Collections

Eight Jews have sat on the Supreme Court of the United States, from Louis Brandeis in 1916 to Elena Kagan today. Between them they wrote the right to privacy into American law, won a lawyer for every criminal defendant, held that students keep their constitutional rights at school, and built the case law of gender equality. For decades the seat passed from one Jewish justice to the next and was known, half openly, as "the Jewish seat".

Though Jews are about 0.2% of humanity, they account for a strikingly large share of Nobel Prizes. These are documented Jewish laureates across physics, chemistry, medicine, economics, literature and peace.

From the USB drive and the Waze app to drip irrigation and life-saving devices — Jewish inventors and engineers have shaped everyday technology worldwide. Each profile is sourced.

The teddy bear, Barbie, Mr. Potato Head, Hot Wheels, Transformers, Rummikub, Guess Who?, the Ant Farm, Operation, The Game of Life, the home games console, Lionel trains, Madame Alexander dolls, Hasbro and Toys "R" Us. Most of these are still made and still played, and the people behind them were often refugees: Henry Orenstein survived five concentration camps before he brought Transformers to the West, Theo Coster was a classmate of Anne Frank, and Ruth Handler asked her husband to stop using the name Isadore. Each profile is sourced.

Vaccines against polio and hepatitis B, the blood-group system, chemotherapy, MRI and more: a directory of Jewish scientists and physicians whose work saves lives. Every claim is sourced.

Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Estée Lauder, Levi Strauss, Chanel's owners and dozens more — the Jewish designers, houses and beauty founders who shaped how the world dresses. Each profile is sourced.

The founders of the great studios, celebrated directors and actors: Jewish filmmakers and performers who helped build modern cinema. Each profile is sourced.

Composers, conductors, virtuosos and songwriters — from the concert hall to Broadway and pop. A sourced directory of Jewish musicians who shaped the sound of the modern world.