“Complexity neither disguised the shortcomings of poor essays, nor enhanced the appeal of high-quality essays.” In other words, George Orwell got it right: “Never use a long word where a short one will do.” - Big Think
"The Sydney Opera House has reviewed the rules for lighting its iconic sails, as figures reveal they were lit up a record one night in every five last year." Arguments arose after the premier of the new state government blocked a projection to celebrate King Charles's coronation. - The Sydney Morning Herald
The surgeon general called on policymakers, tech companies, researchers and parents to “urgently take action” to safeguard against the potential risks. - The New York Times
"As Disney pledges to enact $5.5 billion in cost-saving measures, Disney Parks Chairperson Josh D'Amaro said his department will also be making cuts, but will not eliminate frontline positions as part of it." - The Hollywood Reporter
"The work, titled Seated (2022), first appeared near King's Cross in London last year and is now being exhibited by the De la Warr Pavilion in Bexhill-on-Sea, a town in East Sussex. After its vandalism on May 15, the community in Bexhill-on-Sea banded together to clean the work." - ARTnews
"Far too often, women in ballet have been disbelieved, gaslighted, judged, or blamed for the harms inflicted on them by their abusers. Kourlas continues this trend, but attaches these behaviors to words like 'feminism' and 'freedom' in a way that diminishes them." - Dance Magazine
"One minute, your heart and mind are overthrown by a life-changing film (or) a miraculous performance. ... The next you're nearly sobbing with hunger and fatigue, wondering who exactly thought that watching a bunch of really intense movies from 8:30 a.m. to midnight was a good idea." - Yahoo! (Los Angeles Times)
"The U.S. Department of Education has found that a suburban Atlanta school district's decision to remove some books from its libraries may have created a hostile environment that violated federal laws against race and sex discrimination." - AP
"He wrote a stream of reviews but refused, to the displeasure of bosses, to rate films by a star system. 'He always defended that by saying 'If we give stars, no one will read the review. And movies are more complicated than that', said (his wife,) Pat." - MSN (Chicago Tribune)
"Meta has been hit with a record-breaking $1.3 billion fine (€1.2 billion) by EU data regulators, and ordered to stop transferring the Facebook data of EU citizens to the US. … The fine exceeds the previous EU record of €746 million levied against Amazon in 2021 for similar violations." - The Verge
In April, the Pops filed an antitrust lawsuit claiming the Philadelphia Orchestra and Kimmel Center used tactics intended to force the company out of business and create a monopoly in the city. On Wednesday, the orchestra amended its lawsuit in hopes it can begin playing shows again at Verizon Hall. - Philly Voice
Some of the laws impose severe penalties on librarians, who until now were exempted in almost every state from prosecution over obscene material — a carve-out meant to permit accurate lessons in topics such as sex education. - Washington Post
An Angeleno who emigrated from Mexico at age 8, grew into a first-generation college student and climbed his way through the ranks of the city’s arts scene has been named executive and artistic director of UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance. - Los Angeles Times
“Let’s not forget that the word ‘climax’ is a common musical term,” the soprano Renée Fleming told me. “It has to do with musical tension and its release.” She said Rachmaninoff and Liszt “had it down” when it comes to sexy pieces. - The New York Times
The most surprising aspect of “The Naked Comedy Show” might be how asexual it is. The audience is meticulously polite, quick to laugh. The jokes were less bawdy than what you might find at the Comedy Cellar. There’s even an incongruous innocence to some of the sets. - The New York Times
