51��

Skip to content

2B034C5 In addition to Herman Melville's own experience on the whaling ship Acushnet, two real events served as the genesis for his Moby Dick. One was the sinking of the Nantucket ship Essex in 1820, after a sperm whale rammed her 2,000 miles (3,200 km) from the western coast of South America. The other event was the alleged killing in the late 1830s of the albino sperm whale Mocha Dick, in the waters off the Chilean island of Mocha. Mocha Dick was rumored to have 20 or so harpoons in his back from other whalers, and appeared to attack ships with premeditated ferocity.

Comment

Once Upon a Prime review: The connections between maths and fiction

Sarah Hart's engaging book about how central maths is to literature by authors from George Eliot to Georges Perec is a homage to both subjects

Culture

Cosmic Tumbles, Quantum Leaps review: Embodying Schrodinger's cat

Physics

Cosmic Tumbles, Quantum Leaps review: Embodying Schrodinger's cat

Culture

Creature review: Human nature is key to a sci-fi ballet

Humans

Creature review: Human nature is key to a sci-fi ballet

Culture

Animalia review: Intriguing sci-fi thriller, shame about the aliens

Humans

Animalia review: Intriguing sci-fi thriller, shame about the aliens

Culture

Springtime on Mars: Hubble's Best View of the Red Planet

Space

The First City on Mars review: How to make life on Mars a reality

Culture

Uncertain young woman standing on the street at night. This is entirely 3D generated image.

Humans

Arch-Conspirator review: Ancient Greek tragedy spun into sci-fi gold

Culture

THE LAST OF US takes place 20 years after modern civilization has been destroyed. Joel, a hardened survivor, is hired to smuggle Ellie, a 14-year-old girl, out of an oppressive quarantine zone. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal and heartbreaking journey as they both must traverse the U.S. and depend on each other for survival.

Humans

The Last of Us review: An excellent example of fungal horror

Culture

small group of people meditating on the beach. doing yoga when the sun rising.

Humans

Why We Meditate review: A convincing argument for regular meditation

Culture

Attention Span review: A welcome injection of evidence

Technology

Attention Span review: A welcome injection of evidence

Culture

White Noise review: Did this adaptation of a postmodern novel succeed?

Humans

White Noise review: Did this adaptation of a postmodern novel succeed?

Noah Baumbach’s version of Don DeLillo's award-winning novel may reflect the book’s complexity, but ultimately it could well justify fears the book is unfilmable

Books & Arts

Humans

Awe review: Neglected feeling of awe could help battle climate change

Culture

Life

Parasites review: A fascinating tour of supremely successful invaders

Culture

Comment

Wildcat review: Come for cute animals, stay for nuanced psychology

Culture

Humans

The best popular science books out in 2023

Culture