Longread #465 -- Summer Is for Skinny People -- 7/3/14

"Summer Is for Skinny People" by Sean Nelson
Published in the Stranger, July 2, 2014

Eric

Longread #464 -- Never PUNting This Blog -- 6/19/14

Well, it's been awhile, but here's a fun one!

"At the World Pun Championships, Victory Is Easier Said Than Punned" by Zachary Pincus-Roth

Published in LA Weekly, June 5, 2014

Eric

Longread #463 -- Ronald Reagan's Benghazi -- 5/16/14

This isn't a true longread, but it offers an excellent perspective on the Benghazi obsession and what it means with regard to American politics.

"Ronald Reagan's Benghazi" by Jane Mayer
Published in the New Yorker, May 6, 2014

Eric

Longread #462 -- Billionaires With Big Ideas Are Privatizing American Science -- 4/9/14

"Billionaires With Big Ideas Are Privatizing American Science" by William J. Broad
Published in the New York Times, March 15, 2014

Eric

Longread #461 -- Is it OK to make art? -- 4/3/14

Lots to think about with this one...

"Is it OK to make art?" by Rhys Southan
Published in Aeon Magazine, March 20, 2014

Eric

Longread #460 -- Is the Wolf a Real American Hero? -- 4/1/14

No April Fool's joke here...just a good article about wolves and conservation.

"Is the Wolf a Real American Hero?" by Arthur Middleton
Published in the New York Times, March 9, 2014

Eric

Longread #459 -- Echo Chambers in Myanmar -- 3/25/14

My friend Matt recently published this excellent piece about the rise of social media and what it may mean for Myanmar. As someone who lives in a country where social media is already ubiquitous (especially among my demographic), it is easy to just assume that it has already taken hold in other countries or that its rise in other countries may simply parallel its development here in the U.S. But the story is not so simple, and the rise of social media in complex sociopolitical contexts like Myanmar raises a host of concerns. Check out Matt's article for a concise, intriguing, and well-argued look at the future of media in Myanmar.

"Echo Chambers in Myanmar: Social media and the ideological justifications for mass violence" by Matt Schissler
Published for the Australian National University Department of Political & Social Change Research Colloquium, “Communal Conflict in Myanmar: Characteristics, Causes, Consequences,” March 2018

Eric

Longread #458 -- The Dark Power of Fraternities -- 3/24/14

I was worried at first that this would be a standard hit-piece on fraternities. While those stories are often warranted by the facts, they often follow similar incidents without looking at any bigger picture. On the other hand, this investigative piece takes a much deeper look into the role of fraternities in campus life, how they are organized, and many of the risks that arise from their growth.

"The Dark Power of Fraternities" by Caitlin Flanagan
Published in the Atlantic, February 19, 2014

Eric

Longread #457 -- The Exotic Animal Trade -- 3/19/14

An eye-opening look at a lucrative part of the black market that is probably not on the radar for most people.

"The Exotic Animal Trade" by Alex Mayyasi
Published on Pricenomics, February 20, 2014

Eric

Longread #456 -- A Brief History of Serving Homeless Youth in Seattle -- 3/14/14

It's not uncommon to hear people (especially politicians) bemoan the cost or inefficiency of social services. It's also easy for people who are sympathetic to society's disfavored groups to become overwhelmed by the magnitude of social problems. I really enjoyed this article because I think it speaks to both of those issues.

In looking at the history of services for homeless youth in Seattle, it shows how a few individuals took steps to make isolated acts of compassion and kindness into a broad network of integrated support for some of society's most vulnerable people. It also belies the notion that social services are inherently inefficient as for decades many of these organizations have done more with less. Overall, I was just so impressed by the dedication of so many people to try to make this city more attuned to the needs of people who had for too long been forgotten.

"When we paid caseworkers in cookies: A brief history of serving homeless youth" by Sinan Demirel
Published in Crosscut, March 5, 2014

Eric

Longread #455 -- Confessions of a Nail Biter -- 3/12/13

I really enjoy Drew Magary's writing, and this one hit especially close to home.

"Confessions of a Nail Biter" by Drew Magary
Published in Deadspin, March 5, 2014

Eric

Longread #454 -- The Mammoth Cometh -- 2/28/14

I'm back already! Did you miss me?

