My 2023 in review
A brief roundup of my publications, appearances and reading in a very eventful year.
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Punching in: Orality makes a comeback
Rappers are using recording technology to compose songs without having to write anything down. It's a return with a modern twist of ancient oral-first modes of communication, with the written word's powers no longer so unique in a world of cheap recording, storage and distribution of audiovisual content.
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What is 'Midwest'?
People love to fight over what areas are in the Midwest. One reason that question is so hard is that no one agrees on what the concept of 'Midwest' even means.
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Recommendations
An collection of some of my favorite essays, short stories and video essays (with more to come).
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Three pieces of advice for aspiring journalists
If you want to get hired in journalism, but aren't sure how to get it done, I recommend: start a personal website, publish as much as you can (ideally for money), and become a generalist with a bonus.
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The 19th Century opponents of the Electoral College
Long before 21st Century battles over the Electoral College, it was the target of 19th Century populists including Andrew Jackson.
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Liberalism and the age of Trump
Understanding American politics in the age of Trump, you need to understand liberalism — not as most Americans use the term, but as an ideology concerned with the freedom of individuals, whose adherents span the political spectrum and have until recently tended to dominate American politics.
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Meet Megakota
A joke petition proposes to merge North and South Dakota. I take it semi-seriously.
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Get rid of debt, fast
Could the U.S. solve the national debt if Americans just fasted for one day each month and donated the savings? I did the math.
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Betting on myself
After an unorthodox past year, I'm excited to start a great new job with the news website CityLab.
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The map in the painting
A map tucked away in the corner of a famous painting speaks volumes about history, cartography, art and politics. An exegesis.
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Infinity War: Laws and narrative
The climax of Marvel's latest superhero movie illustrates how writers can and can't use magic to solve problems — and how understanding these narrative laws lets them subvert our expectations.
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Long lives the queen
How Queen Elizabeth's record-breaking reign stacks up to past monarchs — and how her presence in the lives of Britain's prime ministers compares to her predecessors.
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Obscenities and oaths: French languages before the Revolution
Is it really true that most residents of France couldn't speak French at the time of the French Revolution? Absolutely.
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American latitude
Where do most Americans live? I plot out the population of the lower 48 states by latitude and longitude.
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A history of nuclear testing in nine charts
With North Korea testing nuclear weapons and President Donald Trump mulling a response in kind, the world could soon see a resurgence in nuclear tests for the first time since the end of the Cold War. I break down the numbers.
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Kickstarting journalism
I experimented with using a Kickstarter to fund a journalism project and was blown away by the results.
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In the hinterland, plus ça change
History shows antecedents for today's changing relationships between cities and their surrounding regions.
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Creatures of New York
A profane oral history of the New York Yankees' 8-4 win over the Minnesota Twins in the American League Wild Card Game on Oct. 3, 2017, by the residents of the left field bleachers.
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The Culinary Trilemma
When eating, most people want to save money, save time and eat healthily. Unfortunately, it's really hard to accomplish more than two of the three at once.
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Three fascinating things
Learn about African geography, Roman culture and... Looney Tunes? Thanks, internet.
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Recommended: 'Snowflakes'
A clever and whimsical webcomic about precocious and imaginative children at a mountain orphanage.
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Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2: Along for the ride
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is fun, but it's undermined because its main characters are largely just along for the ride instead of making consequential choices that drive the movie's action.
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Pup inflation: Good dogs getting better
Who's a good dog? More and more of them, according to a statistical analysis of the world's #1 source for professional dog ratings and puptastic puns.
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Recommended: 'The Man From God Knows Where'
Recommending a 'folk opera' album about immigrants to the American Midwest from Ireland and Scandinavia.
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20 arguments (mostly) in favor of Daylight Saving Time
People love to complain about Daylight Saving Time. I stand up for the embattled twice-yearly clock change.
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The Accidental Republic — Let's Nerd Out
A talk I gave at a local event called "Let's Nerd Out" about the rise of democracy in 1870s France, adapted from an older post from this site.
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My 2016 in review
Few Americans are mourning the passing of 2016, a possibly deadly and definitely tumultuous year. But I try to live by the philosophy of the Roman Stoic Epictetus — concern yourself only with the things you can control. And for me personally, 2016 was a pretty good year.
Not everything was perfect, of course, but I improved both my quality of living and my self over the past 12 months. Here's my assessment of my 2016.
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Site update
Longtime visitors may notice some differences around here. I’ve not just redesigned this website, but have moved it to an entirely new architecture and hosting services.
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Did more famous people than usual really die in 2016?
On Tuesday, actress and author Carrie Fisher died, setting off a wave of lamentations not just for the beloved Fisher, but for the entire calendar year 2016.
Her death and those of seemingly countless other celebrities, athletes and world leaders have created an impression that the year 2016 has been particularly bad, an annus horribilis for the Anglo-American world.
But is that impression of 2016's mortality accurate?