Celebrity Life
Inside Ibogaine, One of the Most Promising and Perilous Psychedelics for Addiction
Derived from the root bark of an African shrub, Ibogaine was ignored in modern medicine until recently
Morgan Jerkins Memorializes a Swiftly-Changing Harlem in Her New Novel Caul Baby
Morgan Jerkins delights in finding the fantastical within the familiar. In her new novel, Caul Baby, everyday life takes on a surreal glow: a bodega covertly peddles mystical talismans; a brownstone visibly embodies its owners’ secrets. And on that border between our world and her imagination, fantasy reveals a sometimes harsh truth about reality. No…
‘An Actor’s Actor.’ Alia Shawkat on Jessica Walter’s One-Liners, Memes and Comedic Legacy
Jessica Walter would love to know that she remained a meme sensation even after she passed—it goes to show what a powerhouse she really was, that she could connect to younger generations late in her career. An award-winning actress who starred in Clint Eastwood’s directorial debut Play Misty For Me and voiced spy chief Malory…
Here’s What Will Actually Convince People to Get Vaccinated
One of evolution’s cleverest tricks was giving us a sense of shame. It’s a miserable feeling—low, humbling, publicly discomfiting—but it’s supposed to be: if you do something lousy you ought to feel something lousy, so you don’t do it again. In theory, when so many of the strategies for beating the COVID-19 pandemic depend on…
Can Public Transit Survive the Pandemic? London’s New Transport Commissioner Wants You to Believe It Can
Andy Byford is on a mission to save London’s transit network from post-pandemic collapse
‘A Big Asterisk on the Future.’ High School Counselors on Challenges Facing the Class of 2021
The pandemic has altered life plans for many high school seniors, and counselors have had a close-up view of their anxiety
Erasing Student Debt Makes Economic Sense. So Why Is It So Hard to Do?
The economy wins when student loans are erased, but borrowers often struggle to access relief programs
Facing Boycotts H&M and Nike Are Learning the New Price of Doing Business in China
No other country has done a better job of channeling the profit-maximizing drive of private corporations into geopolitical gains in recent years than communist China, the irony of which is lost on precisely no one. The latest drama surrounds Nike, H&M and a slew of other Western clothing brands that voiced concern over reports of…
Applying to College Was Never Easy for Most Students. The Pandemic Made It Nearly Impossible
The first sign that Twyla Joseph’s college application process was not going to go as planned came on March 13, 2020, when, a day before her scheduled SAT, she learned the test had been canceled. The May and June tests were also canceled as coronavirus cases surged. Joseph never got to take the admissions test.…
These Moms Work as Doctors and Scientists. But They’ve Also Taken On Another Job: Fighting COVID-19 Misinformation Online
Last March, friends and neighbors began stopping Emily Smith in her town outside of Waco, Texas, with questions about the coronavirus. An epidemiologist at Baylor University, Smith knows all too well how viruses are transmitted. But as the wife of a pastor and as a woman of faith, she also holds a trusted position in…
Sesame Workshop Is Talking More Explicitly About Race—and Welcoming Two Black Muppets
Bradley Freeman Jr. was doing some Christmas shopping at Target when he got the email. Glancing down at his phone, all he could see was a preview: “Hey Brad, thanks for taking the time to audition for us …” He immediately assumed he had been rejected. Then he read the rest. “I had to read…
Why MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor Bet Company Cash on Bitcoin—and Wants Other Corporations to Join In
Why one CEO bet company cash on the world's most popular cryptocurrency--and sees nothing irrationally exuberant about it