Published Articles
A partial list of articles by Jeremiah Creedon.
Art and Culture
“The Greening of Tony Soprano”
An intro to “ecopsychology” and American ideas about nature as seen on The Sopranos. Utne Reader (May-June 2003). Reprinted in Reading Life: A Writer’s Reader (Thomson Wadsworth, 2005).
“Ecopsychology 101”
A reader’s guide to books about ecopsychology. Utne Reader (May-June 2003).
“Cries and Whispers”
On soundscapes as art in Norway. Utne Arts Extra (2003).
“Through a Lens, Darkly”
A brief tribute to Brazilian photographer Sebastião Salgado. Utne Reader (July-August 2000).
“Lights! Action! Tyranny!”
On The Decalogue by Polish filmmaker Kryzsztof Kieslowski. Utne Reader (July-August 2000).
“The Call of Jack London”
Revisiting the work of California’s original radical dude. Utne Reader (May-June 1999).
“The Geopolitics of Bats and Wickets”
On Beyond a Boundary, a classic study of cricket’s role in West Indian culture by C.L.R. James. Utne Reader (May-June 1999).
“To Hell and Back”
Harvard legal scholar Martha Minow on war crimes and the power of apologies. Utne Reader (March-April 1999).
“The Words of War”
Reviewing two new anthologies of writing about the Vietnam War. Utne Reader (January-February 1999).
“The Song of Star Trek”
A look back at the TV series Star Trek on its 25th anniversary. Final Frontier (September-October 1991).
“Drawing Power from the Art of the State”
A walk through Graphic Design in America at the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis. In These Times (December 13, 1989).
“The Cannes Can of Worms”
On Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing and Steven Soderbergh’s Sex, Lies, and Videotape. In These Times (October 18, 1989).
“Notes from the Underground”
Examining art and literature inspired by tunnels and caves. Artpaper (February 1989).
“Funk Night”
Notes on a weekly dance event at the legendary First Avenue. Minneapolis Star Tribune (February 25, 1988).
“Wilde in the Sheets”
A review of Oscar Wilde by Richard Ellmann. In These Times (March 30, 1988).
“Transforming the Comic Book into a Personal Art Form”
On the graphic novelist Art Spiegelman. Chicago Tribune (December 14, 1987).
“State’s Top Writer Due at Hamline”
A chat with the novelist Tim O’Brien. Minneapolis Star Tribune (October 23, 1987).
“Stuart Hall”
An encounter with the ideas of media theorist Stuart Hall. In These Times (September 23, 1987).
“Stolen Moments”
A look at “appropriation” in art and genetic engineering. In These Times (May 13, 1987).
“V.S. Naipaul Comes Home to Proust”
Reading Naipaul’s The Enigma of Arrival and other works. In These Times (May 27, 1987).
Science and Technology
“Increase Your Energy IQ”
A survey of the renewable energy scene. Utne Reader (July-August 2004).
“The War At Home”
A report on research efforts to block bioterror. Utne Reader (January-February 2004).
“Undercover Anthropologist”
A profile of Steve Striffler to accompany his article “Undercover in a Chicken Factory.” Utne Reader (January-February 2004). Reprinted in Globalization: The Transformation of Social Worlds (Thomson Wadsworth, 2006).
“Everything You Always Wanted to Know…”
Sex FAQs flippantly answered by evolutionary psychology. Utne Reader (September-October 2003).
“Dr. Virchow’s Cure”
On a 19th-century German doctor’s revolutionary approach to public health. Utne Reader (May-June 2002).
“The Hydrogen Age”
Considering social critic Jeremy Rifkin’s blueprint for a hydrogen-based economy. Utne Reader (September-October 2002).
“The Nature Channel”
A portrait of biologist Rupert Sheldrake to accompany an interview by John David Ebert. Utne Reader (January-February 2001).
“Will Computers Rule the World?”
Chronicling a debate between digital luminaries Bill Joy and Jaron Lanier. Utne Reader (July-August 2001).
“Ayahuasca”
Exploring the scientific visions stirred by a psychedelic Amazonian tea. Utne Reader (September-October 2001).
“Life After Oil”
Probing the modern world’s dependence on oil. Utne Reader (March-April 2001). Reprinted in The Prentice Hall Guide for College Writers, Sixth Edition (Pearson Education, 2002).
“Manatees in Space”
Reflections on space travel from a launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center. Utne Reader (January-February 1998). Reprinted in the Dutch magazine Ode (July-August 1998).
“The Path to Dolly and Beyond”
A biotech timeline up to the cloned sheep Dolly, with predictions for the future. Utne Reader (May-June 1998).
