When I saw this recent New York Times story about a growing industry of college sorority rush consultants, I had to click. Another bogus trend piece, perhaps? No, it was real: The article describes consultants who charge anywhere from $125 an hour to $8,000 for a “weekend intensive.” That buys you one day “devoted to carrying yourself properly and the art of conversation” and another to your physical appearance, including help… Read More >>

Being a functional adult is, more than anything else, time-consuming. You have to hold down a 9-to-5 without whining about it, shop for groceries and cook real meals (read: not Mountain Dew and Pringles), stay current on Aaron Sorkin and The New Yorker’s opinions of him, be fiscally responsible (even when Zara is on sale), and keep the world up to date on… Read More >>

As a native New Yorker, I never get to see the stars (and no, I don't mean Sarah Jessica Parker or Tyra Banks...I see them all the time). I'm talking the real, blazing spheres of fire that have inspired artists, writers and, well, Mobyto create modern masterpieces. Which is why I was thrilled to stumble upon Weber State Department of Physics' neat round-up… Read More >>

As part of my job, I go through the Internet to find cool stuff that my boss might like, and recently I stumbled upon this video from Coca-Cola. They asked: “How would you come up with the most outrageous way to share a Coke?” A bunch of engineering students came up with a spectacular solution, concocting an elaborate obstacle course complete with… Read More >>

If you're a fan of The Artist or Martin Scorsese’s Hugo, check out Jeremiah McDonald'shomage to the silent era. The Portland, Maine, filmmaker insinuates himself into three pre-sound movie classics in fascinating and fun fashion. One finds him in a montage of Buster Keaton movies acting alongside or in place of the silent comic star. In another, he’s onstage tapping away as a… Read More >>

It was last year that J.K. Rowling announced Pottermore. It was intended to be her official website for, well, moreHarry Potter material. Initial interest was intense, but details were scarce. Plenty of people attempted to sign up immediately for the beta launch—as in, an overwhelmingly large number, so many that the site was swamped. It was a bit of a slog to sign… Read More >>

In 2008, Warner Bros. Pictures released "The Dark Knight," and the film quickly earned over $1 billion, eight Oscar nominations, and a newfound respect among those who decried the superhero genre on the screen. But there would be no "Dark Knight" or its sequel, "The Dark Knight Rises" (opening July 20) without these great DC Comics' books, many of which inspired the movie franchise's serious… Read More >>

In 21st century America, there are certain situations that are and always will be 100% inescapable. Bad dates used to feature on that list, but not anymore. Read More >>

It's been a scorcher of a summer. In trying to cool down, I've nearly tripled my H2O intake in the past month, gulping down glass after glass of ice water. But apparently I've been doing it all wrong: While conventional wisdom says a cold drink will help cool the body, research now suggests that hot beverages are the way to go. According to Smithsonian reporting on Read More >>

There's an ebullient message in my childhood diary, from the summer I was nine: "Today, mom let us have ice cream in the afternoon. And then she went to book club when dad got home...and he didn't know we had already had ice cream and let us have ice cream again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" (Except in my diary, the exclamation points actually went on for lines.) That's one of very few entries I wrote—it was obviously the highlight of my summer. Then I grew up and realized, calories and health aside, I could have ice cream whenever I wanted, and however… Read More >>