The Desperate Battle Against Killer Bat Plague
At this point, it’s a losing battle. Bats with noses dusted by the Geomyces destructans fungus that causes WNS were seen for the first time in early 2006, in upstate New York. One year later, biologists realized that WNS could kill bats in large numbers. By 2008, mortality in major New York and Vermont hibernacula, caves where tens and hundreds of thousands of bats had wintered, was more than 90 percent. Biologists wore gas masks against the stench of rotting bodies. Bones cracked like popcorn under their feet.
Teen Mathletes Do Battle at Algorithm Olympics
Neal Wu’s last chance for international glory, and maybe America’s, too, begins with a sound like a hippo crunching through a field of dry leaves—the sound of 315 computer prodigies at 315 workstations ripping into 315 gray envelopes in unison. “You have five hours,” a voice booms across the packed gymnasium. “Good luck.”
Everyone Hates Ticketmaster — But No One Can Take It Down
Ticketmaster didn’t come to rule an industry by suffering interlopers. Over the past 30 years, the company has killed or eaten nearly every competitor: Ticketron, TicketWeb, TicketsNow, Paciolan, and Musictoday. And a potent combination of top artists, venues, and long-term ticketing deals makes Ticketmaster one Goliath well positioned to crush a whole army of Davids.
Why Breasts Are the Key to Future of Regenerative Medicine
To be in the company of Chris Calhoun is to encounter breasts, and encounter the damn things anytime, anywhere—including over a plate of spaghetti in a bustling Manhattan restaurant.
How Elon Musk Turned Tesla Into the Car Company of the Future
Just three years ago, Tesla Motors was in big trouble. The company’s inaugural product—the $109,000 Tesla Roadster—was a money-loser before a single unit had been delivered.
The Web Is Dead? A Debate
What You Want: Flickr Creator Spins Addictive New Web Service
Connecting people to one another is not just Caterina Fake’s hobby — she has made it her career. As the cofounder of Flickr, the landmark photography site, Fake provided a place for shutterbugs to share their work; they have uploaded more than 4 billion pictures. It was a seminal service that helped launch the era of user-generated content, spurring entrepreneurs to build Web sites and businesses based on volunteer contributions. Now, with Hunch, Fake is back, and she’s using her social skills to tackle one of the most vexing problems in computer science: online recommendations.