Other
-
Publishing Vocab
Editors, publishers and critics have their own industry-specific lexicon. People in the industry are used to hearing words like “acclaimed” or saying that a book “brilliantly defies categorization,” but apparently this is only the surface level of description. Beyond the…
-
NYPD/CIA Scandalous Surveillance
“A months-long investigation by The Associated Press has revealed that the NYPD operates far outside its borders and targets ethnic communities in ways that would run afoul of civil liberties rules if practiced by the federal government.” The NYPD is…
-
Bayard Rustin, Unhidden
“Master strategist Bayard Rustin was Martin Luther King Jr.’s organizer for the 1963 March on Washington, but because he was gay, he has been hidden from history. Activist Stuart Wilber explains.”
-
Dan Weiss’s Morning Coffee
Start things off classy with vintage feminine hygiene product ads. Anyone want to take a road trip up the glass beach with me? Elephants understand. Invasive species gardening as contemporary art. The number one thing I’ve learned today is that…
-
“Decision Fatigue”
The exhaustion of decision-making is now scientifically validated. This essay looks at how decision fatigue, or “ego depletion,” manifests, in examining settings such as the courtroom, the grocery store, and even Ceasar’s decision to march on Rome. Decision fatigue can…
-
An East Coast Earthquake?!
The East Coast just experienced an earthquake of 5.8 magnitude, which is mild in geological terms but shocking otherwise. All of us here living too far to experience the effects of the earthquake hope all you east coasters are safe…
-
Tao Lin/ Ben Lerner Conversation on Poetry/A Novel About Poetry
Tao Lin interviews the poet and novelist, Ben Lerner for the Believer. After three poetry collections, Lerner just published a novel, Leaving Atocha Station (Muumuu House excerpts it here). It turns out his poetical prowess is just one of Lerner’s…
-
Chatting Through the Ages
This n+1 piece tracks the history of conversation, in different mediums. The vastly diverging worlds of talking vs. conversation vs. chatting online have all experienced their own evolution. Even just focusing on chat itself reveals a trajectory perpetually informed by…
-
Dan Weiss’s Morning Coffee
While we weren’t looking the Russians totally beat us at the most important part of the space race. Speaking of: totally 80s Soviet propaganda. Let’s all take a moment to think about the most poisonous spider. Fact: Scrabble is totally…
-
The Importance of Libyan Fiction
With the political turmoil going down in Libya, and with a history of artistic oppression, specifically the writers that were unjustly imprisoned under Gadhafi’s rule, it should be asked: what’s happening to writers in Libya right now? Hisham Matar, author…
-
Notable San Francisco, This Week: 8/22-8/27
This week in San Francisco: we are at the last week of the month, and so many of our roommates are gearing up for a festival in the desert, so lets make this week a good send off. Monday 8/22:…
-
Maud Newton on a DFW-Inspired Trend
Maud Newton’s NY Times essay, “Another Thing to Sort of Pin on David Foster Wallace,” discusses yet another DFW-inspired trend–that is his “slangy approachability.” He defined a writing style that has permeated through the blogosphere. His ability to combine legal…