"Scientists have to deal with this uneasy balance between being free to do what they like and needing to face the consequences of their unplanned actions, but if science is to thrive that’s the way it has to be." - 3 Quarks Daily
In recent years, I.Q. scores have stopped rising or have even begun to drop in countries like Finland, Norway, Denmark, Germany, France and Britain. Some researchers suggest that we have pushed our mental equipment as far as it can go. It may be that “our brains are already working at near-optimal capacity.” - The New York Times
A few days ago, David Zucchino's book on the 1898 Wilmington Massacre won a Pulitzer Prize. Now, a new statue is about to go up on the North Carolina-Wilmington campus, acknowledging and permanently memorializing the coup and massacre. The challenge for artist Dare Coulter: "'How do you depict Black joy, resilience,"'but also convey the horror of the massacre." -...
One Vancouver AD says that his colleagues are extremely burned out - and also worried about what's coming. On the other hand, post-pandemic: "I don't know that it's the same art form anymore. And that's interesting to me." - CBC
This means that groups and single artists who were still trying to pay back debt - and thus were not eligible for royalties - can now start earning money from streaming. - BBC
Filmmaker Jim Mickle: "I started asking questions like, 'What if you could make an apocalyptic story where you actually want to go to that world?' What does that look like? And you start asking, 'What happens if humans just disappear for 10 years and nature is suddenly allowed to thrive?' It would probably be one of the most beautiful...
That's what season 2 - and sophomore novels - are all about. Overwhelming numbers for a TV series or book can scare artists off. So what's going to happen in series 2 of Lupin? - The New York Times
It's impressively intimate: "As you stand in the middle of an undulating semi-circle of bodies, each moving with snakelike ports de bras, you discover how eye contact can change the tenor of a performance. By its very design, VR dance is meant to be this visceral. The audience is but a hair away from the action, and occasional trips...
Now, their plans are becoming reality. According to Christo's nephew, "A photo montage of how it would look was done but they never proposed actually doing it because they thought they would never get the necessary permission." They're both gone, but the permission has been given. - The Guardian (UK)
In the Heights might have opened to disappointing box office numbers this weekend, but those who did see it had the chance to learn about second-generation immigrants' dreams - and, through an elderly character, reality. "The classic peril of assimilation in America is that a perceived greater belonging demands a partial loss of self," but Abuela Claudia's character offers...
Books can be intensely powerful for some people, especially when the books do the work of repairing past pain. "'So many queer people 'have been through immense pain growing up in our adolescence,' Dr. Matos told me. Attempts by the broader culture to 'limit who we loved, what we desire, what we do with our bodies' abound. In these...
Coming to those who are interested in Spanish-language media, to be a little more precise. Disney, Netflix, and Warner Media, and Univision all have a piece of the pie - and are tugging, hard. "It’s easy to see why streamers and studios see a gold mine. Latinos consistently accounted for a disproportionate amount of moviegoing before the pandemic, yet...
Take Netflix's new High on the Hog as an example: "The narrative about Black food is often one of resilience—a history of dishes and cooking passed down from one generation to the next as Black people survived subpar and inhumane conditions. While part of that is true, High on the Hog is not afraid to complicate that narrative by reconsidering Black...
And that's fine. "Published authors, more often than not famous ones, have had few scruples when it comes to committing literary larceny. 'Authors are like privateers,' claimed Samuel Johnson, 'always fair game for one another.'" - The Smart Set
