The New Inquiry

Lorraine Boissoneault writes in The New Inquiry to explain the science of what makes pain so personal.

Bridget Keown writes in The New Inquiry about how the representation of women during The First World War, as gendered bodies within a strictly controlled patriarchy, affected how their trauma was heard and respected.

We are all brands when we date.

"An unabashed exploration that steers her outlaw body.”

Is human life so awful that we should stop making more of it? Rhys Southan, writing in The New Inquiry, interrogates the antinatalist philosophy of David Benatar, who believes that humanity should stop reproducing once and for all.

The publication of Charles Darwin’s ‘On the Origins of Species’ in 1859 paved the way for a new understanding of human nature as constantly changing, evolving. With this idea came the hope of disrupting class, gender, and racial hierarchies: “If species and geology are not fixed, than neither are human systems of oppression.” Olivia Rosane, writing in The New Inquiry, pays tribute to May Kendall, the 19th century English poet who challenged the status quo through her remarkable poetry of Evolutionary Feminism.

Exploring how Silicon Valley's elite coopt history for their own autocratic ends.

In the 19th century, women may not have been as free as men to travel and explore distant lands, but they didn’t let that stop them. They could make the same journeys from the comfort of their homes. Courtney Stephens, writing in The New Inquiry, interviews Shane McCorristine on the specifics of 19th- century female clairvoyance, in light of his monograph, Spectral Geographies of Arctic Exploration, a study on supernatural narratives and arctic exploration in the Victorian era.

What do the words “radical” and “revolutionary” really mean today? Bobby London, writing in The New Inquiry, wonders if true socio-political change is possible, or if we simply reinforce what we already know, destroying each other along the way.

There are two kinds of structural lonelinesses.

Lizard People. Ancient Aliens. Freemasons. Who really runs the world? Conspiracists cling to the comforting notion of a world controlled by a rational agent. But Jarrod Shanahan, writing in The New Inquiry, suggests that the true ruling power is actually beyond anyone’s control. An autonomous and ever-present force: Capitalism.

A pet dog seemed like an unlikely choice for Jacob Bacharach, who was never really an “animal person”. But, writing in The New Inquiry, he tells the part-hilarious, part tear-jerking story of how a beagle named Pippi became an unlikely companion in his journey of healing after the death of his younger brother.

Margrethe Bohr’s contribution to her husband’s work on quantum physics is undeniable. Megan Shields Formato, writing for Lady Science, published in The New Inquiry, illustrates the hidden female contribution to historical scientific breakthroughs.

No more male-only scriptoriums! Women were at the heart of medieval intellectual life. Robert Davis, writing for Lady Science – the multifaceted collaborative writing project focused on women in science, technology, and medicine – and published in The New Inquiry, reveals the crucial role played by women in the writing and production of early Medieval manuscripts.

Technological innovation is not an inherent good for disabled people

“Ice cream is exquisite,” observed Voltaire. “What a pity it isn’t illegal.” Christine Baumgarthuber, writing in The New Inquiry, examines the delicious histories of our favourite frozen delicacies.

A post-modern powerhouse, Foucault’s work resonated with a wide variety of readers. But some aspects of his thought are rarely discussed today. Christopher Chitty, writing in The New Inquiry, rediscovers Foucault’s late anarchic lectures and his insistence on paying attention to the voices of the oppressed.

At Tesla, everything feels like the future except for them. The factory workers often suffer injuries and work in unsafe conditions in order to meet demanding production quotas. Aaron Neiman, writing in The New Inquiry, studies the relationship between work and pain on Elon Musk’s technological frontier.

If you don’t go and see the new Star Wars film, are you even part of modern society? Rob Horning, writing in The New Inquiry in December 2017, meditates on the obligations of culture and the conscious act of conforming.

How quickly can you disrupt an industry and automate your own workforce? Francis Tseng and Willie Osterweil, writing in The New Inquiry, explain the thinking behind their new dystopian Silicon Valley videogame: The Founder.

When an undercover operative falls in love, who is to blame? Hannah Black, writing in The New Inquiry, examines the meaning of a love lived insincerely after the infamous case of policeman K.

Carmen Petaccio, writing in The New Inquiry, wonders: what if the idea of a universal basic income was just a way for billionaires to appease the revolutionary potential of the poor?

The Internet has delivered on its promise of a community for the blind. Jonathan Mosen, writing in The New Inquiry, reveals the digital world’s unseen power.

Theft might be wrong, but so is corporate greed. Charles Davis argues that it's okay to steal from the very rich.

Acting on instinct, hunting people down, watching them live their lives like a Predator in the sky. The 2015 Whistleblower of the Year and air-force veteran Brandon Bryant remembers his time spent pulling the trigger for military drones.

In the future, will we be governed by Dictators or CEOs? Willie Osterweil argues that we have reached the end of liberalism and what comes next will either be rampant ethno-nationalism or borderless corporate utopias.

Is the notion that a man can ruin a woman’s life with his unwanted penis a completely misogynist one? Charlotte Shane recounts her own experiences of sexual mistreatment and examines whether the establishment of the seriousness of rape has stigmatized intelligent discussion of it.

We medicate based on data. Answers fed into machines that let the doctors keep us healthy. As a result, gay men from communities of colour can now see themselves represented in ads for sexual health and HIV medication. Marcos Santiago Gonsalez studies the impact of data-driven healthcare on race and personal freedom.

Buying organic food and listening to the right podcast is only part of the story.

From 16th century Belgium to contemporary Mali, images and inanimate objects have always been the targets of religious destruction. Teju Cole considers the act of iconoclasm and the motivations behind violence against art, buildings and other inanimate icons.

After stealing thousands of dollars worth of cash and merchandise, Luke Martinez was offered an alternative to incarceration: home-monitoring.

Why do we expect the police to provide security?

Can love be separated from the idea of the couple? A contemplation of the tension between selfhood and romance.

The digital universe has created an obsession with things that are supremely analog, like sepia tints, token typewriters and camping trips. Nathan Jurgenson, writing in The New Inquiry, argues that this fetishization of real-life is mistaken, the digital world is real-life now.

Why do we feel the need to colonize what lies beyond our pale blue planet? Space is cold and empty and won’t solve any of our problems. Sam Kriss, writing in The New Inquiry, sings the virtues of the committee to abolish outer-space.

Shakespeare plays are being staged in maximum-security prisoners, acted out by people incarcerated for crimes worthy of early modern tragedies. Malcolm Harris, writing in The New Inquiry, asks what is expected of prisoners during these performances and what this tells us about freedom and our attitudes towards those behind bars.

When films use shocking scenes without advancing the plot, it’s normal to wonder why they bother.

Must a genius always be alone? Exploring Sontag and solitude.

Social media allows the folly of childhood to remain suspended in eternity.

From Tony Soprano to Dr. House and not to mention Sherlock Holmes, television is filled with characters who pursue their own goals at the expense of others.

With the advent of machine learning and image recognition software, the act of seeing is today being shared between both humans and computers. The photographer Trevor Paglen, writing in The New Inquiry wonders what happens when the images start looking at us.