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No one shall be found among you who makes a son or daughter pass through fire, or who practices divination, is a soothsayer, an augur, or a sorcerer, or one who casts spells, consults ghosts or spirits, or seeks oracles from the dead. For whoever does these things is abhorrent to the Lord; it is because of such abhorrent practices that the Lord your God is driving them out before you.
—Book of Deuteronomy, c. 620 BC
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- Déjà Vu Is history repeating itself? The Déjà Vu blog investigates... Fit for the Job — Chris Christie’s weight-loss surgery sparks presidential rumors; in 1905 William Howard Taft reduces the old-fashioned way. Trip of a Lifetime — A one-way trip to Mars generates thousands of willing participants; in 1609, the Virginia Company deems Jamestown is the place to be. Race to the Top — The World Trade Center prepares to assume the role of tallest building in NYC; in 1939, the Chrysler Building employs a complicated scheme to achieve the highest height.
- Roundtable Insight and analysis from renowned writers and thinkers. The Most Talented Dogs in England — In 1895, a British weekly publishes the breathless letters of its dog-obsessed subscribers The Complete Syllabus: Animals — A list of books used in our Summer issue, “Animals”. Charles Mingus Toilet-Trains Your Cat — In 1952, jazz musician Charles Mingus developed a successful technique to toilet train his cat.
