archive
Commentary
'The Whole Nine Yards' Of What?
January 14, 2013 There are many theories about where the expression comes from — among them square-riggers with three masts, the amount of cloth in the queen's bridal train, the Shroud of Turin, and a prodigiously well-endowed Scotsman who gets his kilt caught in a door.
Author Interviews
Retired Bishop Gene Robinson On Being Gay And Loving God
January 14, 2013 The first openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church will start work with the Center for American Progress, focusing on issues of faith and gay rights. "Gay is not something we do," he says. "It's something we are." His book God Believes in Love: Straight Talk About Gay Marriage was published in September.
My Guilty Pleasure
Spy Vs. Spy: A Former MI5 Director On Loving James Bond
January 14, 2013 Though former MI5 director Stella Rimington knows better than anyone that Ian Fleming's From Russia With Love is not a realistic portrayal of life in the intelligence services, she still loves this tale of sex and violence. Which is your favorite Bond book? Tell us in the comments.
The Salt
Cross-Culture Cilantro Sauce And Other Secrets Of 'Gran Cocina Latina'
January 14, 2013 For her new book, Gran Cocina Latina, chef Maricel Presilla visited homes and restaurants across Latin America to document their food. But one dish familiar to Americans, the sauce often served with Cuban-style yuca fries, has a surprising origin — Presilla herself.
Books
A 'Beautiful Vision' In Science Forgotten
January 13, 2013 Dorothy Wrinch was the first woman to ever receive a doctorate in science from Oxford University, and she was the first person to design a protein structure. But her name is largely unknown. I Died for Beauty, a biography of Wrinch by Marjorie Senechal, tells her story.
Author Interviews
'I Accepted Responsibility': McChrystal On His 'Share Of The Task'
January 13, 2013 Gen. Stanley McChrystal was the top commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, relieved of command after a controversy in 2010. In his memoir, My Share of the Task, he describes a culture gap between the military and civilian worlds that complicated the U.S. war effort in Afghanistan.
Books
Life Is Difficult But Rewarding Under This 'Umbrella'
January 13, 2013 "Lives don't divide up into chapters," says novelist Will Self, whose latest, Umbrella, is a challenging read that layers narratives, places and characters for an intensely nonlinear experience. The book centers on a psychiatrist and one of his patients, a woman who's been comatose for 50 years.
Author Interviews
Deserts, Coal Walking And Wildfires: Can You Take The 'Heat'?
January 13, 2013 Scientist and writer Bill Streever is fascinated by the extremes at both ends of the thermometer. In Cold, he visited some of the chilliest places on Earth. Now, in his latest book, Heat, he travels to the world's very hot spots.
Sunday Puzzle
Two Is Company, Three Is A Crowd
January 13, 2013 Given three three-letter words, give a three-letter word that can follow each to complete a familiar six-letter word. None of the words in a set will be related in meaning. For example, given "dam," "man" and "sew," the answer would be "age," which results in "damage," "manage" and "sewage."
Monkey See
Watch The Golden Globes With Us, Where The Drinks Are Optional
January 13, 2013 Tonight, we'll be live-blogging the Golden Globes and hoping for great things from hosts Amy Poehler and Tina Fey.
PG-13: Risky Reads
Daughter Of The Storm: An Iranian Literary Revolution
January 13, 2013 As a young girl reeling from the revolution in Iran in 1979, author Roya Hakakian discovered the great Persian poet Ahmad Shamlou. His poems made her realize the importance of breaking from tradition. Has a poem ever changed your thinking this way? Tell us in the comments.
Movie Interviews
Ann Dowd's One-Woman Oscar-Nomination Campaign
January 12, 2013 Actress Ann Dowd received huge acclaim for her role in the indie film Compliance. But the studio told her it didn't have money to lobby the Academy for a best supporting actress award for her. So Dowd did something exceedingly rare in Hollywood: She spent $13,000 on her own campaign.
Author Interviews
Father's Death Spurs Son To Tackle Health Care
January 12, 2013 David Goldhill lost his father to infections acquired at a hospital in 2007. Since then, the business executive has been spurred to action. In his new book, Catastrophic Care, he talks about problems in the insurance-based American health care system and how we can fix it.
History
World War II Exhibit Asks Visitors, 'What Would You Do?'
January 12, 2013 The National WWII Museum in New Orleans presents a range of real-life scenarios that give visitors a sense of the ethical — and often dangerous — decisions soldiers and civilians were forced to make during the war.
Author Interviews
The Seedy Underbelly Of The Belle Epoque, 'Painted'
January 12, 2013 The belle epoque was not particularly belle if you were poor and female — like the young girl who modeled for Edgar Degas' famous sculpture, The Little Dancer, Aged 14. A new novel by Cathy Marie Buchanan tells the story of that girl, ballet student Marie van Goethem.
