Semi-Charmed Life
Parsing the lives of middle-class twentysomethings.
In the Time of Cholera
The U.N.’s role in creating an epidemic in Haiti.
The Tip of the Spear
A reporter who investigated Scientology tracks down the man who once ran the church’s intelligence operations – and who may hold the secret to years of harassment (and the mysterious death of a pet dog).
The New Mecca
The author travels to Dubai; Arab children see snow for the first time, which is made by a Kenyan.
One Martyr Down
An investigation into the death of a Canadian soldier in Lebanon.
The Mystery of Lightning Medicine Cloud
An investigation into the death of a sacred white buffalo and the man who raised it.
Here Is What Happens When You Cast Lindsay Lohan in Your Movie
Tales of mayhem on the set of The Canyons.
Right Here Waiting
After offending Richard Marx, the author meets him to hash things out.
New Delhi Attack: The Victim's Story
A profile of the 23-year-old woman who was savagely raped on a private bus as it circled New Delhi.
Charles Duhigg is a New York Times reporter and author of The Power of Habit.
"The stuff that gets cut out gets cut out for a reason. The discipline of space is always a good discipline. If it deserves to be read, it shouldn't be on the cutting room floor ... If it ends up on the cutting room floor, there's usually a reason why."
Thanks to TinyLetter for sponsoring this week's episode!
Into the Unknown
In 1912, 300 miles deep on a trek into the uncharted Antarctic wilderness, Douglas Mawson lost most of his crew and supplies. The story of how he got back.
Can Forgiveness Play a Role in Criminal Justice?
After a 19-year-old is convicted of murdering his girlfriend, her family fights to free him from prison.
The Behavioral Sink
The story of Universe 25, a mouse utopia that became an overcrowded hell, and its implications for the future of humankind.
What Turned Jaron Lanier Against the Web?
An internet pioneer loses hope in the promise of web culture.
The Science of Sex Abuse
On serving time for crimes not yet committed.
Suds for Drugs
How Tide became a black market currency.
Germs Are Us
On the importance of the human microbiome.
Former C.I.A. Officer Is the First to Face Prison for a Classified Leak
How John Kiriakou, a public opponent of US torture policy, became the first CIA officer convicted of leaking classified information to the press.
A Signature Moment
Thirty-one years ago, Joy Hunley’s daughter was adopted. At least that’s what the paperwork says.
Every Place Is Khalidiya
A trip to a grave in Damascus as shelling started in Homs.
America's Real Criminal Element: Lead
Why a type of gasoline may be responsible for periods of increased crime in the U.S. and abroad.
Heirs of Mao’s Comrades Rise as New Capitalist Nobility
How the ‘princeling’ descendants of Mao’s ‘Eight Immortals’consolidated unimaginable power and wealth in the New China.
The Immortalization of an Anonymous Death
On Dylan Yount, a man who jumped from a San Francisco building, and the people who watched, recorded and, in some cases, encouraged his suicide.
Dish Network, the Meanest Company in America
How an autocratic CEO made the company billions, alienating almost everyone else in the process.
The Loneliest Number
Life after scoring 100-plus points in a basketball game.
