No Man’s Land
Fear, racism, and the historically troubling attitude of American pioneers.
Miscellaneous
Damage
"When I was younger, someone took a knife to my clitoris and cut out a small but significant part of me. I blamed my mother. I despised her. I loved her."
The Best of "What It's Like"
A few of our favorites from Science of Us’s ongoing interview series about unusual conditions and relationships.
-
What It's Like to Date Your Dad
Consensual incest between fathers and their daughters remains the least reported and perhaps the most taboo sort of relationship. Here’s the story of one girl, now 18, who plans to marry her father.
-
What It’s Like to Be a 58-Year-Old Virgin
Social and cultural norms attach a lot of stigma to a first sexual experience, meaning that honest discussions about being a virgin rarely happen. Here, a 58-year-old man describes living as a virgin for almost 60 years.
-
What It's Like to Slowly Lose Your Eyesight
Retinitis pigmentosa is a group of eye diseases that cause retinal degeneration. The condition usually first manifests as a loss of night vision, followed by diminished periphery eyesight and, eventually, blindness. It’s slow-moving, so an early diagnosis can mean years of uncertainty.
-
What It’s Like to Have a Micropenis
Heterosexual men who have penises less than three inches long share common strands of despair: a scarring first sexual encounter; paralyzing fears of intimacy; confusing ideas of normality gained from porn; resentment toward women; and desperate attempts to enlarge using painful pumps, expensive pills, or alternative medicine (none of which work).
-
What It's Like to Date a Horse
Zoophiles—those attracted to animals—can form deep, loving, and very nurturing relationships with their animal partners.
Why a Generation of Adoptees Is Returning to South Korea
Thousands of Korean children were sent abroad beginning in the 1950s. Now, many of them are returning to their country of origin.
How to Succeed in Television
Meet Ben Sherwood, the new head of the Disney/ABC Television Group.
A Wild Goose Chase
A Georgia chicken farmer hoped to find financial independence in ethical foie gras. Things got weird.
My Lovely Wife in the Psych Ward
How mental illness reshapes a marriage.
Motley Crew
A 58-year-old diabetic and his team of amateur rugby players attempt to qualify for the 1984 Summer Olympics in rowing.
A City Run by Children
The theme-park chain where kids learn to pilot a plane, pay taxes, and pretend to be adults.
Artists in Uniform
"The Colonel went out sailing. He spoke with Turk and Jew . . ."
The Art of Fiction No. 90: Robert Stone
An interview with the novelist, who died on Saturday.
“There’s only one subject for fiction or poetry or even a joke: how it is. In all the arts, the payoff is always the same: recognition. If it works, you say that’s real, that’s truth, that’s life, that’s the way things are. ‘There it is.’”
No Matter How Your Heart Is Grieving: Disney for the Sad
Visiting Disney World during times of loss and sorrow.
Addict, Priest, Luchador
The unbelievable life of Fray Tormenta.
The Wanderer
Noah Lennox—better known as Panda Bear—has lived in Lisbon for a decade. How has the Portuguese capital shaped his life and work?
Voices from Chernobyl
“'You have to understand: This is not your husband anymore, not a beloved person, but a radioactive object with a strong density of poisoning. You’re not suicidal. Get a hold of yourself.' And I was like someone who’d lost her mind: 'But I love him! I love him!' He’s sleeping, and I’m whispering: 'I love you!' Walking in the hospital courtyard, 'I love you.' Carrying his sanitary tray, 'I love you.'”
How White Flight Ravaged the Mississippi Delta
For generations, plantation owners strove to keep black laborers on the farm and competing businesses out of town. Today, the towns faring best are the ones whose white residents stayed to reckon with their own history.
Raëlism
Founded in 1974, the Raëlian Movement teaches that life on Earth was scientifically created by a species of extraterrestrials. Raëlians claim to have cloned the first human being and extol sensuality and pleasure as a path to peace.
Dry
The water’s nearly gone in the San Joaquin Valley, and an old farmer sees the writing on the wall.
Portraits From a Life Shaped By Music
"Here’s God’s truth about it: being a groupie wasn’t about sex, it was about access. I wanted to live in the stage life, dazzled by color and sound, constantly in motion, driven by excitement and power, loved by the stage lights, part of the story."
Mass Effect
The eccentric inhabitants of the world’s largest rock—Giant Rock, a humongous boulder deep in the Mojave Desert.
Listen Up
The pandemic of violence against women, the threats online, and the harassment on the streets are ongoing. But women’s voices assumed an unprecedented power in 2014.
Chris Harrison: The Reigning King of #BachelorNation
The Bachelor’s host, Chris Harrison, is now a divorced bachelor himself. It turns out coaching single men is a lot easier than being one.
Becoming Zoey Tur
As the most famous helicopter news pilot in American history, Bob Tur prided himself on being the ultimate alpha male. Except all along, he knew he wasn’t.
"This Nation Is More a 'Tale of Two Cities' Than It Is Just a 'Shining City on a Hill'"
The late governor’s most enduring speech.
Confidential Informer Blows Whistle In Fatal Tampa SWAT Raid
A snitch comes clean.
