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Borges and $: The Parable of the Literary Master and the Coin
Thirty years ago, the world lost a great literary mind—the Argentine writer and poet Jorge Luis Borges. Today, Elizabeth Hyde Stevens revisits the financial conditions that produced this life of pure literature, finding unexpected hope in the darkest period of Borges’ forgotten past.
The Craft of Cooking
An Interview with “America’s Test Kitchen” founder Christopher Kimball on how cooking is like woodworking, the business model behind “Cooks Illustrated,” and the awesome powers of baking soda and gelatin.
A Dead Superhero Is a Marvelous Corpse
A theory of superhero suffering and death.
Your Phone Was Made By Slaves: A Primer on the Secret Economy
On the new triangle trade, and the surprising connection between modern slavery and ecological disaster.
‘They Taught Us How To Party, Marlboro Style’
The animation student felt a thrill as he entered the hotel. It grew when, as soon as he unlocked his luxurious room, he caught sight of a not-entirely-unexpected gift—a hamper of complimentary cigarettes and Zippo lighters. His excitement increased further over the next couple of days, filled with seminars and celebrations, and culminating in a […]
The Most Haunted Road in America
Ghost boy, cannibals, disappearing trucks: A journey into the darkness of New Jersey to uncover the mysteries of Clinton Road.
A Brief History of AOL
A short reading list on the many lives of AOL, which will be acquired by Verizon for $4.4 billion. Fifteen years ago, AOL acquired Time Warner for $165 billion.
The Most Haunted Road in America
Ghost boy, cannibals, disappearing trucks: A journey into the darkness of New Jersey to uncover the mysteries of Clinton Road.
Looking for Raymond Chandler’s Los Angeles
Tracing Raymond Chandler’s early days in L.A.
