Essays

Uni-Tasking 


Technology makes it possible for us to do many things at once, but Janet Schneider looks at research suggesting that multi-tasking erodes our attention and rewires our brains.
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SAMBA: From Berkeley to Brazil


I love Sunday mornings.  Often I wake to the smell of coffee and know that the New York Times awaits me on the dining room table, but these enticements don’t get me out of bed. I rise to dance the samba. For no matter what the weather is in Berkeley, California for one hour, I am transported to a warm Brazilian sandy beach, a Carnaval parade line moving in unison, or a spontaneous Latin street party.  
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Cycling Through Lives

On a recent 20-mile bike ride along Torch Lake Drive in Northern Michigan, I expected to see beautiful views of what National Geographic has called “the third most beautiful lake in the world.” However, from the road, I saw very little of the lake. Most of the houses were also concealed from sight. Instead, I noticed the wooden signs sprouting at the end of driveways like mushrooms, or attached to mailboxes like antlers.
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Fixer Upper


Against my parents’ objections and to my siblings astonishment, we made an offer.
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