Professor Negar Mottahedeh gets some insight into her former homeland after an Iranian hacker steals her Instagram identity.
Krista Stevens
Posted inEditor's Pick
Grenfell Was No Ordinary Accident
Henry Wismayer reports on the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire. The worst fire disaster in London since the Blitz during World War II, the blaze claimed 80 lives. To outsiders, London, England may appear to be a “a paragon of functioning multiculturalism,” however the Grenfell fire has become England’s “Katrina moment” — the catastrophic […]
Posted inEditor's Pick
How My Instagram Hacker Changed My Life
After her sought-after five-letter Instagram handle was stolen by an Iranian hacker, professor Negar Mottahedeh opens up the door to her former homeland, striking up an unlikely friendship with the thief to learn more about a man struggling to earn a living in an economy compromised by 35 years of US-led sanctions.
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
Putting Creativity on Your Tab
Dropping acid at the office? Everybody’s doing it.
Posted inEditor's Pick
Turn On, Tune In, Drop by the Office
Emma Hogan reports that in Silicon Valley, microdosing LSD is the new “body-hacking” tool everyone from engineers to CEOs are using to boost productivity and creativity. Interestingly, while apparently everyone is doing it, users are reluctant to have their real names appear in print. Psychedelic secrets, man! Peace out.
Posted inEssays & Criticism, Nonfiction, Quotes
Why the Most Beautiful Poems Defy Understanding
“In a poem, we feel what is there, but also what is not.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
What My Father’s Death Taught Me about Poetry
Matthew Zapruder examines his relationship with poetry and with his father. Despite being two men with great facility for precise language, they were unable to use it to bridge the distance between them. In likening poems to people, Zapruder posits that the most beautiful thing about the poems most important to him is that their […]
Posted inFiction, Nonfiction, Quotes
‘This Place, This Moment, Unplanned’: On Surviving a Heart Attack
Jeff Sharlet on how recovering from a life-threatening event takes place moment by moment.
Posted inEditor's Pick
Telemetry
After a heart attack (perhaps two heart attacks), Jeff Sharlet searches for meaning in his own mortality, “This brilliant darkness, with which I am coming to terms.”
Posted inEssays & Criticism, Nonfiction, Quotes
Cory Taylor Answers Your Questions About Dying
To help demystify dying, Cory Taylor answers questions about what it’s like to have a terminal illness.