Recycled

The Year in Recycled Slate Stories

Print magazines put out double issues when they need a week’s vacation, online magazines recycle. Collected below is a list of Slate’s favorite pieces of 2001 for you to read while we’re busy with the holidays. Readers, please post your favorites in “The Fray.”

The story of the year was the war (more on that later), but Slate ran many pieces on less important topics (bestiality, anyone?) that were a touch more … diverting. Take, for example, Michael Schaffer’s defense of 1970s sports stadiums or Dahlia Lithwick’s “Faces of NPR” quiz, which invited readers to match faces to the NPR names they know so well. Below is a list of some of some of Slate’s best stories, war-related and otherwise.

On Campus
Adventures in Cheating: A guide to buying term papers online.
By Seth Stevenson

The One Thing You Can’t Get in High School
By Timothy Noah

Higher Education, Lower Ratings: Why are there so few TV shows about college?
By David Plotz

On the Field
Drinking and Driving: A call for more liquor on the links.
By Robert Mackey      

Olbermann Über Alles! The death spiral of Keith Olbermann’s TV career.
By Bryan Curtis

Cal Ripken’s Disease: A look back at the Iron Man’s worst moments.
By Bryan Curtis

Suicide Squeeze: Baseball needs a dose of reality TV.
By Michael Schaffer

On Screen
In the Bedroom
By David Edelstein

Mulholland Drive
By David Edelstein

Ghost World
By David Edelstein

Bridget Jones’s Diary
By David Edelstein

Microsoft à la Hollywood: A new movie argues that software should be free. Try getting in without buying a ticket.
By Michael Kinsley

On Television
Uneasy Company: Band of Brothers is Private Ryan for grown-ups.
By Paul Fussell

Baywatch: The final jiggle.

By Seth Stevenson

Classic Concentration: On game shows, female hosts usually lose big.

By Chris Suellentrop

On the Page

The Book Club: Richard Reeves’ President Nixon: Alone in the White House

By Ted Widmer and Christopher Caldwell

The Book Club: Andrew Solomon’s Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression

By James Fallows and Christopher Caldwell    

The Book Club: Fast Food Nation

By Katha Pollitt and Marjorie Williams

The Book Club: Rick Moody’s Demonology and Raymond Carver’s Call Me If You Need Me

By A.O. Scott and Christopher Caldwell

Woody Allen and Philip Roth: Separated at Birth?

By Alex Abramovitch

Anne Frank, Version 20.01: How is this Anne different from all other Annes?

By Jodi Kantor

Queer as Volk? A new book claims Hitler was a closet case.

By Ron Rosenbaum

Dave Eggers vs. David Kirkpatrick: Who’s right, the wounded memoirist or the exposed journalist?  

By Eliza Truitt

On Finance

Ad Report Card: Diet Coke’s Underwear Strategy

By Rob Walker

Affluent Americans: Adopt a Splurge Proxy

By Rob Walker

Proposed: Making the Brand

By Rob Walker

Meet the New Boss

By Rob Walker

Diaries

Peter Baker: Behind the counter at Wendy’s

Zac Unger: Firefighter

Mimi Swartz: Mother of TAAS test-taker

Owen West: Scaling Everest

Sue Wilson: Lost in Cuba

Reproduction

The Seed Series, by David Plotz

The Genius Babies and How They Grew

The Nobel Sperm Bank Celebrity

No Nobels, One “Failure,” A Few Regrets

Politics

Bill Clinton, Chump: Why did Bill Clinton pardon Marc Rich?

By Jacob Weisberg

A Defense of the ‘90s

By Jacob Weisberg

The Mormon Stem-Cell Choir: Why are Mormons pro-stem cell research?

By Drew Clark

The Logic of Assassination: Why Israeli murders and Palestinian suicide bombings make sense.

By David Plotz          

Clinton, Gore, and Darwin: Did Gore blow the election by running away from Clinton’s record?

By William Saletan

Ex-Con Nation: We locked ‘em up. They’re getting out. What do we do now?

By David Plotz            

Truth and Condit Frenzies: The newspapers that never retracted false Condit stories.

By William Saletan

Puzzles

2001: A Crossword Odyssey

By Matt Gaffney

Three in a Row

By Matt Gaffney

Merrie Olde Systeme of Chusing a Leader

By Matt Gaffney                      

(As They Would Say on Jeopardy) Potpourri

Is Disappearing: What TV news doing to our precious verbs.

By Michael Kinsley

The Decline of Fashion Photography

By Karen Lehrman                  

Extroverted Like Me: How a month and a half on Paxil taught me to love being shy.

By Seth Stevenson       

No Thanks for the Mammaries: Mardi Gras, defined down.

By Chris Suellentrop    

How To Be “Morally Serious”

By Timothy Noah

Merchant Semen: How to find the right sperm donor.

By David Plotz

The Gong Show: Falun Gong promises supernatural powers and eternal youth. Can it deliver?

By Emily Yoffe

Our Dogs, Our Selves: An introduction to dog psychology.

By David Plotz

Lani Guinier’s Oscar Fever

By Timothy Noah

Jackie’s Closet: The first lady hid herself in silken armor.

By Emily Eakin

On the War

Sept. 11 Dispatch From Tribeca

By Jacob Weisberg

Sept. 12 Dispatch From Tribeca

By Jacob Weisberg                 

Why Do Terrorists Hate Us?

By William Saletan       

Why Is It Legal To Own Anthrax?

By Timothy Noah        

How Can I Help? A role for writers and artists in the new war.

By David Denby          

What’s Osama Talking About on the Videotape?

By Chris Suellentrop

How Do You Spell Osama?

By Chris Suellentrop    

Life’s Odds and Sept. 11: No one I know personally was on the list. Why?

By David Plotz

W.H. Auden on Bin Laden

By Eric McHenry

A Theory of Everything

By Robert Wright        

How Missile Defense Helps Terrorists

By Robert Wright        

Defining Terrorism: It’s essential. It’s also impossible.

By Michael Kinsley      

On Islam

Muslims and Modernity

By Robert Wright        

Mideast Titles Glossary

By Chris Suellentrop

Islam: A Glossary

By Chris Suellentrop