And the modern pursuit of unrealistic beauty ideals — Even before the invention of glass-blowing in the 14th century, when the first undistorted mirrors became available, humans had an almost instinctual desire to see themselves. But although our early ancestors only had distorted reflections at their disposal— the earliest manmade mirrors, dating back to around 6,000 B.C.E., were polished…

‘Scientifically justified’ sexism and misogyny are worryingly common today — Science has been used and misused throughout history to justify prejudice, social inequality and some of the worst things human beings have done to each other. From phrenology, the 19th-century study of skull shapes and sizes as an indicator of mental abilities, the misinterpretation of Darwin’s ‘survival of the fittest’…

Surprise, surprise — ‘The silent past has been made to speak,’ wrote Irish archaeologist Hodder Michael Westropp in 1872, at the height of the Victorian era, enthralled by the developments in a brand new science: archaeology. Yup, our vision of human prehistory — the time before written records, hence referred to by Westropp…

And in particular, what we’re capable of — Women’s sports just aren’t as entertaining as men’s. Or at least that’s what’s commonly said to justify a pay and media coverage gap between the two. And it’s physical differences and prejudices about women’s athletic inferiority that are often used to sustain the sexist assertion that women’s sports are boring…

On greenwashing, celebrity-owned fast fashion brands, and the cost of glorifying overconsumption — ‘The Earth’s temperature is getting hotter and hotter. The sea levels are rising. The ice sheets are shrinking.’ You might think this is an introduction to a climate change infomercial, but actually, it’s just the beginning of Kim Kardashian’s latest ad for her shapewear brand, SKIMS. And if you want…

If you feel like products and services are becoming unnecessarily worse, you’re not imagining it — If you have to fly somewhere these days, and unless you’re willing to wear multiple layers of clothes during your travel as some people do, you’ll likely need to pay extra for your baggage. If you want to sit next to the person you’re flying with, you’ll also have to…

Moving away from rigid gender norms benefits everyone, but this doesn’t seem to have sunk in yet — The Australian government has recently come up with an interesting initiative. Following the rise in popularity of misogynistic ‘influencers’ like Andrew Tate, they announced rolling out a program to crack down on toxic masculinity, dubbed the ‘Healthy Masculinities Project.’ The initiative, supported by over $3 million in funding, is set…

Laws can outline how women ought to be treated — but enforcing them is another story — A lot of people can’t seem to grasp why women in Iceland, a country dubbed the ‘feminist utopia,’ would ever need to go on a strike. But a few days ago, they did. Around 100,000 Icelandic women and non-binary people — more than a quarter of the nation’s total population—…

Or: the forgotten history of women’s contributions to our world — Back in the good old days, women didn’t have to leave the cosy confines of their homes and put on their Big Girl shoes to hustle and grind. Or at least that’s what we have long believed. And some still do. The myth that women used to stay home and…