Miscellaneous: From TNR, a look at how copyright law could kill the fashion industry. Is there a scientific explanation for the human ability to use language? A review of The First Word: The Search for the Origins of Language by Christine Kenneally. From Wired's "The Luddite", a 21st-Century Elegy for a Paradise Lost. Funny Radio Personalities: Talk radio's funniest host detests liberals but loves the environment. As for the least-funny hosts, turn to the left. Is there room for humour in art? In this current climate, is it morally wrong for artists to be anything other than deadly serious? What happens if they just want to make us giggle.
From The Weekly Standard, Bam! A cover story on making sense of America's celebrity-chef culture. Since moving The Atlantic Monthly from Boston to Washington two years ago (after vowing not to), David Bradley has sought out — with an open checkbook — some of the Beltway's best and brightest. Facebook Grows Up: At 19, Mark Zuckerberg came up with a new way for college kids to connect—and started an online revolution. Now 23, he's trying to build out his business without losing its cool. A review of F5: Devastation, Survival, and the Most Violent Tornado Outbreak of the 20th Century by Mark Levine.
Who Killed the Love Story? An article on the lost art of making a great romantic movie. Far from romantic: A review of Robert Schumann: Life and Death of a Musician by John Worthen (and more). Sole survivors: Sandals are shaking off their nerdy image and desert boots are having another fashion moment. A review of Deluxe: How Luxury Lost its Luster by Dana Thomas. Ian Fleming Publications' decision to reanimate the late author's most famous creation, James Bond, in a novel by Sebastian Faulks to mark Fleming's centenary next year is the latest in a resurrection trade that has made literary estates some of the most powerful in the media. New free software puts the power of cybersleuthing in everybody’s hands. This might not be a good thing.
