strand

Jonah is cast overboard to a sea monster in an image from the earliest known atlas, the Theatrum orbis terrarum, by Flemish cartographer Abraham Ortelius, first published in 1570.

The Enchanting Sea Monsters on Medieval Maps

Fictitious animals on 16th and early 17th century maps hint at how people’s perception of the ocean has changed over time

Defrosting the Crests of Inca City, LAT: -81.5° LONG: 296.3° “The nature of this polygonal network, unique on Mars, remains poorly understood, but seems to be linked to volcanic dykes covered by eolian sand. These terrains are close to the South pole and undergo springtime defrosting in dark patches that become progressively larger as temperatures climb,” writes geophysicist Nicolas Mangold in This is Mars.

This Is Mars in Extremely High Resolution

French designer Xavier Barral pored over 30,000 images taken by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter’s HiRISE camera, selecting the most appealing for his book

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Exploring Alien Life, Cat Science and More New Books to Read

Our book reviewer looks at Red Cloud’s feat and the romance of hot air

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Inside America’s Great Romance With Norman Rockwell

A new biography of the artist reveals the complex inner life of our greatest and most controversial illustrator

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“Secure Speech Cipher System”

A new poem by Linda Bierds

Cerro Prieto Geothermal Power Station, Baja, Mexico 2012

Aerial Views of Our Water World

In a new book, documentary and exhibition, photographer Edward Burtynsky looks at humans’ dramatic relationship with water

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A New Poem: “Argument from Design”

American poet David Yezzi’s latest composition

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What Your Favorite Book Looks Like in Colors

An artist reveals how each book has its own unique color spectrum

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A History of 1945, Discoveries at Sea, Ben Franklin’s Sister and More Books Worth Your Read

Some of the best books to put on your reading list

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The Secret to National Geographic’s Maps Is an 80-Year-Old Font

With a little ingenuity, a 1930s cartographer left his mark on the society

Portrait of Jane Austen, from the memoir by J. E. Austen-Leigh.

Men Wore Corsets and 7 Other Unknown Things About the World of Jane Austen

Exploring the life and times of the beloved English novelist

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The Macabre Beauty of Medical Photographs

An artist-scientist duo shares nearly 100 images of modern art with a ghastly twist—they’re all close-ups of human diseases and other ailments

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Relive Your Childhood with NMAH’s Little Golden Books Exhibition

From The Poky Little Puppy to Doctor Dan the Bandage Man, Little Golden Books have been a childhood staple since 1942

Celebrate Nikola Tesla’s Birthday with an Excerpt from a New Biography of the Inventor

Scholar W. Bernard Carlson explores Tesla’s experiments with automatons and radio controlled boats in this excerpt from his new book

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The Origin of the Pilcrow, aka the Strange Paragraph Symbol

It is now nearly invisible in word-processing programs, but it was one of the most elaborate of manuscript ornaments

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Summer Reads: Zombie Science, the American Revolution and Travels Across Italy

Looking for a good book? We’ve got some suggestions

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