Origins of dragons, trolls and witches

In a new class, called Medieval Fantasy Literature, students examined the origins of dragons, witches and other fantastical creatures by reading a series of ancient works.

Analyzing the tweets of Republicans and Democrats

New research by Dora Demszky and colleagues examined how Republicans and Democrats express themselves online in an attempt to understand how polarization of beliefs occurs on social media.

Solving the mystery of an unusual medieval text

Rare 14th-century texts historian Rowan Dorin found in Stanford’s Green Library show an enthusiastic exchange of knowledge between medieval people, going against the belief that the Middle Ages was an ignorant time.

Exploring what an interruption is in conversation

Stanford doctoral candidate Katherine Hilton found that people perceive interruptions in conversation differently, and those perceptions differ depending on the listener’s own conversational style as well as gender.

Algorithms reveal changes in stereotypes

New Stanford research shows that, over the past century, linguistic changes in gender and ethnic stereotypes correlated with major social movements and demographic changes in the U.S. Census data.

Poetry scholar Michael Predmore dies at 79

Michael P. Predmore, a professor emeritus who taught at Stanford for over 30 years, inspired generations of students. He was known for his analysis of Juan Ramón Jiménez’s poems.