Editor's Note

On 9/11/11

Paddling the Everglades Trail

Kayaking Florida's saltwater trail—with crocodiles, sharks, and other predators

The False Heroism of a Civil War Photographer

Taking a closer look at the legendary Mathew Brady

The Lazarus File

Twenty-three years after a young nurse was murdered in southern California, detectives zeroed in on a most unlikely suspect. A tale of deception, forensic science, and a cold case gone suddenly hot.

The Failure of American Schools

As chancellor of the nation’s largest school system, the author spent eight years battling recalcitrant unions and feckless politicians. American education, he learned, is a senseless system that must be gutted before it can be reformed.

The Wicked Coast

It's a joy in summer, but even more captivating in winter.

Learning to Love the (Shallow, Divisive, Unreliable) New Media

We know all the old arguments about the faults of the new media. But as coverage of the Egyptian uprising shows, the digital landscape is also alive with possibilities. We should make our peace with it now–while we have a choice.

Saying No to $1 Billion

Why the impoverished Sioux Nation won't take federal money

How the Recession Changed Us

Economic disaster by the numbers

The Tyranny of Defense Inc.

Fifty years later, Eisenhower's warnings about the military-industrial complex look not only prescient, but dramatically understated.

Fighting the Next War

The case for a new national security act

Why Our Best Officers Are Leaving

An exclusive survey of West Point graduates reveals a growing lack of faith in the military’s meritocracy.

Private Plane, Public Menace

The astonishing security flaws of private aviation

The Last Stand of Ricardo Sanchez

Ricardo Sanchez's quixotic quest for truth about the Iraq War

Your Child Left Behind

A new ranking shows that even privileged kids in our best public-school systems do poorly compared with their peers in other countries.

A Matter of Degrees

U.S. universities are still on top, but Asia is rising.

Escape Key

It’s part of our contemporary condition to feel simultaneously blessed and cursed by technology.

Tabloid Feminist

An antidiscrimination icon finds a new frontier in trash culture.

Taking Chances

The point of this annual issue isn’t to celebrate power, influence, or even, necessarily, success. It’s to identify people who are taking a substantial risk for a big idea.

Birding at the Border

Watching raptors—and immigration agents—in an Arizona preserve

Autism’s First Child

In 1943, 10-year-old Donald Triplett was diagnosed with a mysterious disorder unlike anything reported before. Now 77, he is showing the world what autism can look like in adulthood—and what challenges lie ahead for the nation’s tens of thousands of autistic children.

Can Boomers Lead?

The News Merchant

TV news is driven, more and more, by the latest scoops on JonBenet, Caylee, and Natalee. The inside story of how tabloid-TV stories are made, bought, and paid for—and the man who's often behind it all.

Prison Without Walls

With prisons stretched to the breaking point, some cities are trying a radical new idea: letting convicts roam free, under constant electronic surveillance.

Earthbound

The space-shuttle program is coming to a quiet end. Is the same true for the era of space exploration?

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Miami: The Next Big Start-Up City?

How the city became a center for innovation

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A Brief History of Romantic Comedies

From The Atlantic's Chris Orr

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Life in 'the New Arctic'

A moving portrait of a fading landscape

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The Rise of New York City

A fascinating look at Manhattan in the 1940s

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'I Thought It Was Really Funny, but No One Else Did'

A day with New Yorker cartoonist Joe Dator

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New Yorkers: The Winemaker

Make your own wine ... in New York City

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What Is Methane Hydrate?

"Flaming ice" is a vast natural energy source

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NASA's Time-Lapse of the Sun

Now with epic dubstep music

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A Video Letter From the Editor

Highlights from the May 2013 issue

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Shaken Not Tuned: Cocktail Experiments

Can a tuning fork improve a cocktail?

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The Rise of Environmentalism

Tracking 50 years, from the Love Canal disaster to Greenpeace

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Is He Cheating? A 1950s Guide

'That little blonde secretary from the office?’

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New Yorkers: Vintage Vacuum-Tube Amps

Risking electric shock to restore old amplifiers

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The DIY Piano-Bicycle

Everybody needs a hobby

Writers

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