I read this yesterday and felt compelled to share it. There are a lot of important questions raised in this article. To me, the key point is this one,

The ecologist Daniel Simberloff raised a related concern. “It’s at best a technofix dealing with a few species,” he told me. “Technofixes for environmental problems are band-aids for massive hemorrhages. To the extent that the public, who will never be terribly well informed on the larger issue, thinks that we can just go and resurrect a species, it is extremely dangerous. . . . De-extinction suggests that we can technofix our way out of environmental issues generally, and that’s very, very bad.”

We see this same issue across so many public problems: the idea that we can technologically solve problems that are related to unsustainable patterns of human consumption. The problem is that even if the technology works, the underlying problem -- that we live in ways that are often fundamentally short-sighted and irresponsible -- remain.

"The Mammoth Cometh" by Nathaniel Rich
Published in the New York Times, February 27, 2013

Eric

A Short Post About Eric's Daily Longreads

After more than two years and 453 posted longreads, I'm taking a break from the daily updating of this blog. I'm doing this for several reasons:

1. The thrill is gone: I don't get the same excitement about reading, reviewing, and posting longreads as I did in the past. Over the last few months, daily updates began to feel more and more like a chore. The impact of this was noticeable in the omission of article introductions and in the fact that there were many more slips (days without new articles posted).

2. Lack of material: Over time, I had amassed a large collection of longreads that were queued up to post. I've churned through those, and there are no more in waiting. As I've read more and more longform articles over the past few years, I've tried to raise my standards in deciding what is worth posting (or in other words, what I think is worth your time). I don't want to lower my standards just to keep this blog updated daily.

3. New focus: With so much time spent reading longreads, I have for years seriously neglected reading books. Fiction, especially, was cast by the wayside. I decided at the beginning of this year that I wanted to create more balance in my reading, and so far, I'm thoroughly enjoying reading books again. In many ways, I feel the same excitement about reading books now that I felt about reading longreads when I started this blog. Unfortunately, this exacerbates the "lack of material" problem as I am just not reading enough longreads to sustain content for the blog.

I still intend to update this blog from time to time with articles that I think are worth reading. So much quality journalism is found in longreads, and I hope to stay engaged with that literature base. But I can no longer live up to the name of having a "daily longread." Nevertheless, I encourage you to please check in on the blog from time to time (or subscribe by RSS) if you'd like to get those updates.

Thank you to everyone who has supported me in starting this blog through words of encouragement, subscribing by email or RSS, reading articles, sharing links, commenting on posts, and/or just finding a way to discuss these articles with me. It means a lot to me that a number of you have stuck with this blog over the past two years.

Signing off -- for now,

Eric

Longread #453 -- Doctor's Orders -- 2/14/14

It's Valentine's Day, so, uh, here's a longread about sex toys.

"Doctor's Orders" by Dave Gardetta
Published in LA Magazine, July 1, 2012

Eric

Longread #452 -- RINs and Renewable Energy Markets -- 2/13/14

"Wall St. Exploits Ethanol Credits, and Prices Spike" by Gretchen Morgenson and Robert Gebeloff
Published in the New York Times, September 14, 2013

Eric

Longread #451 -- Resisting the Temptation to Win When Investing -- 2/12/14

"Resisting The Temptation To 'Win' When Investing" by Uri Berliner

Published by NPR, June 5, 2013

Eric

Longread #450 -- The Empathy Exams -- 2/7/14

Empathy is a major topic at my work. This essay starts from an uncommon perspective (of a Medical Actor) while weaving in her personal experience as an actual patient to explore the critical but often messy world of empathy and coping with emotional trauma.

"The Empathy Exams" by Leslie Jamison
Published in the Believer, February 2014

Eric

Longread #449 -- Has Patent, Will Sue -- 2/6/14

"Has Patent, Will Sue: An Alert to Corporate America" by David Segal
Published in the New York Times, July 13, 2013

Eric

Longread #448 -- the Suicide Epidemic -- 2/5/14

"The Suicide Epidemic" by Tony Dokoupil
Published in Newsweek, May 22, 2013

Eric

Longread #447 -- Silent War -- 2/4/14

Thanks to Ross, who helped provide information used in the article and who has served immensely in raising my awareness about the emerging world of cyberwarfare.

