Archive • Shrouded and Cloaked, a Boring Newsletter • Buttondown

Oceans of Power and a Tincture of Reproof

Readers of this newsletter know that my favored subject is that which we are often fooled into believing will be boring. I am drawn to boring things because...

Friendship, MOONBOUND, and next Monday in NYC

My dear readers! It is summer here in New York City. That means I must attempt to solve one of the enduring tensions of scholarship in the molten city: how...

Boston, Edinburgh: come say hello...

My dear readers, I am here to announce two events, and to share a cute dog picture! Your author (Dan Bouk, in case you've forgotten) will be at the Cary...

Making Up Numbers

September 20, 2023

Dear Readers Last year, some smart people asked me to write a review essay about data and the history of the social sciences. I tried. I did. But it turned...

Beware the ChatBot, or Musings on a Modern Prometheus

August 17, 2023

Hello dear readers, It is that time of year. The heat has not yet let up, but other things are stirring. Invisible bureaucratic forces tug just a bit more...

Conspiracy or Complexity and the 4th of July

Dear Reader, Hello! It has been a while. You're receiving this because at some point you signed up for this newsletter. If you want, you can unsubscribe at...

History and Genealogy in Conversation, in Pittsburgh tomorrow!

February 22, 2023

Dear Readers, Do you know someone in Pittsburgh who’s looking to have a good time? And, by “a good time” I mean they want to think deeply about census...

On Walking to the Museum, Musing on Beauty and Safety

January 23, 2023

Dear Readers, Today is the first day of a new semester. Somebody ordered up 4 inches of snow to greet us all on campus here in upstate New York. The...

Pondering the Slog

October 23, 2022

Hello Dear Readers, It has been a while! If, for whatever reason, this e-mail is now an unwelcome visitor in your inbox, you can unsubscribe here. In this...

The Multiplicity of Conversations

September 5, 2022

Dear Readers, There are so many books, aren’t there? There is even a terrific little book called So Many Books, by Gabriel Zaid, a book that I often think...

A Dream Come True

August 29, 2022

Dear Readers, Before I turn on the faucet and gush, let me remind you that you're getting this newsletter because you expressed interest in boring things,...

Democracy's Data Is Out!!

August 23, 2022

Dear Readers, This newsletter will be brief. Hooray! Democracy's Data is officially out, published, shipping, and generally available! While you're waiting...

Singing and Learning in Comfortable Obscurity

August 21, 2022

Hello there, dear readers, It is kind of you to invite me into your inbox today. But, if for whatever reason this note comes as an uninvited guest, you can...

Dear Readers, This will be a little note, about a big shift in the life of this book I’ve written (and which you’ve said you’d like to hear more about. If...

Nevada, Knuckles, some Events, and Requests

Dear Readers, I want to share a small essay with you, announce a few events, and ask a couple favors. First, the essay. (Here, scroll down a bit.) My...

Democracy and Dignity, on this 4th of July

Welcome back, dear readers. You’re getting this newsletter because you too think that there’s something really interesting and deeply important about stuff...

Is that book cover a data visualization?

Dear Readers, Let me tell you about an experiment in data visualization. By now, if you're reading this, you've seen the cover of Democracy's Data. You...

Hi again, dear readers, On April 1, the U.S. National Archives released the raw records from the 1950 U.S. census. It has been a whirlwind since. There are...

A Cover, A Code, and Lot of New Census Data

Welcome dear readers to the new newsletter! If this is reaching you in error, have no fear. You may click here to unsubscribe!. I'll make this one brief....