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Government

Drylands design students walking a ditch in the Embudo Valley

Designing Democracy Around a Ditch

How a ditch irrigation system in the arid Southwest became the backbone of local democracy

A public drinking fountain in Rome

Making Water Use Visible

Could the design of a Brita filter help us with controlling how much water we waste?

A future vision of Fresno, California, as proposed by architect Darin Johnstone and environmental consultant Mark Merkelbach

Futureproofing California Farmland

Design teams propose new models for farming and suburban development in California’s water-scarce Central Valley

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Magical Thinking and Food Revulsion

Carol Nemeroff studies why certain foods, such as feces-shaped fudge, pink slime, or recycled tap water, gross us out

After he was cast into the wilderness, Roger Williams argued that religion and government must be divided.

God, Government and Roger Williams’ Big Idea

The Puritan minister originated a principle that remains contentious to this day—separation of church and state

Brown rice

Five Nobel Laureates Who Made Food History

These five Nobelists have made food safer or more available, or increased our knowledge of it

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Shark Fin Soup in Hot Water

Perhaps it's time to start teaching kids useful kitchen skills in home economics classes.

Is Home Economics Class Still Relevant?

“Too many Americans simply don’t know how to cook,” says a historian, and that has contributed to a health crisis

School lunch program poster

What’s Cooking Uncle Sam: A Must-See Show at the National Archives

The show was a revelation for exhibiting the breadth of the government’s involvement in our food

Salisbury steak TV dinner

Salisbury Steak: Civil War Health Food

After 30 years of research Dr. Salisbury finally published his ideas, setting off one of the earliest American fad diets

Screenshot of the Food Desert Locator home page.

New Tool Maps Food Deserts in the U.S.

Approximately 23.5 million Americans are living in food deserts, most of whom live in urban areas

Cinco de Mayo: Who Prepares Your Food?

Hispanics are a major presence in the American food system—and the largest Hispanic group in the country is of Mexican origin

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Good News for Food Safety

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Major Moments in U.S. Food Law

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