RELIGION
Did Christianity Cause the Crash?
For millions of followers, the prosperity gospel encouraged financial risk in the name of God.
GENETICS
The Science of Success
New neurological findings suggest that “bad genes” can in fact be the keys to adult achievement—but only with the right parenting.
Researcher Stephen Suomi explains why monkeys with risky genes often turn out just fine
FOREIGN AFFAIRS
The Fall of Mexico
The government’s assault on drug cartels has become an amorphous civil war that threatens to bring down the nation. A report from the front lines.
Photographer Juliàn Cardona shares grim images from Juàrez
HISTORY
How Einstein Divided America's Jews
The physicist’s first trip to the U.S. placed him at the center of contentious debates over Zionism.
GALLERY
An Outline of Psychoanalysis
GALLERY
The New New Advertising
POETRY
Fern Glade
The poet reads this poem aloud
ADVICE
What’s Your Problem?
How to start your own advice column, whether to clean the hotel room before the maid arrives, and other conundrums
BORDERS
The Tijuana of the Caspian
At the border between Azerbaijan and Iran, everything’s for sale: sex, booze, tattoos—and maybe some revolutionary fervor.
POLITICS
Frenemies of the State
Once the most outspoken critic of Zimbabwe’s government, David Coltart is now on the inside
ANIMAL HUSBANDRY
The Great Guinea Hen Massacre
Good intentions collide with dumb birds on a small farm in Pennsylvania.
TECHNOLOGY
Who Needs the Grid?
A new fuel-cell technology promises to revolutionize access to cheap, clean energy.
Books of the Year
Atlantic literary editor Benjamin Schwarz picks the 25 best in a crowded field
On Being a Bad Mother
True confessions
The Zealot
Arthur Koestler’s manic intellectual career
BUSINESS
Lead Us Not Into Debt
Finance guru Dave Ramsey wins followers with a simple message: find God and lose your credit cards.
MOVING PICTURES
Double-X Films
Not just chick flicks, the movies of Nora Ephron and Nancy Meyers defy categorization and provide a sentimental education for everyone.
James Parker comments on his favorite scenes from When Harry Met Sally and What Women Want
