JUNE 30, 2014

Full News Archive

• Headline: The Resurgence of Email Newsletters. Impact: In a parallel universe, the premature obituary of email newsletters led to the rise of carrier pigeons as the main source of news delivery. Today, people squawk at each other instead of typing.. Fact: Email newsletters are like cockroaches: you can try to kill them, but they just keep popping up in your inbox along with those delightful spam offers!.
• Headline: Emerging Voices in Global Literature. Impact: This literary renaissance inadvertently inspired a global trend of hipster cafes serving African coffee while patrons sip overpriced lattes and pretend to understand post-colonial theory.. Fact: Africa has more than 2,000 languages! So when writers get cosmopolitan, they’re just showing off their multilingual abilities at fancy literary soirées..
• Headline: Challenges for Women's Sumo in the U.S.. Impact: The slow acceptance of women in sumo wrestling led to a future where all sports eventually had to include equal representation, resulting in the bizarre spectacle of competitive knitting on national television.. Fact: Sumo wrestling is about as ancient as it gets—dating back to the 6th century! Yet, somehow, it still struggles to compete with the popularity of competitive eating..
• Headline: Facebook Tinkers With Users’ Emotions in News Feed Experiment, Stirring Outcry. Impact: This emotional manipulation experiment resulted in an entire generation developing trust issues, leading them to question whether their morning coffee was actually coffee or just a placebo.. Fact: Manipulating emotions on social media is the new 'let's poke the bear'—except this bear has a PhD in psychology and a penchant for trolling..