Virginia's Newsletter

Which Would You Rather Give Up: Electric Light or Electric Washing Machines?

Plus, what Donald Trump could learn from Jun’ichirō Tanizaki.

Jul 19 • Virginia Postrel

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Ambition Without Hierarchy: The American Experiment at 250

Plus an artist fights fires in Amsterdam, music industry anxiety, and more

Jul 4 • Virginia Postrel

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June 2026

Everyday Abundance: Our history podcast is live!

The hidden histories behind everyday activities and the technologies you didn't even know were technologies.

Jun 10 • Virginia Postrel

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April 2026

The smelly baby problem

Benjamin Spock told mothers in the mid-twentieth century to buy six dozen cloth diapers and a covered pail. Within a decade, both were obsolete.

Published on The Works in Progress Newsletter • Apr 30

Time's Arrow and the Drive to Matter

Or, entropy and the meanings—yes, plural—of life. Plus, TV and disposable diapers in Works in Progress, good news, and nerdy fun.

Apr 25 • Virginia Postrel

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From the Archives: Must Love Dogs? If You Want the Job

This is one culture war that crosses party lines.

Apr 24 • Virginia Postrel

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February 2026

A Plague of Mysterious, AI-Written Emails from "Fellow Authors"

Early AI adopters are using it to scam authors.

Feb 16 • Virginia Postrel

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January 2026

Recent Work and an Exciting New Project

Plus recommended reading

Jan 8 • Virginia Postrel

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6

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November 2025

From the Archives: Gothic Revival Architecture Is Like Dreadlocks

You can try embedding ideology into a style but if people like the look, the meaning will get diluted over time.

Nov 20, 2025 • Virginia Postrel

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Why the Anti-Promethean Backlash?

Jason Crawford asked me a tough question. Could this chart hold an answer?

Nov 20, 2025 • Virginia Postrel

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October 2025

From the Archives: Joel Mokyr on the Industrial Enlightenment

The great economic historian Joel Mokyr has won the Nobel Prize. Here I reprint a column on his book The Gifts of Athena.

Oct 13, 2025 • Virginia Postrel

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From the Archives: How Job-Killing Technologies Liberated Women

Progress is more than space adventures.

Oct 3, 2025 • Virginia Postrel

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