The Web We Have To Save
In the past, the web was powerful and serious enough to land me in jail. Today it feels like little more than entertainment. The rich, diverse, free web that I loved — and spent years in an Iranian jail for — is dying. Why is nobody stopping it?
Welcome To Retirement: Lindsey Vonn Confronts Life After Skiing
Vonn is a three-time Olympic medalist with 82 World Cup golds, an internationally renowned comeback artist, and one of the most dominant American athletes of a generation. She is also no longer skiing. So what will she do next?
Collision Course: Why Are Cars Killing More And More Pedestrians?
For drivers, roads are safer than ever – but for people on foot, they are getting deadlier. In 2018, 41% more US pedestrians were killed than in 2008. Car companies and Silicon Valley claim that they have the solution. But is that too good to be true?
How Advertising Conquered Urban Space
In cities around the world, advertising is everywhere. We may try to shut it out, but it reflects who we are (or want to be) and connects us to the urban past. Local signs connect us to the past, to vernacular styles, to folklore. The best examples catch our eye as children and stay with us.
Who To Sue When A Robot Loses Your Fortune
The first known case of humans going to court over investment losses triggered by autonomous machines will test the limits of liability. A Hong Kong tycoon is going after the salesman who persuaded him to entrust his fortune to the supercomputer whose trades cost him more than $20 million.
How Ads Follow You Around The Internet
You’ve seen the pop-ups: “This site uses cookies to improve your experience. Please accept cookies.” Without cookies, the online world we know today couldn’t exist. But that world relies on advertising, which gives three kinds of companies a strong incentive to track your online behavior.
A Shocking Campaign Uses Graphic Images To Point Out The Damage That Plastic Pollution Has On The Ocean’s Wildlife
A simple plastic bag seems harmless, but it can represent extreme suffering – and even death. Depicting this unfortunate truth through strong images, Sea Shepherd, an NGO focused on the conservation of marine wildlife, is launching a plastic awareness campaign.
The Truth About Andy Rubin And Google’s Existential Crisis
20,000 former colleagues staged a walkout against Andy Rubin and other alleged sexual predation among senior management – Why did the man who won Google the smartphone wars get paid $90 million to leave?
The World’s Oldest Winery in Armenia
The Areni-1 complex, uncovered in 2007, contains a 6,100-year-old winery replete with fermenting vats, a grape press, and subterranean clay storage vessels. Altogether, it’s the best-preserved archeological site in the ongoing search for winemaking’s birthplace.
Creatives Call For Mental-Health Warnings On ‘Toxic’ Magazines
A creative team in London is hijacking the covers of celebrity and gossip magazines to raise awareness of the harmful impact that media can have on people’s mental health. They were inspired by news that hair salons across the UK have boycotted “toxic” gossip magazines following the death of presenter Caroline Flack.
The Fukushima Surf Revival
“If Fukushima was a book, the cover would be about radiation. But the contents would be totally different. Of course, people never read the contents.” How surfing was revived alongside a community in the wake of a tsunami and nuclear disaster.
The Influencer Economy Hurtles Toward Its First Recession
Brand deals have dried up; sponsored posts have been delayed. The great reckoning is unlikely to topple the influencer industry—by now, it’s already too big—but the business of influence is going to change.
India Plans To Build An All-seeing Database To Track Citizens’ Every Move
India, the world’s biggest democracy, built a massive database containing information and biometrics of its citizens in the form of Aadhaar back in 2009. Now, it’s planning to build a new database that will continually track the lives of 1.2 billion people living in the country.
‘The Intelligence Coup Of The Century’
For more than half a century, governments all over the world trusted a single company, Crypto AG, to keep the communications of their spies, soldiers and diplomats secret. But what none of its customers ever knew was that Crypto AG was secretly owned by the CIA.
How Eliud Kipchoge Broke Running’s Mythic Barrier
It was one of sport’s great question marks: Is it humanly possible to run 26.2 miles in under two hours? Then Eliud Kipchoge did it. What followed was international fame—and plenty of controversy. GQ flew to Kipchoge’s ultra-rarefied Kenyan training ground to meet the man who pulled off the impossible.
The Rise And Fall Of Delia’s, The Catalog That Ruled America
For a few years around the millennium, Delia’s and its direct-to-consumer catalogs were the hottest brand in the country. It was a glimpse of things to come. At its peak, 55 million copies were sent out to girls across the country every year.
The Rise Of Nintendo
Nintendo hasn’t always made video games. It was founded over a century ago and at one point sold ramen noodles and operated a taxi service. Today, Nintendo is part of a crowded video game market, up against companies like Sony, Microsoft, Apple and Google. When Nintendo first got into the home console business in the 80s, it dominated.
What Happened When Tulsa Paid People To Work Remotely
Traditionally, cities looking to spur their economies may offer incentives to attract businesses. Tulsa is testing out a new premise: Pay people instead. The first class of hand-picked remote workers moved to Tulsa in exchange for $10,000 and a built-in community. The city might just be luring them to stay.
Teen Girl Invents Simple, Yet Innovative Way To Remove Blind Spots In Cars
Alaina Gassler built a prototype system with a webcam, projector, and 3D-printed materials to fill in the space the car frame blocks from drivers. She mounted the webcam outside the passenger side A-pillar on a car and then displayed the live video on the inside pillar from a projector.
3D Printing Homes For The Homeless In Austin
ICON, the 3D-printing construction company, has partnered with Mobile Loaves & Fishes (MLF) to build 3D-printed homes in Austin. The only neighborhood of its kind in the nation, Community First! Village provides affordable, permanent housing and a supportive community for men and women coming out of chronic homelessness.
Why We Fell For Clean Eating
The oh-so-Instagrammable food movement has been thoroughly debunked – but it shows no signs of going away. The real question is why we were so desperate to believe it.