The story of a suicide.

Searching for a mysterious whirpool on an obscure map.

How mergers between Catholic institutions and secular hospitals are changing the nature of health care.

The story of a whale attack.

A journey on the Sunset Limited, which ferries people from Louisiana to California.

A profile of the late-night host.

The Branch Davidians today, 20 years after the deadly standoff.

The author examines his closest relationships.

On historian Ian Morris and his predictions for humanity’s future.

From 1975-1986, Anthony Edward Dokoupil distributed more than 50 tons of weed in the United States. The operation ruined his family and destroyed his life. Three decades later, his son came looking for answers.

Before he died, Sun Myung Moon, cult father to massive Unification Church (known better as the Moonies), sent 14 Japanese “national messiahs” deep into the Paraguayan jungle to build an utopian “ideal city.” Thirteen years later, the author catches a trading boat down river in search of their hidden town.

It was a 3-mile footrace. Thousands were in attendance. So how did Michael LeMaitre disappear?

The enduring disadvantage of getting locked up.

Chasing the embers of hedonism in Morocco and Tunisia, as Salafi mobs and new regimes wash over the brothels, beaches, and nightclubs of what used to be the Arab world’s most liberal cities.

Applying big data analysis to Internet Adult Film Database, the IMDB of porn.

A conversation with a 29-year-old approaching his apex.

“‘If there’s anything I can do to make your trip more enjoyable, let me know.” He walked away, then he strode back to Cree 15 seconds later and whispered, making eye contact, “Anything.’”

“Fear is running rampant in the Curia, where the mood has rarely been this miserable. It’s as if someone had poked a stick into a beehive. Men wearing purple robes are rushing around, hectically monitoring correspondence. No one trusts anyone anymore, and some even hesitate to communicate by phone.”

How the Bounty, a busted-up replica built in 1960 for the film Mutiny on the Bounty, ended up 100 miles out to sea during the height of Hurricane Sandy.

A profile of Richard and Karen Carpenter.

A father-son trip to the Playa.

Visiting a lost friend.

“I am not a tech journalist. I have never done this before. I don’t know what’s going on. Like most journalists everywhere, I am hungover.”