“How Portland Got Its Groove Back: The city where ‘young people go to retire’ is having an economic renaissance, with lessons for the rest of the country” by Matthew Yglesias. Portland, a mythical place, made famous by Portlandia and weird donuts, tucked somewhere in the trees between Seattle and Los Angeles, is experiencing an economic rebirth. Yglesias investigates how local companies and a focus on renewable energy have helped the city counteract its steep recession.
“How Not To Get Hacked: The four things you need to do right now to avoid the fate of tech writer Mat Honan,” by Farhad Manjoo. Last week, a savvy hacker was able to annihilate the digital identity of Gizmodo and Wired writer Mat Honan: his iPhone, iPad, MacBook, Google account were all wiped, and his Twitter account was spammed. Manjoo proposes four steps users and companies should do immediately to avoid the same fate.
“Bet Against America: Peter Schiff predicted the 2008 collapse. He says it was just the beginning,” by David Weigel. “Two-thousand and eight was just an overture,” investment broker and radio host Peter Schiff told an audience of Tea Party activists at the Americans for Prosperity’s annual Defending the American Dream Summit. “The opera is coming. The real financial crisis is coming in 2013, 2014.”
“Not Just the Pregnancy Blues: Why isn’t anyone talking about prenatal depression?” by Jessica Grose. Surrounded by images of blissful pregnant women, Grose wondered why she couldn’t seem to shake her own sense of unhappiness. Her bewilderment led her to investigate prenatal depression, a condition that many women face but not many women talk about.
“Ignore Your Oven Dial: You can’t control the temperature of your oven very well, so stop worrying about it” by Brian Palmer. Conventional culinary wisdom suggests that in baking, more than any other realm of the kitchen, precision matters. Palmer’s not buying it, especially when it comes to baking temperatures, which he argues are basically impossible to control.
“That Was Amazing! Now What? The U.S. women’s soccer team just won gold to cap off a thrilling Olympic run. But will Abby Wambach, Hope Solo, and Alex Morgan have a league to play in?” by Stefan Fatsis. After battling Canada in a contentious match Monday, the U.S women’s soccer team beat Japan 2-1 for the gold medal. But as Fatsis explains, the gold medalists return to a world of uncertain professional prospects.
“The Prideful, Arrogant President of Chick-fil-A: Why ignorance of human sexuality is dangerous,” by Jesse Bering. Bering argues that Aug. 1, celebrated as “Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day,” should go down in history as a day of national disgrace and said that the outpouring of support for the Chik-fil-A could harm LGBT youth.
“Can You Fake Mental Illness? How forensic psychologists can tell whether someone is malingering” by Douglas Starr. True, maybe simply committing a horrific crime is an act of insanity, but how can you tell the truly criminally insane from those looking for a break in the system? Starr investigates whether or not someone can truly fake mental illness—and how forensic psychologists can detect the truth.
“The Funny State: How North Carolina comedians are redefining American humor,” by Evan Smith Rakoff. North Carolina is undergoing a comedy renaissance. In addition to being the setting of the new political comedy The Campaign, starring Will Ferrell and Zach Galifinakis, the Tar Heel State has been the origin of countless comics in recent years.
“No, Gen. David Petraeus Will Not Be Mitt Romney’s Running Mate: Here are seven reasons why,” by Fred Kaplan. First Condi, now Petraeus—the Drudge Report again has set off a media blitz of veep speculation by alleging the CIA director is on Romney’s short list. Kaplan argues that the rumor is preposterous on seven levels, including number five: “Petraeus almost certainly realizes that he would not be very good at it.”
