A version of this essay first appeared in The Swell, Salon's culture newsletter. Sign up for early access to articles like this, for more culture that's made to last. Two years ago, a viral trend tore ...

Throughout history, there have been empires that practically seem to stand the test of time so to say, ruling vast areas of land and people. Credits: Jean-Pol GRANDMONT, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia ...

Witness the entire story of the Roman Empire’s rise and fall through powerful visual charts. From conquests to collapse, the data tells it all in just minutes. NASA rover spots something on Mars that ...

Opening a store that exclusively sells chocolate chip cookies, or even just cookies in general, is not a special thing in 2025. Mrs. Fields, Insomnia Cookies, Levain Bakery, Chip City—the list of ...

They say all roads lead to Rome—but exactly how many Roman roads were there? According to new research, potentially over 68,000 miles (over 110,000 kilometers) more than previously known. Meet ...

A new high resolution digital dataset and map—named Itiner-e—of roads throughout the Roman Empire around the year 150 CE is presented in research published in Scientific Data. The findings increase ...

John Authers is a senior editor for markets and Bloomberg Opinion columnist. A former chief markets commentator at the Financial Times, he is author of “The Fearful Rise of Markets.” In support of ...

Do you believe in ghosts? That’s what prominent Roman lawyer and statesman Pliny the Younger asked his friend in a letter around A.D. 100. “I should very much like to know whether you think there are ...

A circular scar on Alaska’s face speaks to an event that may have contributed to the fall of societies on the far side of the world. Two thousand years ago, Alaska’s Mount Okmok volcano spewed ash ...

Many different causes likely contributed to the fall of the Roman Empire, in the various stages of that phenomenon. But new research has identified a significant factor that may have pushed things ...

The spectacular arena showcasing Ancient Rome’s power also contributed to its downfall. The Colosseum: the jewel of Ancient Rome. It wowed vast crowds with extraordinary battles. It pushed the ...