"Silent War" by Michael Joseph Gross
Published in Vanity Fair, July 2013

Eric

Longread #446 -- Death Dust -- 2/3/14

"Death Dust" by Dana Goodyear
Published in the New Yorker, January 20, 2014

Eric

Longread #445 -- In the Name of Love -- 1/31/14

"In the Name of Love" by Miya Tokumitsu
Published in Jacobin Magazine, January 2014

Eric

Longread #444 --- The Techtopus -- 1/30/14

"The Techtopus: How Silicon Valley’s most celebrated CEOs conspired to drive down 100,000 tech engineers’ wages" by Mark Ames
Published in PandoDaily, January 23, 2014

Eric

Longread #443 -- Jesse Willms, the Dark Lord of the Internet -- 1/29/14

After reading the first paragraph, I thought I was going to hate this article and almost stopped reading it. Instead, I was blown away by the extent of the shady business practices that just one person has turned into a boom-and-bust cycle of internet empires. It's scary to think that he's only the tip of the iceberg.

"Jesse Willms, the Dark Lord of the Internet" by Taylor Clark
Published in the Atlantic, December 22, 2013

Eric

Longread #442 -- Why Women Aren’t Welcome on the Internet -- 1/28/14

This is an extremely troubling story, and I was especially impressed by how honestly the author addressed the challenges involved (including free speech, limitations of the legal system, etc.) despite herself having been threatened online.

"Why Women Aren't Welcome on the Internet" by Amanda Hess
Published in the Pacific Standard, January 6, 2014

In related news, I just saw this yesterday -- "Pair jailed over abusive tweets to feminist campaigner."

Eric

Longread #441 -- Feuds and Plots -- 1/27/14

People do the darndest things. Thanks to reader B. Bruce for the recommendation.

"The Elvis Impersonator, the Karate Instructor, a Fridge Full of Severed Heads, and the Plot 2 Kill the President" by Wells Tower
Published in GQ, October 2013

Eric

Longread #440 -- The Sorry Lives and Confusing Times of Today's Young Men -- 1/23/14

"The Sorry Lives and Confusing Times of Today's Young Men" by Sandy Hingston
Published in Philadelphia Magazine, February 20, 2012

Eric

Longread #439 -- The Dawn of Bodybuilding -- 1/16/14

"The Dawn of Bodybuilding" by Paul Solotaroff
Published in Men's Journal, February 2012

Eric

Longread #438 -- How to Humble a Wing Nut -- 1/15/14

Not the longest of longreads, but it nonetheless covers a topic that is often of interest on this blog.

"How to Humble a Wing Nut" by Cass R. Sunstein
Published in Bloomberg, May 20, 2013

Eric

Longread #437 -- Cancer Treatment Centers of America -- 1/14/14

"Behind a cancer-treatment firm's rosy survival claims" by Sharon Begley and Robin Respaut
Published in Reuters, March 6, 2013

Eric

Longread #436 -- The Cost of Living -- 1/10/14

"The Cost of Living" by Stephen S. Hall
Published in New York Magazine, October 20, 2013

Eric

Longread #435 -- If This Was a Pill, You'd Do Anything to Get It -- 1/9/14

Long-time reader MHE81 challenged me to post a positive article about health care in America. Surprisingly, I'd had this one queued up for today or tomorrow anyway, but given the challenge, we'll go with it today.

"If this was a pill, you’d do anything to get it" by Ezra Klein
Published in the Washington Post Wonkblog, April 28, 2013

Eric

Longread #434 -- Doctors' Lucrative Industry Ties -- 1/8/14

"Doctors’ Lucrative Industry Ties" by Roni Caryn Rabin
Published in the New York Times Well Blog, May 13, 2013

Eric

Longread #433 -- The Mining of Rare Diseases -- 1/6/14

This is part 1 of the series, but the whole thing is worth reading. I'll be posting a few other articles about patents and drug development this week as well.

"The Mining of Rare Diseases" by Michael J. Berens and Ken Armstrong
Published in the Seattle Times, November 2013

Eric

Longread #432 -- Do Clinical Trials Work? -- 1/3/14

"Do Clinical Trials Work?" by Clifton Leaf
Published in the New York Times, July 13, 2013

Eric