The Darker Side of Christmas
In many times and places, the joyful holiday has been a time for melancholy reflections and ghostly visitations.
A 1920 illustration of Krampus, a Christmas demon from German folklore. Photo: Bridgeman Images By Regina Hansen Dec. 19, 2020 12:01 am ET
In this pandemic year, many of us will be celebrating Christmas under the shadow of grief and uncertainty. But Christmas, like the pagan winter festivals that preceded it, has always carried more than a hint of darkness. The joyous celebration of the birth of the Christian savior has often been an occasion for melancholy and nostalgia, particularly when families are separated by war or other tragic events.
How Autism and Invention Are Connected
Our unique ability to analyze patterns is at the root of a psychological disability and the talent that drives human development Illustration: Jon Krause Dec. 12, 2020 12:01 am ET
On the face of it, we shouldn’t expect any link between a neurological disability and one of the crowning talents of our species. But new research is revealing a surprising connection between autism and the uniquely human capacity for invention.
As the archaeological record shows, our ancestors started inventing things 70,000 to 100,000 years ago. This was when humans evolved the capacity to seek patterns particularly to spot and experiment with the basic cause-and-effect relationship of