The Conversation
Responses and reverberations
Features
Jerry Brown's Political Reboot
In his reprise as governor, he's been as ruthlessly practical as he's been reflective, embracing his inner politician to restore the California dream.
The Gay Guide to Wedded Bliss
Research finds that same-sex unions are happier than heterosexual marriages. What can gay and lesbian couples teach straight ones about living in harmony?
The Girl Who Turned to Bone
Unexpected discoveries in the quest to cure an extraordinary skeletal condition show how medically relevant rare diseases can be.
The Rise and Fall of Charm in American Men
Few possess it, and not many want to. Explaining men's ambivalent relationship with an amoral virtue.
Dispatches
Do Presidents Really Steer Foreign Policy?
They can—but mainly by doing things other than what we want and expect from them.
How to Protect Your Privacy Online
A new graphical warning system
Death of the Salesmen: Technology's Threat to Retail Jobs
Should we mourn them?
Problem: I Think My Wife Is Annoyed That I'm Going to Paris Without Her
Our advice columnist to the rescue
The Evolution of Hand Gestures: Why Do Some Die Out and Others Endure?
And why do we use them at all?
The Art of Staying Focused in a Distracting World
The tech-industry veteran Linda Stone on how to pay attention
The Unexpected Ways a Fetus Is Shaped by a Mother's Environment
New research on first impressions
How to Save the GOP
What Republicans can learn from the Democrats' revival
Josh Barro, the Loneliest Republican
What to make of the 28-year-old columnist's contempt for the GOP—and its would-be reformers
Big in Japan: Steve Jobs
An American icon finds immortality
Are We Truly Overworked? An Investigation—in 6 Charts
Americans are laboring less than ever. So why do we feel so busy?
Culture File
Why Sylvia Plath Still Haunts Us
Even half a century after her suicide, both her work and her life remain thrilling and horrifying.
1963: The Year the Beatles Found Their Voice
Listening to a young band rapidly assimilating and remixing genres it would soon transcend
'Idiot,' 'Yahoo,' 'Original Gorilla': How Lincoln Was Dissed in His Day
The difficulty of recognizing excellence in its own time
When That 'Local,' 'Craft' Liquor You Pay Big Bucks for Is Neither
Distilling deceit
How Learning a Foreign Language Reignited My Imagination
Pardon my French
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