The world is full of symbols, even if we don’t consciously consider them such. A symbol is something that represents something else through common agreement rather than anything inherent in its nature. In America, a red octagon is strongly associated with “Stop,” as is a red light. In other contexts,Continue Reading
For a long time, I often abbreviated Christianity and Christmas to Xtianity and Xmas in class for no better reason than it was quicker. Then, one day, I had a student complain the spelling was anti-Christian. This student had been a semester-long pain in the ass (accusing me of workingContinue Reading
So, I’m watching The Librarians on TNT, which is similar to Warehouse 13, except with more well-known actors. It’s based off a series of TV-movies starring Noah Wyle as the Librarian, a person tasked with gathering dangerous magical artifacts so they are not misused by others. The new series doesContinue Reading
Every semester a student asks me this question: how long did people live in ancient times? Was it really only 35 years? General life expectancy across the world for most of history was, indeed 35. However, “life expectancy” is a terribly imprecise term, giving the impression that any particular personContinue Reading
I spent my junior year of college at Lancaster University in Britain, which was fabulous for someone going into medieval English history. One of my courses covered Elizabethan England. (Yes, I understand that’s not medieval.) The professor was particularly notable not just because he was American teaching English history inContinue Reading
Yesterday, Scotland voted 55/45 to remain within the United Kingdom rather than separating off into an independent state that hasn’t existed since 1707. Friction on the matter has existed pretty much forever. The Scottish see themselves as having a different culture than the English, although as someone living in theContinue Reading
This semester, I am teaching Religions in America at UW-Oshkosh. Rather than simply being a survey course of religions, the course specifically addresses how these religions manifest in and interact with American culture. I debated long and hard whether or not I would cover Islam on Sept 11. I don’tContinue Reading
Although there is some debate as to the specific month and day of the eruption, August 24 is the most common one given as the start of the Mt. Vesuvius eruption in 79 CE. The disaster buried the nearby cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum and caused one of the highestContinue Reading
100 years ago today, Austria declared war of Serbia, sparking the First World War, which would be the deadliest war to that point and arguably the most deadly in history. (It depends how you count the war dead for WWII.) The first time I taught WWI, I asked how manyContinue Reading
St. Margaret of Antioch, also known as St. Margaret the Virgin and St. Margaret the Martyr, is purported to have lived at the end of the 3rd century during the great persecution of Christians under the reign of Emperor Diocletian. Disowned for converting to Christianity, Margaret moved to the countrysideContinue Reading