What Trump—And the U.S.—Can’t Understand About Air Strikes
American leaders refuse to learn from allies and overestimate the benefits of showy tactical attacks.
A Sea Story
One of the worst maritime disasters in European history took place in 1994. It remains very much in the public eye. On a stormy night on the Baltic Sea, more than 850 people lost their lives when a luxurious ferry sank below the waves. From a mass of material, including official and unofficial reports and survivor testimony, our correspondent has distilled an account of the Estonia’s last moments—part of his continuing coverage for the magazine of anarchy on the high seas.
Why an Early Start Is the ‘Quintessence of Life’
Not sleeping late could be the best resolution you ever keep.
Why Rich People Don’t Cover Their Windows
An unexpected status symbol has become a fixture of high-end homes.
The Whole Country Is Starting to Look Like California
Housing prices are rising fast in red and purple states known for being easy places to build. How can that be?
This Summer’s Most Pointless Sequel Is Here
The latest Jurassic World film somehow makes dinosaurs boring.
Why Evangelicals Turned Their Back on PEPFAR
A religious movement that has so often taken public stands has been unusually quiet since Trump gutted the program to combat AIDS in Africa.
A Classic Childhood Pastime Is Fading
Kids on bikes once filled the streets. Not anymore.
The Ciceronian Secret to Happiness
To feel good, do good.
An AI That Couldn’t Care Less About Humans
The quirky show Murderbot suggests that intelligent machines might be interested in something other than humanity.
The ‘Dirty and Nasty People’ Who Became Americans
How 13 colonies came together
Doomed to Be a Tradwife
Can a marriage ever truly be equal?
That Dropped Call With Customer Service? It Was on Purpose.
Endless wait times and excessive procedural fuss—it’s all part of a tactic called “sludge.”
The AI Birthday Letter That Blew Me Away
Google is ushering in an era of custom chatbots.
The Reality My Medicaid Patients Face
With work requirements in place, many will be removed from Medicaid even though they should qualify.
‘Success Addicts’ Choose Being Special Over Being Happy
The pursuit of achievement distracts from the deeply ordinary activities and relationships that make life meaningful.
The Nobel Prize Winner Who Thinks We Have the Universe All Wrong
Cosmologists are fighting over everything.
Hurricane Science Was Great While It Lasted
The U.S. is hacking away at support for state-of-the-art forecasting.
America’s Incarceration Rate Is About to Fall Off a Cliff
Long sentences and recidivism kept prison populations high for decades, but prisons are now starting to empty.
The Liberal Misinformation Bubble About Youth Gender Medicine
How the left ended up disbelieving the science
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