WHAT IS BIOCODE?
Genomics Is About To Transform The World
Human genomics is just the beginning: the Earth has 50 billion tons of DNA. What happens when we have the entire biocode?
LET'S PUT THIS TO REST
Is Assisted Suicide Ethical For The Physically Healthy?
Several states have passed laws allowing terminally ill people to commit suicide with help from a physician, and more states are considering it. Some nations, though, have gone further, by permitting such assistance to people with serious, nonfatal, health problems, even severe depression. Is that a dangerous step on a slippery slope toward euthanasia, or an appropriate way to help people who suffer unbearably?
CARGO LINES OF SUPPLY
Life On The Congo
In a country with crumbling infrastructure, cargo barges are vital for ferrying goods and unofficial passengers across the Democratic Republic of Congo.
MUCH BETTER THAN FACEBOOK
Google, Twitter Work On Open Source 'Instant Articles' For Mobile
The plan, which is supposed to launch with a small group of publishers this fall, is an effort to make it easier for publishers to distribute their stuff on mobile devices. It is also a response to similar pushes from Facebook, Apple and Snapchat.
STUDIES GO UP IN SMOKE
Ignore The Headlines: We Don't Know If E-Cigs Lead Kids To Real Cigs
If you followed the news this week, you might think that teens who try electronic cigarettes are bound to take up Marlboros too. This is what happens when 16 people are made to represent an entire population.
RESEARCHERS HAVE HIGH HOPES
The Growing Evidence For The Medicinal Use Of Psychedelic Drugs
There was a span of a little more than a decade in the 20th century when scientists thought that mind-altering drugs like LSD might be the key to treating psychiatric illnesses. These efforts ground to a halt in the early 1970s, by which time the research had gained a checkered reputation. The field might finally be picking up steam again.
PRAYING TO THE ALTAR OF COMMUNISM
The Pope's Politics
Pope Francis has been brushing up on his English ahead of his arrival in Washington in September, and tickets to his U.S. events are already a hot commodity. But anyone expecting his message to be simply one of mercy and love could be in for a distinct surprise.
WHISKY BUSINESS
De-Facto Booze: The Liquor Of Separatist Republics
In unrecognized entities, such as the de-facto Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (PMR or Transnistria), the Donetsk People’s Republic (DNR), and theLuhansk People’s Republic (LNR), alcohol plays many roles: an economic asset, a target of criminal enterprises, and, a lever of social subjugation.
NO SURGE PRICING, THOUGH
Uber Would Like To Buy Your Robotics Department
When the company wanted a team of roboticists, it raided a university lab to get them. Can high-tech academia survive today’s Silicon Valley talent binge?
HIGH CRIME, HIGH EDUCATION
Murder In The Ivy League
One cold December evening, a Columbia University security guard is shot execution-style, with no suspect, motive or clues in sight. Twenty-seven years later, his family is still seeking answers and one retired detective is determined to solve this mystery.
AN EMPTY HANGAR, FULL OF MEMORIES
The Things They Left Behind
Before the National September 11 Memorial Museum, an impromptu museum of World Trade Center artifacts existed in Hangar 17 at Kennedy International Airport, which the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey used to store as many as 1,284 objects. Today, the hangar is almost empty, because the authority has found homes for most of the artifacts. Those that remain — not yet picked up or claimed — paint a poignant picture of everyday life at the trade center before Sept. 11, 2001, and the recovery efforts that followed.
AS OPPOSED TO FLAG JUGGLING
Contact Juggling Is A Hypnotizing Thing To Behold
We're supposed to write stuff here, but we can't look away. This dude is just too good.
BE A TERRIBLE PERSON
How To Be A Writer (According to Hollywood)
Although movie writers exist on the silver screen, it is not impossible to become one yourself. All you have to do is pay attention to the homework and study your ass off. It is a true art, being a writer inside of a movie. Not many can pull it off—but those who do usually die from alcohol poisoning.
NO TWIST HERE
The Death Spiral Of M. Night Shyamalan’s Career
How did one of the most promising directors of the early 2000s get to the point where we’re expecting schlock?
DICK PRINT
The Penis On Page 602 Of The 1975 Fall/Winter Sears Catalog
On the dizzying acceleration of the viral content.
TAKING NAMES
The Anti-Redskin
In the fight over the team’s name, Ray Halbritter is an adversary unlike any the NFL has faced before.
WE'RE NO STRANGERS TO LOVING IN 'N' OUT
Prankster Plays A Cruel Burger Joke On Eugene, Oregon
People who love In 'N' Out *LOVE* In 'N' Out. Unfortunately, its not available in most cities, which makes putting a 'coming soon' sign up that much meaner.
A COLORFUL PAST
Mummy Brown, Prussian Blue And Other Historical Colors
From the pigments you see in cave paintings to synthetically-produced indigo, an illustrated tour through the colors of human history.
