Articles

The Death Artist

Deborah Carr, a sociology professor at Boston University who has written extensively on death and bereavement, says that people didn’t struggle as much with death in the past as they do today, in part because death was swift. Now, modern… Read More ›

Madman Economics

In the aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis of 2007-9, conservative politicians like George Osborne and Wolfgang Schäuble continued to insist that the space of democratic decision-making was, whether people liked it or not, tightly constrained by what the markets… Read More ›

Why You Can’t Tickle Yourself

In the new study’s first phase, each subject had their moment in front of the GoPros and microphone. Previous studies have established that tickling is mood-dependent—anxiety and unfamiliarity suppress it like a wet blanket. Since participants would have to take… Read More ›

Why Printers Are So Terrible

Because wow, they truly are. Like many people, I’ve had printers break on me in a myriad of irritating ways. Sometimes, the nozzles on inkjet cartridges started leaking or clogging, or wireless connections crapped out and never worked again. Other… Read More ›

The Disappearing Art Of Maintenance

The noble but undervalued craft of maintenance could help preserve modernity’s finest achievements, from public transit systems to power grids, and serve as a useful framework for addressing climate change and other pressing planetary constraints… More here. An excellent read.

A shed, a tragedy

Greetings. As you might be aware, I have reached middle age. Firstly that’s a reasonably big achievement, secondly it means sheds, power tools and receding hairlines. There are a number of ways one can procure a man shed. A lot… Read More ›