“The Biology of Joy”
On the human quest for pleasure from ancient Egypt to modern neuroscience. Utne Reader (November-December 1997). Reprinted in Annual Editions: Psychology 2000/2001 (Dushkin/McGraw-Hill, 2000).
“Is Biology Destiny?”
A status report on the nature-nurture debate. Utne Reader (September-October 1997).
“Raging Hormones”
Are endocrine-disrupting chemicals affecting human health? Utne Reader (July-August 1997).
“Mars on a Billion Dollars a Day”
A skeptical look at plans to green the red planet. Utne Reader (July-August 1994).
“ISY, SETI and the New Search for El Dorado”
An essay on the cultural rationales for space exploration. Space Policy (August 1992).
“Second Opinions on AIDS”
Surveying alternative theories on AIDS and its origins. Utne Reader (September-October 1992).
“The Mirror Makers’ Tale”
Reviewing a Hartford Courant series on problems with the Hubble Space Telescope. Final Frontier (September-October 1991).
“Mavericks in the Lab”
On the geneticist Barbara McClintock and other scientific free thinkers. Utne Reader (January-February 1994).
“The Transplant Trade”
The pluses and minuses of paying organ transplant donors. Utne Reader (September-October 1993).
“Risky Business”
A look at the practice of risk assessment and its critics. Utne Reader (September-October 1991).
“How Real is Virtual Reality?”
Critiquing a new technology hyped before its time. Utne Reader (November-December 1992).
“Playing God”
An early, skeptical view of Biosphere 2 in Arizona, history’s first utopia under glass. The Royal Geographical Society’s Geographical Magazine (August 1990). Reprinted by the Los Angeles Times Syndicate.
“The Cosmic Ark”
On Biosphere 2 and the cultural beliefs that drive climate change. New Internationalist (April 1990). Reprinted in Raging Against the Machine (New Internationalist Publications, 2003).
“Towers of the New Gods”
A personal view of the World Trade Center, before the fall. New Internationalist (December 1989). Reprinted in Raging Against the Machine (New Internationalist Publications, 2003).
“Conserving the Diversity of Life”
A look at growing concern over species decline. Utne Reader (January-February 1988).
“Flights of Fancy”
The Space Shuttle Challenger disaster and its impact on the American psyche. In These Times (September 28, 1988.)
“What’s New? Yuppie Flu”
Tracking the causes of chronic fatigue syndrome. Utne Reader (September-October 1987).
“Biotech Leaves the Lab”
On genetic engineering and the dawn of gene patenting. Utne Reader (July-August 1987).
Modern Life
“Apocalypse, Inc.”
A word on end-time thinking in various religions. Utne Reader (March-April 2005).
“Among the Unbelievers”
Noting a rise in atheism after 9/11. Utne Reader (March-April 2005).
“The Evangelical Evolution”
On intellectual trends among evangelical Christians. Utne Reader (March-April 2005).
“The Lessons of Ryōkan”
A Zen monk’s advice for the modern world. Utne Reader (March-April 2005).
“The Nineteen Kinds of Friends”
A field guide to modern friendship. Utne Reader (September-October 2001). A version also appeared in English Knowhow, Student Book 2 (Oxford University Press, 2004).
“Seller’s Market”
Who wins, and loses, when selling out becomes cool? Utne Reader (November-December 1999).
“God with a Million Faces”
On borrowing beliefs from various religions to build a personal faith system. Utne Reader (July-August 1998). Versions of this piece appeared in The Guardian, the Zen journal Mountain Record and the book American Voices: Culture and Community (McGraw-Hill, 2006).
“The Feminine Mystic”
Writer Carol Lee Flinders on reconciling feminism and spirituality. Utne Reader (July-August 1998).
“God on the Brain”
Current thoughts on the biology of religious and mystical experiences. Utne Reader (March-April 1998).
“Virtual Tibet”
On Inner Revolution by Robert Thurman and Prisoners of Shangri-La by Donald S. Lopez Jr. Utne Reader (May-June 1998).
“The Power of Global Thinking”
Debating the value of “planetary consciousness.” Utne Reader (March-April 1993).
“No Good Reason”
Can too much rationality be dangerous? Utne Reader (July-August 1993).
“The Communitarian Manifesto”
On a new challenge to American individualism and its excesses. Utne Reader (July-August 1992).
“The Treatment Ethos”
A critical look at Minnesota’s alcohol treatment industry. Artpaper (February 1990).
“The Fantasy Machine”
Examining the human attachment to cars. New Internationalist (May 1989).
“Flights of Fancy”
The Space Shuttle Challenger disaster and its impact on the American psyche. In These Times (September 28, 1988.)
“The Closure of the American Mind”
On the popularity of Allan Bloom’s The Closing of the American Mind. Artpaper (September 1988).