THE GRAND SLAM DREAM IS OVER
Serena Williams Upset By Roberta Vinci In US Open Semis
The 21-time major champion was defeated by unseeded Italian Roberta Vinci 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 in the US Open semifinals Friday.
WHAT WE LEARNED THIS WEEK
McDonald's Has A Secret Menu And Other Facts
This week we learned McDonald's is hiding something from you, hotel safes aren't very safe and a cube Moon is a boring Moon.
80 INJURED
Crane Collapse In Saudi Arabia Kills 65
The death toll from the collapse of a crane in the Muslim holy city of Mecca has risen to 65, Saudi Arabia's civil defence authority has said.
♫ SO YOU HAD A BAD DAY ♫
Ice Machine Is Doing The Best It Can
One out of five is not horrible. Maybe just buy a bowl though.
DOESN'T LEAVE MUSHROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT
The Evolution Of Super Mario
In honor of the 30th birthday of "Super Mario Bros" we tracked the evolution of the plumber who started it all. Check out how much he's changed over the years, and discover a few of his more obscure titles.
IN HIS BLOOD
In Search Of The Real Truman Capote
Thirty-five years after it was published, "Music for Chameleons" is the author’s best, most personal work.
LIVING LIKE A CHICKEN WITH ITS HEAD CUT OFF
The Chicken That Lived For 18 Months Without A Head
Seventy years ago, a farmer beheaded a chicken in Colorado, and it refused to die. Mike, as the bird became known, survived for 18 months and became famous. But how did he live without a head for so long?
THANKS, EPSON
Apparently 'Low Ink' In A Printer Cartridge Actually Means '20% Full'
Everyone knows ink cartridges are needlessly expensive, but as the enterprising folks at Bellevue Fine Art Repro discovered, the Epson 9900 outright lies about how much ink you've used.
SPRUCE UP YOUR DAY
Care For A Tall, Cool Glass Of Spruce Beer?
It’s a centuries-old acquired taste, but those who like spruce-beer soda — which tastes something like Sprite mixed with Christmas tree — like it a lot
THE LITTLE VRMAID
Watch Glen Keane, One Of The Animators Of 'Beauty And The Beast,' Draw In Virtual Reality
Over nearly four decades at Disney, Glen Keane animated some the most compelling characters of our time: Ariel from The Little Mermaid, the titular beast in Beauty and the Beast, and Disney’s Tarzan. Keane has spent his career embracing new tools, from digital environments to 3D animation to today’s virtual reality, which finally enables him to step into his drawings.
AN EASY MARK
Genius Swindlers Sell Overpriced Bindle Bags
"As their business card states, the Bindle Brothers specialize in “locally-grown, naturally-fallen, artisanal bindle bags.” In doing so, they are reviving an item not seen since the days of Steinbeck, when itinerant farmhands and rail-hopping hobos known as “bindle stiffs” made sacks to carry their meager belongings around the country."
LANCE ARMSTRONG IS STILL A JERK
The Moral Argument For Doping In Sports
"There’s nothing wrong inherently with allowing people to increase their red blood cell count, just as there’s nothing wrong with allowing them to increase the glucose in their blood or the level of hydration that they have."
ON THE LINE
Welcome To The Bouncy World Of Competitive Slackline Tricking
Walking through a public park in the summer you're likely to see some people stringing up a slackline between some trees, but you've never seen people use one like this.
A DOUGLASS WE DIGG
Frederick Douglass And The Poor Party
Frederick Douglass believed there was an alternative. So should we.
THE BUG IN THE SYSTEM
John McAfee: The Prophet Of Paranoia
Can John McAfee, a gun-toting, vodka-swilling serial liar, save us from the hackers who want to spy on us and steal our identities?
ALL APOLOGIES
Remember When Bud Light Tried To Cash In On Grunge?
Some things don't age well: to wit, this Bud Light ad, which now looks more like a horror movie than an attempt to cash in on "what they kids are into."
CELEBRATE NOTHING
Most Holidays Are Fake, And Here's Why
It’s not just your imagination — there really are more unofficial holidays than ever before.
ASK MAJOR TOM ZERO
Is 'Metal Gear Solid V' As Big As David Bowie Right Now?
The musical references of this year's most daunting commercial video game are resonating in surprising and brilliant ways.
SYSTOLIC CHANGE
A 'Lifesaving' Study Says Human Blood Pressure Should Be Much Lower
Declaring they had “potentially lifesaving information,” federal health officials said on Friday that they were ending a major study early because it has already conclusively answered a question cardiologists have puzzled over for decades: how low should blood pressure go?
CHAT TIME WITH UNCLE JOE
Joe Biden's Deeply Moving Interview With Stephen Colbert
On Thursday Night, Joe Biden appeared on "The Late Show." It was not your average politician-appears-on-talk-show chit-chat.
HAPPY SYLLABUS DAY
Bored College Student Animates Notebook Doodles, Sets To Earth, Wind & Fire
...And we just recognized the significance of the song.
