Miscellaneous
Creating comics for the Middle East
Comic book artist Suleiman Bakhit looks for stories and role models that will empower and inspire a new generation of comic book readers in the Middle East. Marco Visscher | May 2009 issue Ever wondered why Superman isn’t popular in the Middle East? “We don’t like our heroes to wear their Read More...
True-life superheroes, now in comic books
Is it a bird? A plane? No, it’s Mother Teresa and the Dalai Lama... and Mahatma Gandhi, Anne Frank and Nelson Mandela. Read all about them in the Japanese comics promoting positive messages. Heather Wax | May 2009 issue When Eiji Han Shimizu, 38, grew up in Yokohama, Japan, he loved comic books, Read More...
Ode's 2009 Organic Top 20
A garden of earthly delights — Ode’s annual pick of products that are good for your body, your soul and the planet. The Editors | May 2009 issue Back in March, First Lady Michelle Obama made a bold statement when she picked up a shovel and began digging up a patch of White House lawn to plant Read More...
Avant-garde organ song to last 631 years
John Cage's "As Slow as Possible" will be played in a former church in Germany for a very, very long time. Ursula Sautter | May 2009 issue “One need not fear about the future of music,” American experimental composer John Cage once wrote. Well, the future of Cage’s own music seems assured, Read More...
David de Rothschild to sail in a boat of plastic bottles
British adventurer will sail across the Pacific in a 60-foot catamaran made of 12,000 plastic bottles and other recycled materials. Marco Visscher | May 2009 issue According to David de Rothschild, the plastic bottle is the icon of the modern lifestyle. “It costs an awful lot of energy to Read More...
Doctatorship: Military thinking in medicine
Military thinking has invaded medical thinking. It’s time to replace shock and awe with health and peace. Dana Ullman | May 2009 issue Our military thinking and our medical thinking have a surprising amount in common. It isn’t just happenstance that doctors proudly assert that they seek to Read More...
Diving in to a company's data
Why full disclosure is crucial to measuring a company’s environmental and social impact. Amy Domini | May 2009 issue A nice bonus comes when you buy a pair of shoes from the shoe company Timberland. A label on the box marked “Our Footprint” tells what percentage of your shoes was made with Read More...
Perspectives on trials and loss
Three stories about dealing with loss. Paulo Coelho | May 2009 issue When life makes us face difficult situations—such as a personal loss—we have to understand that eternity is taking one more step. Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges wrote something beautiful about this: You are cloud, sea, Read More...
The placebo effect is not all in your mind
What the placebo effect tells us about the healing power of the brain. David Servan-Schreiber | May 2009 issue In the lab, Takeo couldn't stand it anymore. The itching was driving him crazy. He watched his right arm turn red and wondered why he’d decided to take part in this experiment. He knew Read More...
The inefficient pleasure of cherries
What to do with all those cherries? Make a pie! Elbrich Fennema | May 2009 issue When an economist looks at a cherry tree, he or she sees inefficiency. The excess of flowers will yield an excess of cherries, each with its own fertile pit, all of which can’t possibly grow into cherry trees. What a Read More...