Tag Archives: metanarratives

How China’s ruling story helped kill 2.6 million people, and counting

Posted on 13 March 2021 by Laura Akers, Ph.D.

So far, more than 2,640,000 people around the world have died from COVID-19. Thanks to the vaccines, maybe the death toll won’t climb much higher, and maybe life will soon return to normal. But is there anything China could have … Continue reading →

Posted in narrative science | Tagged , | 1 Comment

A thousand years of grievance? Here???

Posted on 6 March 2021 by Laura Akers, Ph.D.

When I write about speeches that get people really riled up – as part of our research team’s ongoing study of genocide – one of my favorite examples is Slobodan Milošević’s Gazimestan speech. About a million Serbs showed up to … Continue reading →

Posted in history, narrative science, US politics | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

The hidden danger of stories – and a friendly alternative

Posted on 1 February 2021 by Laura Akers, Ph.D.

Audiences loved the 2019 Downton Abbey movie, but some reviewers found fault. The New York Times review noted there was “barely enough plot to go around.” The critic for RogerEbert.com frames it more positively: It’s a movie about seeing people … Continue reading →

Posted in narrative science | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

When is a story not a story?

Posted on 27 January 2021 by Laura Akers, Ph.D.

This question comes up a lot in my line of work – honestly, all too often. Let’s start with a definition. A story is a description of a particular event or series of events with a focus on one or … Continue reading →

Posted in category science, narrative science | Tagged , | 3 Comments

The burden of George R.R. Martin – and what suspense and its resolution mean for us in the real world

Posted on 22 November 2020 by Laura Akers, Ph.D.

I can still picture the display in our local university bookstore, sometime around 1999 – a major new fantasy series, with at least two books in print: A Game of Thrones, and A Clash of Kings. It looked medieval, and … Continue reading →

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The story of Dido, Aeneas, a gender-queer Sorceress, and the fate of… England?

Posted on 17 November 2020 by Laura Akers, Ph.D.

This past weekend I had the good fortune to see a most unusual opera. I confess, I’m not actually an opera fan, not in the conventional sense – as of yet I have no interest in Verdi, Puccini, et al. … Continue reading →

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Choosing your battleground: Joe Brewer’s story

Posted on 2 November 2020 by Laura Akers, Ph.D.

Today is my friend and colleague Joe Brewer’s birthday. In honor of Joe’s special day – and tomorrow’s U.S. election – I’m sharing part of my in-progress book’s chapter 11, “Transcending Loss,” where I write about Joe and the importance … Continue reading →

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The Axis of Awesomeness

Posted on 22 October 2020 by Laura Akers, Ph.D.

Our collective stories about who we are and where we’re headed are potent elements of our culture, especially during election season, as you may have seen in my recent Scientific American essay and my earlier posts in this blog.  My … Continue reading →

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The Science of America’s Dueling Political Narratives

Posted on 3 October 2020 by Laura Akers, Ph.D.

I’m delighted to have my work appear in today’s Scientific American.  Please check it out!

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Our enduring debt to the 300 Spartans

Posted on 30 September 2020 by Laura Akers, Ph.D.

Has it been 2,500 years already? It was in August or September of 480 B.C. that King Leonidas of Sparta and his 300 elite soldiers (with some allies) held off more than 100,000 Persian soldiers for three days at Thermopylae, … Continue reading →

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