A THING OF BEAUTY
Donald Trump Says He 'Now Owns 100%' Of The Miss Universe Pageant
Donald Trump said Friday that he'd bought out NBC Universal's share of their joint venture, the Miss Universe Organization, and settled lawsuits he'd threatened the company with after it severed their business ties over the real estate mogul's comments about Mexican immigrants.
THE TERROIR, THE TERROIR...
What The Hell Is A Water Sommelier
He's the only person with his title in the entire US, and he's very, very hydrated.
PERFECT IF YOU LOVE DELETING THINGS
How To Live With The 16GB iPhone's Pitiful Storage
"Living happily with a 16GB iPhone is doable, I promise. It just takes a lot of active management."
U MAD BRO?
In Defense Of Millennial Narcissism
This isn’t the first backwards-gazing generational stereotype, merely the latest. And as is so often the case, the elder generation’s disdain for apple-cheeked harbingers of doom — here, the Children of the Corn with a Tinder habit — is based largely on the realization that the kids have tapped into a resource that they themselves never knew was there for the taking all along.
UNSPOKEN WORD
Where Do Languages Go To Die?
The tale of Aramaic, a language that once ruled the Middle East and now faces extinction.
AND IT'S HILARIOUS
The Earliest Use Of The F-Word Discovered
Dr Paul Booth of Keele University spotted the name in "Roger Fuckebythenavele" in the Chester county court plea rolls from December 8, 1310. The man was being named as part of a process to be outlawed.
WHO KNOWS YA, BABY?
Facebook 'Likes' Mean A Computer Knows You Better Than Your Mother
A computer needs the data from only 10 Facebook ‘likes’ to beat the accuracy of a person’s coworker at judging his or her personality.
WITHDRAWAL SYMPTOMS
Pulling Out Is As Effective As Using Condoms
Studies show that pulling out is as effective as condom use. Why do we still consider it irresponsible and lazy?
IF IT AIN'T BROKE
Kimmel Discovered That Apple Hasn't Needed To Make A New iPhone Since 2007
As with any of his man-on-the-street segments, Jimmy Kimmel discovered that people have no idea what they want.
GEL IT LIKE BECKHAM
The Definitive Oral History Of David Beckham’s Hair
So how did a 19-year-old with a greasy center part become grooming inspiration for an entire generation? We called up some of his former hairstylists, as well as menswear critics and football writers of that time, to find out.
BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR
Inside The Crater That Leaks Neon Blue 'Lava'
Reuben Wu loves volcanoes. It started as a childhood obsession rivaled only by space travel and dinosaurs, which explains his life goal of photographing the neon blue flames of the Kawah Ijen crater on Java. The Blue Fire Crater, as it is sometimes called, isn’t lava, but combusting sulfuric gas.
SHOCKING FOOTAGE
Watch A Taser Hit Bare Skin At 28,000 FPS
A brave man volunteered to get tased so we could watch this Internet video. Do not let his suffering go to waste.
THEY WILL NEVER FORGET
Inside The Lonely Lives Of 9/11 Truthers, Still Looking For Their Big Break
Fourteen years after 9/11, Truthers, as they’ve been pejoratively labeled since 2001, have not gone away. And odds are, you probably know one.
TO THE RIGHT TO THE RIGHT
No, America Isn’t Moving Left
Reading today’s headlines, it would be easy to get the impression that the country is moving — even galloping — left. The real defect in the theory that America is moving left is that the polling evidence does not back it up. The country might not like the GOP, but it is generally not abandoning conservative views.
BASICALLY ALL RICH PEOPLE
Manhattan Real Estate Explained, In Just One Street
A walk down 14th street.
WE'RE NOT CERTAIN
How Do We Cope With Uncertainty?
Uncertainty is an uncomfortable position for many people and will generally give rise to varying levels of uncertainty-related anxiety. So how do we cope?
'TURN ON CNN'
The White House 9/11 Emails
A series of White House emails released by the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum provide a fresh look into the horrific events of that day, 14 years ago on Friday, that transformed the country, the world and a presidency.
THEY HATED THE PANAMA CANAL
So What If Voters Hate The Iran Deal?
For almost all politicians' electoral purposes, what matters on foreign-policy issues, especially complex ones, is the outcome. The best guess for whether a position or vote is safe is whether the policy works in the long run, not whether it is popular before it is passed.
DON'T KISS YOUR COUSIN
Our Digg Pic Of The Day
South Africa Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, kisses a reconstruction of Homo naledi's face during the announcement made at Maropeng Cradle of Humankind in Magaliesburg, South Africa.
NOT AN ACTUAL WEEK
What Is Fashion Week?
Here is your no-nonsense guide to an occasionally high-nonsense event.
SIGNIFYING NOTHING
Banksy And The Problem With Sarcastic Art
The empty spectacle of "Dismaland."
