Philosophy | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/philosophy/RSS feed for PhilosophyenMon, 29 Dec 2025 18:34:57 +0000Archaeologists Are Using Lasers to Clean Decades of Grime Off a Towering 1,800-Year-Old Marble Column in Romehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-are-using-lasers-to-clean-decades-of-grime-off-a-towering-1800-year-old-marble-column-in-rome-180987926/Standing 154 feet tall, the column of Marcus Aurelius is located in the Piazza Colonna and intricately decorated with gruesome scenes of warfareMon, 29 Dec 2025 18:34:57 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-are-using-lasers-to-clean-decades-of-grime-off-a-towering-1800-year-old-marble-column-in-rome-180987926/Researchers Discover the Shocking Age of the Mysterious Pecos River Rock Arthttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/researchers-discover-the-shocking-age-of-the-mysterious-pecos-river-rock-art-180987797/The murals were painted on limestone canyon walls, in the same style, over the span of four millenniaThu, 04 Dec 2025 19:44:01 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/researchers-discover-the-shocking-age-of-the-mysterious-pecos-river-rock-art-180987797/This 1837 Harvard Speech by Ralph Waldo Emerson Inspired a Generation of American Writers to Declare Their Independence From 'the Courtly Muses of Europe’https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/this-1837-harvard-speech-by-ralph-waldo-emerson-inspired-a-generation-of-american-writers-to-declare-their-independence-from-the-courtly-muses-of-europe-180987451/His address advocated for scholars of the young United States to be less “timid,” “imitative” and “tame”Mon, 06 Oct 2025 18:20:02 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/this-1837-harvard-speech-by-ralph-waldo-emerson-inspired-a-generation-of-american-writers-to-declare-their-independence-from-the-courtly-muses-of-europe-180987451/The Smithsonian Transfers Rare 2,300-Year-Old Silk Manuscripts to Chinahttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-smithsonian-transfers-rare-2300-year-old-silk-manuscrips-to-china-180986667/The Zidanku Silk Manuscripts were smuggled into the United States in the 1940s. Scholars say they provide remarkable insights into ancient Chinese philosophy and religionFri, 23 May 2025 15:58:46 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-smithsonian-transfers-rare-2300-year-old-silk-manuscrips-to-china-180986667/These Ancient Scrolls Have Been a Tantalizing Mystery for 2,000 Years. Researchers Just Deciphered a Title for the First Timehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-ancient-scrolls-have-been-a-tantalizing-mystery-for-2000-years-researchers-just-deciphered-a-title-for-the-first-time-180986639/Mount Vesuvius' eruption preserved the Herculaneum scrolls beneath a blanket of ash. Two millennia later, X-ray scans show that one of them is a philosophical text called "On Vice"Fri, 16 May 2025 15:41:57 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-ancient-scrolls-have-been-a-tantalizing-mystery-for-2000-years-researchers-just-deciphered-a-title-for-the-first-time-180986639/Using A.I., Researchers Peer Inside a 2,000-Year-Old Scroll Charred by Mount Vesuvius' Eruptionhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/using-ai-researchers-peer-inside-a-2000-year-old-scroll-charred-by-mount-vesuvius-eruption-180986011/For the past two years, citizen scientists and scholars have been working to reveal the previously hidden texts of the Herculaneum scrollsThu, 06 Feb 2025 13:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/using-ai-researchers-peer-inside-a-2000-year-old-scroll-charred-by-mount-vesuvius-eruption-180986011/How Archaeologists Discovered Europe's Oldest-Known Book, Revealing Never-Before-Seen Insights Into Ancient Religion and Philosophyhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/how-archaeologists-discovered-europes-oldest-known-book-revealing-never-before-seen-insights-into-ancient-religion-and-philosophy-180985818/Charred by the flames of a funeral pyre, the Derveni Papyrus has proved to be a fascinating—and confounding—artifactWed, 15 Jan 2025 10:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/how-archaeologists-discovered-europes-oldest-known-book-revealing-never-before-seen-insights-into-ancient-religion-and-philosophy-180985818/After Failing Math Twice, a Young Benjamin Franklin Turned to This Popular 17th-Century Textbookhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/after-failing-math-twice-a-young-benjamin-franklin-turned-to-this-popular-17th-century-textbook-180985664/A 19th-century scholar claimed that "Cocker's Arithmetick" had "probably made as much stir and noise in the English world as any [book]—next to the Bible"Thu, 19 Dec 2024 11:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/after-failing-math-twice-a-young-benjamin-franklin-turned-to-this-popular-17th-century-textbook-180985664/The Ten Best Books About Travel of 2024https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-ten-best-books-about-travel-of-2024-180985594/These top titles of the year whisk readers away on adventures and remind us of the many wonders in this worldFri, 06 Dec 2024 15:52:32 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-ten-best-books-about-travel-of-2024-180985594/This Newly Deciphered Papyrus Scroll Reveals the Location of Plato's Gravehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/platos-elusive-grave-located-after-bionic-eye-penetrates-2000-year-old-papyrus-180984221/The mysterious site is mentioned in a text buried by Mount Vesuvius' eruption 2,000 years agoWed, 01 May 2024 20:38:50 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/platos-elusive-grave-located-after-bionic-eye-penetrates-2000-year-old-papyrus-180984221/