“There’s Beverly Hills, a residential and commercial development built in the late 1990s on the outskirts of Cairo, Egypt. There’s the newly built Dubai International City, with various districts representing countries from all over the world. And there’s also Orange County, a Southern California-style gated golf community of ranch homes about an hour north of Beijing,” and Thames Town, a recreated English village 20 miles from Shanghai.
Author: Matthew Westphal
You Pronounce ‘Man’ Funny – Are You A Northern Liberal?
“It may seem surprising, but in this age where geographic mobility and instant communication have increased our exposure to people outside of our neighborhoods or towns, American regional dialects are pulling further apart from each other, rather than moving closer together. And renowned linguist William Labov thinks there’s a connection between political and linguistic segregation.”
But Who Was Casanova, Really?
“He was a true Enlightenment polymath, whose many achievements would put the likes of Hugh Hefner to shame. He hobnobbed with Voltaire, Catherine the Great, Benjamin Franklin and probably Mozart; survived as a gambler, an astrologer and spy; translated The Iliad into his Venetian dialect; and wrote a science fiction novel, a proto-feminist pamphlet and a range of mathematical treatises.”
Which U.S. City Had The Best April Fool’s Prank?
The contenders: Philadelphia, Boulder, Portland, and Austin.
Was American Pie A More Influential Movie Than Titanic? (Probably)
“Realistic epics have all but disappeared in Titanic‘s wake. Fantasy has become a requirement to justify moviemaking of that size … American Pie was in the vanguard of a movement that has brought The Hangover, Old School, and practically the entirety of Judd Apatow’s film career.”
What Looking At Lucian Freud’s Paintings Does To The Way You See People
James Polchin: “I was much more attentive to the exposed flesh around me, to the blemishes and rashes, the discoloration and mutations of skin tones of those I passed. A young woman’s arm was blossoming a small purple and hazel, clover-shaped bruise near her shoulder. An attractive man’s razor burn ran along the side of his neck, a contrast to the smooth sliver of a red and blue tattoo that crawled beneath his shirt sleeve.”
Louisville Orchestra Musicians Agree To Binding Arbitration
“Louisville Orchestra musicians have agreed to binding arbitration toward a new contract but under several conditions,” among them that “the orchestra’s board of directors signs a one-year agreement guaranteeing [the musicians would] work during that period under the terms of their previous contract, which expired May 31.”
Playwright John Arden, 81
“One of the most significant British playwrights of the late 1950s and early 60s” – he was one of the “Angry Young Men” – Arden “was in later life an almost forgotten theatrical figure.”
The United Arab Emirate With A Real Art Scene (You May Not Have Heard Of It)
Thanks to an emir with two humanities PhDs and, notably, his educated and energetic daughter, Sharjah actively encourages both traditional and contemporary art – and makes a point of making the art accessible citizens, visitors, and even Pakistani and Filipino migrant workers.
Ballet Dancer, Temporarily Paralyzed After Assault, Is Dancing Again
“A teenage ballet dancer who feared he would never walk again after sustaining a serious neck injury in an alleged street attack is not only back on his feet but has resumed his training. Jack Widdowson, one of the youngest apprentices to be taken on by the Swiss company Bern:Ballett, spent a week in intensive care and six weeks in a spinal unit after the incident in Cardiff.”