Japan’s Prisons Are a Haven for Elderly Women
Elderly Japanese women — many of whom live lonely lives even in the company of husbands and children — are turning to petty theft and are thriving in prison, a place where they find the companionship and security lacking in their lives on the outside.
How Defective Guns Became the Only Product That Can’t Be Recalled
Unlike with thousands of other consumer products, no government entity in the U.S. has the power to police defective firearms or ammunition. Taurus has sold nearly a million handguns that can potentially fire even if no one pulls the trigger. After the accidental death of their son, one family is seeking justice.
Americans Will Struggle to Grow Old at Home
Most Americans want to live at home in their old age, but our current home-based health care system won’t be able to adequately serve their growing numbers.
The Fall of Travis Kalanick Was a Lot Weirder and Darker Than You Thought
A behind-the-scenes account of how Travis Kalanick was ousted from Uber as chief executive officer.
America’s Worst Graveyard Shift Is Grinding Up Workers
Companies pay undocumented immigrants low wages to sanitize dangerous slaughterhouse equipment quickly, under pressure and cloak of night, because undocumented workers don’t always understand their worker rights, and they want to avoid deportation. This is the human cost of America’s affordable meat.
Business Is Booming for America’s Survival Food King
By capitalizing on the growing unease about our unstable world, Wise Co. is expanding its business to average Americans and stores like Walmart. The logic: if you have a flashlight and first-aid kit, shouldn’t you stockpile some Mylar food pouches, too?
The U.S. Flooded One of Houston’s Richest Neighborhoods to Save Everyone Else
During Hurricane Harvey, the Army Corp of Engineers decided to flood Houston’s Buffalo Bayou instead of risking a dam collapse, destroying one of the city’s most affluent suburbs. This meant that Harvey’s legacy wouldn’t be death, but something just as enduring — the lawsuit.
The Godfather of Mexican Manufacturing Couldn’t Care Less About Donald Trump
The 45th President can try to build a wall along the US-Mexican border and renegotiate NAFTA, but nothing can contain the role Mexican manufacturing plays in the global economy, and the role Jaime Bermúdez Cuarón plays in particular.
Nestlé Makes Billions Bottling Water It Pays Nearly Nothing For
Why do consumers let the world’s biggest water-bottling company sell us water that’s already ours?
Nobody Knows What Lies Beneath New York City
Satellites can map the earth’s surface, but the world underneath cities is the last cartographic frontier. One team is mapping New York City’s subsurface infrastructure in 3-D to improve safety, streamline growth, and allow New York to lead the world to becoming a “smart city.”