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On 17th century "cocaine"
A new analysis of mummified brains pushes back the timeline for the globalization of coca
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Benjamin Breen
9

June 2024

Centuries of Childhood
The history of childhood is one of multiplicity — so why do we tell parents such simplistic stories about it?
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Benjamin Breen
5

May 2024

LLM-based educational games will be a big deal
For the first time, digital games can make qualitative assessments of learning. Here's what that might look like.
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Benjamin Breen
2

April 2024

Why etymologies matter
How tracing words can illuminate history
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Benjamin Breen
2

March 2024

"He spoke of computers with some awe"
Margaret Mead, John von Neumann, and the prehistory of AI
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Benjamin Breen
6

February 2024

How well can AI imitate an early modern doctor?
Arcadio Huang is ill in 1710s Paris. Can GPT-4 and Gemini find a cure?
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Benjamin Breen
3
The (history of) spice must flow
Why the spice trade is even more important for world history than you might have thought
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Benjamin Breen
12
Why drug history?
Drugs and spices play an outsized role in world history — but it's often a hidden one
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Benjamin Breen
6

January 2024

I talked to Terry Gross!
A brief update about the publication of "Tripping on Utopia" before we return to regularly scheduled posting
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Benjamin Breen
7

December 2023

Role-playing with AI will be a powerful tool for writers and educators
Or, how well can GPT-4 simulate an acid trip in 1963?
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Benjamin Breen
3
Simulating an LSD trip in 1963 with GPT-4
The question: how well can GPT-4 simulate a trip on LSD, specifically one in early 1960s Los Angeles? The answer… pretty damn well. Read on for the…
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Benjamin Breen
The most interesting things I read in 2023
Most of them are not from 2023
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Benjamin Breen
3
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