Headlines

Work isn’t optional…

But this job is. We all need to feed our family, find shelter and contribute to the community. Finding useful work is a key part of the human condition. But that doesn’t mean the thing you’re being asked to do right now is required. In fact, it’s optional. It might come with

The frontier Anthropic & OpenAI models are only ~4...

The frontier Anthropic & OpenAI models are only ~4 months ahead of open models — at 5x the price . “Most organizations should ideally be using open models as the default for the majority of their work, according to [a report] from Mozilla…”

Staff at Three Major Museums Vote to Strike

An interview with Alfredo Jaar, a new craft supply lending program at the Brooklyn Public Library, and workers at the Whitney Museum, the Brooklyn Museum, and the American Folk Art Museum vote in favor of a strike.

Taryn Simon’s Father Country I Do Love You

Father Country I Do Love You sounds like a doozy of a new exhibition from photographer Taryn Simon. The project focuses on the life and work of an unnamed, retired FBI agent. From the NY Times: She Spent Years on a Giant Project About One Man. The Result Is Monumental. As it

The Tube Computer was recently constructed from...

The Tube Computer was recently constructed from hundreds of 1950s vacuum tubes sourced from Eastern Europe. “The Tube Computer has a pleasant homely aroma from the hundreds of double triodes, all quietly burning off their dust.” It heats the room too.

Tycho’s Burning Man Sunrise Set for 2026

For the 93rd year in a row or something like that I didn’t check the math, Tycho has released his sunrise set from Burning Man . I am not a Burning Man person but I always enjoy this set. See also a playlist of every 2026 Burning Man set on Soundcloud , currently 147 tracks

J.R.R. Tolkien on How to Fall in Love with Life

In 1964, Pantheon Books invited J.R.R. Tolkien (January 3, 1892–September 2, 1973) to write an introduction to George MacDonald’s The Golden Key, which he had praised in Tree and Leaf — the small, splendid essay collection that gave us his uncommonly insightful meditation on

The Spice Drawer

Over the past six months (leisurely) and in the past three weeks (intensely), I’ve cleaned out and packed up my entire house where I’ve been living for the past 10 years. I went through every bit and bob of what I owned and either: gave it away (fiddle leaf fig, grill,

Alfredo Jaar’s America

We interview the Chilean artist as an iconic work returns to NYC, Trump’s attacks against abstract sculptures, James McNeill Whistler’s musical paintings, and more.

Eating Alone

Soggy fries, ghost kitchens, and a $19 bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich: what we've actually gained on the path to convenience.

Chasing la dolce vita

Homecomings, fantasies, food and ghosts – how the myth of eternal return keeps the Italian diaspora in a state of longing - by Ben Faccini Read on Aeon