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October 2020
Features
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You Don't Know Nero
Reassessing history’s most maligned ruler, notorious for fiddling while Rome burned
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It Is Here. And It is Hungry
A voracious, shape-shifting insect native to Asia is attacking crops, vineyards and trees. Can scientists stop the swarm?
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The Last Quiet Places
To the ends of the Earth in search of the healing power of silence
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Hatred in Plain Sight
In the German parish where Martin Luther revolutionized Christianity, a vile, 700-year-old sculpture openly denigrates Jewish people. Why is it still there? A special report
Departments
Things That Matter
Finding the next awe-inspiring artifact requires flexibility, help from the community—and a healthy dose of good luck
A Brief History of the United States Postal Service
To forge a nation, the founders needed an efficient communications network
Marketing the Moon
When it came to exploring outer space, Americans had to see it to believe in it
The Cowboy Poet
Ballad of the forgotten life and indelible verse of a man known to many as “Anonymous”
The Zen Machine
Robert Pirsig’s motorcycle took millions of Americans on a new spiritual journey
Don't Be Puzzled
You can find seven clues in these pages
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