A study, published in 2019, looked at long-term trends in the health of a group of nearly five thousand Swedish workers. They found that repeated exposure to “high information and communication technology demands” (translation: a need to be constantly connected) were associated with “suboptimal” health outcomes. - The New Yorker
For one thing, it's OK to fight. Writers are also seeing back pay come in - and letting the union win it for them instead of fighting alone. And then there's at least one intangible: "I have seen ... an improvement in terms of how a writer looks at themselves and their value next to their representatives, that the...
But why? Alison Flood investigates why Britain's Royal Mint and an actual Carroll commemorative collection have been getting quotes wrong ... and then printing them on coinage. Cue the facepalm emoji: Turns out it's all the fault of Goodreads. - The Guardian (UK)
Actors get temperature-taking robots; there's Hamiltizer for your hands if you're rehearsing Hamilton; and then there are the actors who can't hug - so Olaf and Elsa flash each other peace signs instead. Audience members have their own rules, and they won't be at the stage door begging for selfies now either - but sales in Australia are strong...
The Mouse - Disney Plus, in this case - has a huge back catalog, and it's also doing this little thing called dropping a new episode once a week. What even? Well: "They’re treating The Mandalorian like it’s Seinfeld—people tune in one week and they get a great publicity bump as people talk about it over the weekend and there are roundup...
At least that's what a bookseller turned newly-minted Instagram book reviewer (that is, a Bookstagrammer) says. He hasn't seen his family for nearly two years, a friend has cancer, and his job at Waterstone's keeps going away and coming back as lockdowns come and go. But reading, and Instagram, are there: "There's so much to be worried about, and...
You probably know the French actor Julie Delpy from the Richard Linklater movie trilogy that begins with Before Sunrise, but she's been writing and directing movies for a while. She wanted to keep her new film real, but also deal with the near-future. "I am not saying that cloning is a good thing, but I’m saying, let’s not blind...
Of course, the venue itself likely has no feelings on the matter. But Madrid's Frontón Beti-Jai, built when the Basque game pelota was all the rage in the city, was recently restored, and is now sitting idle. - The Observer (UK)
The standup comedian, who produced a special called Rape Jokes in response to her own experience of assault and Donald Trump's Access Hollywood tape (among other things), says that it was extra ironic to be promoting her memoir that first month. "It’s about growing up Catholic and figuring out that I was queer. There are no helpful tips for...
Perhaps this was an idea that could have gotten, shall we say, misplaced during various shutdowns? But no. What does Dutch art of the 17th century smell like? An exhibit "will shortly be available as a virtual tour with a four-scent fragrance box. It doesn’t just descant on the theme, although there is plenty of historical narrative about plagues,...
At the beginning of the pandemic and its ballet shutdown, choreographer Alexei Ratmansky had big plans. Then reality hit, and he's spent hours organizing his photos and posting to Instagram. Hurray for the return to a dance bubble. - The New York Times
And other animals. And smoke. But the project manager has some questions. "The Living Desert specialists had assured us that the project would not damage the desert or any native or captive wildlife, so their backing out is incredibly disappointing and perplexing."- The New York Times
The first novel to be considered a "Western" came out in 1902, and the tropes it established have lasted for more than a century - white men shooting each other and Indigenous people, and women, if they exist at all, serving those men. But newer novels set in the West "preserve some aspects of the old Westerns: the parched...
Why now? "While it is illegal in France for an adult to have sex with a minor under the age of 15, there is no age of consent; if there is no evidence of threats or violence, the adult will not be charged with rape. In 2018 ... ministers proposed introducing an age of consent, which has yet to pass. A...
