Pearl Harbor and the Enduring Legacy of War
By Duke Omara Seventy-five years ago, on Dec. 7, 1941, a Japanese strike force consisting of six aircraft carriers descended on the territory of Hawaii and unleashed a ferocious aerial raid on the American naval base of Pearl Harbor on Oahu Island. Less than two hours after the first Japanese aircraft appeared over the horizon, […]
Researchers and animal rights activists continue their heated debate
By Catherine Chen More than 200 rats “go through” Mason Lab each year. The lab at the University of Chicago conducts experiments with the rats to study psychology, neurobiology and social behavior and advance diagnosis and treatment for human conditions. The Mason Lab used 24 rats in their latest research focusing on rats’ helping behavior. […]
Safe in Chicago but never far from their flight
By Fariba Pajooh When Soghra Ataee and her four children go grocery shopping in Chicago, they melt into the crowd. Their tortuous 7,500-mile, 15-year journey to get here from Afghanistan is their private secret. But the memory of that trip never escapes them. “I have been like a stray cat, picking my children up in […]
The ‘Light’ shines on for Chicago’s Neo-Futurists and underground theater
By Grant Rindner Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind has been a mainstay of Chicago’s underground theater scene and the most visible performance of the city’s Neo-Futurist movement for 28 years since the play debuted on Dec. 2, 1988. The long-standing show made new headlines this fall as its creator, Greg Allen, abruptly decided […]
Veterans of Chicago’s DIY counterculture see a shifting scene and new paths ahead
By Grant Rindner When Rae Bees came to Chicago from Tallahassee, she already had deep roots in Florida’s DIY culture that went back to her college days. When she arrived in the Windy City, she became involved with Hostel Earphoria, a house and creative space that hosts artists traveling through Chicago and looking for an authentic understanding […]
Northwestern scientists go high-tech to uncover the secret hidden on top of a 16th century book
By Catherine Chen Researchers at Northwestern University are relighting lost history by identifying “ghost” texts on a degraded manuscript used as the cover of a book printed in Italy in the early 16th century. The book, “Works and Days,” was originally written by Greek poet Hesiod in the 8th century B.C. Northwestern has a copy […]
Chicago’s LGBTQ community gearing up for Trump presidency
By Puja Bhattacharjee The LGBTQ community in Chicago is not taking any chances on President-elect Donald Trump’s shifting statements. Organizations and groups advocating LGBTQ rights are hosting on-going events to calm, organize and inform the community about their rights and the resources available to them. On November 28, the Center on Halsted organized A Call to Rise […]
Mount Greenwood protests a microcosm of national division on police brutality
By Alex Ortiz During the afternoon of Nov. 20, a group of some 15 protesters walked down a closed off streets at Kedzie Avenue and 111th Street in Mount Greenwood on the city’s far southwestern edge. It was a cool but clear day — perfect for a large demonstration. Residents looked on while standing on […]
Whimsical Chicago improv team rides an undercurrent of intensity
By Lily Williams A young group of improv artists who call themselves “Snowball” are connecting with audiences at Chicago’s iO Theater not only with the laughs, but also by just listening. During a practice, a volunteer says “robot,” and two artists walk to the center of a circle of their peers. One bends slightly at […]
AIDs legacy of loss told through new exhibit Art AIDs America Chicago
By Hannah Moulthrop A gong reverberates through the white-walled space once every 10 minutes. Piñatas that resemble HIV viruses hang from a swath of ceiling above the staircase. Oversized glass red blood cells are strewn across the floor. These works and 169 others anchor the new Art AIDS America Chicago exhibition at the pop-up Alphawood Gallery […]
