Louisiana Loses Its Boot
Floodwaters and erosion are erasing Louisiana’s physical borders, changing its shape from the boot we know and love to something quite different. Brett Anderson traces the borders of his home state, in order to reflect the truth about a sinking place.
On Barbs and Demogorgons: A Stranger Things Reading List
Whether you’re still high on the show’s well-calculated nostalgia or already experiencing symptoms of Upside Down withdrawal, here’s a two-part selection of stories to keep you going: from deep dives into the design of the show’s title sequence to a sprawling interview with its creators.
When JFK Airport Was Shut Down Because of a Terror Attack that Wasn’t
A false alarm in New York’s biggest airport causes stampedes and delays, and makes one passenger wonder about the War on Terror’s effect on our collective psyche.
The Bizarre Tale of President Nixon and His Basic Income Bill
In 1969 President Richard Nixon was on the verge of implementing a basic income for poor families in America. It promised to be a revolutionary step – had the President not changed his mind at the last minute. This is the incredible and largely forgotten tale of just how close the U.S. came to stamping out poverty altogether.
The Genius of James Brown
As big a musical figure as James Brown is, it’s hard for some of us to appreciate how much Brown defined the 1960s while avoiding being contained by them. A non-traditional book eschews standard biography in order to make sense of the complex, contradictory, lingering genius of the Godfather of Soul ─ Mr. Dynamite himself ─ without expecting all the answers.
Mind Your Own Business
Mindfullness apps: is there actually any benefit to this kind of bite-sized meditation. And what, exactly, are we trying to be mindful of?
The Strange Brain of the World’s Greatest Solo Climber
Neuroscientists studied the brain of free solo climber Alex Honnold and discovered that he doesn’t experience fear like the rest of us.
The House Where You Live Forever
The reversible destiny of Madeline Gins, who had an elaborate theory suggesting that death may not in fact be inevitable.
The Sandwich That Ate the World
The Vietnamese bánh mì sandwich is one of the world’s most delicious creations. Fortunately it has endured without the colonialism and xenophobia that marked its origins.
Cleaning Up the Herbal Healers
Between reliable traditional remedies for malaria and diabetes to used motor oil dressed up as an immune booster, Ghana’s herb market generates millions annually and provides 70% of Ghana’s citizens with most of their healthcare. Regulators are trying to deal with the massive scale of its herbal drugstores, clinics and claims without destroying the system.
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