[EASST-Eurograd] ContraSTS Issue 2 / Call for Pitches ("fortunes")

[Thea Applebaum Licht via Eurograd]

Hello all,

Contrasts is a public-facing magazine about science, technology, and society sponsored by MIT's HASTS doctoral program and edited by its graduate students. We are excited to announce a call for pitches for Issue 02 on the theme of "fortunes." Our submission deadline is February 23, 2026. We would be grateful if you could share the CFP below with your networks—and, if interested, encourage you to submit a pitch for our upcoming issue.

Many thanks,

Thea and the Contrasts editorial team

= = = = = = = =

Call for Pitches

For Issue 02, we invite submissions that explore the vast and (un)predictable realms of “fortunes.” Whether they’re tucked into cookies, ranked by the dollar on lists of 500, tempted, or chased, fortunes are slippery, contentious things that shape how we choose, desire, imagine, and forge connections with worlds seen and unseen. Fortunes prompt us to critically examine how science and technology shape the ways we sense, influence, predict, and contend with the future.  

>From its tellers to its seekers, from the good, bad, and yet-to-come, we encourage works that consider “fortunes” expansively and creatively, drawing from perspectives in history, anthropology, literary studies, geography, media studies, architecture, and other disciplines as they intersect with STS. You can read more about the theme, the types of features we welcome, and how to pitch your submission, at contrastsmag.net.

Pitches are due via this form by 11:59:59 ET on Monday, February 23, 2026. We invite submissions from emerging scholars both within academia (from undergrads through early career scholars) and without (including artists and designers).

About the Magazine

Contrasts is an online magazine featuring works that can speak to a broad audience about the intersections of science, technology, and society. Through multiple genres—including creative nonfiction, visual essays, and short films—Contrasts aims to foster critical reflection on STEM projects by making visible the politics and social contexts of science, technology, and medicine.

Contrasts is sponsored by MIT’s Program in Science, Technology, and Society, and edited by graduate workers in the HASTS Doctoral Program.