TIDINGS: Say cheese


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​Seeing like a sedan​

Rival approaches to perception in self-driving cars present two different roads to widespread adoption—and to the safety of people on the street.

Asterisk | Andrew Miller

​Tariff turmoil​

As a year of chaotic tariffs impacts the cheese industry, you may need a Swiss bank account to afford a wheel of Emmental.

Culture | Alexandra Jones

​I grew up with Alex Pretti​

"As I reviewed photos of protesters and tear gas in the wake of his death, I didn’t realize, in the hours before his name was released to the public, that the man millions of people had seen lying facedown on the pavement from multiple angles of eyewitness video was my childhood best friend."

The Verge | Kristen Radtke

​There's more to Greg Bovino's coat than you think​

And an analysis of how the uniforms of immigration enforcement agents shapes their behavior: "When a domestic agency dresses for war, it risks acting as if it is at war, even with the public."

Politico | Derek Guy

​Can America build beautiful places again?​

Freeing cities to build more housing isn't just about affordability—it can also make urban spaces more beautiful and more conducive to family living.

Vox | Marina Bolotnikova

​Fast, affordable, illegal​

And what other jurisdictions can learn from Portland, Oregon's embrace of tiny homes on wheels, a flexible housing option that appeals with or without legality.

Sightline Institute | Katie Gould



​In praise of snow​

Apt reading from 1995 after this week's snow storms: an exploration of the tricky science of snow, a vital resource in the American West.

The Atlantic | Cullen Murphy

​Claude code psychosis​

A non-technical writer explores "software-shaped problems," vibecoding, and the coming era of app abundance.

Jasmine Sun

​Inside the long history of technologically assisted writing​

From the fiction of Gulliver's Travels to ChatGPT, a long view of outsourcing writing to machines.

Literary Hub | Ed Simon

​The secret society of people who know the formula for WD-40​

Cans of WD-40 lubricant are ubiquitous, but the notebook bearing the original formula is locked away in a bank vault that even few longtime employees of the company ever get to glimpse.

Wall Street Journal | Jennifer Williams

​Secretary and the erotic nature of the typewriter​

At a new magazine with a professed interest in typewriters, an exploration of their eroticism in Steven Shainberg's Secretary.

Typebar | Nina Luther

​The first time The Simpsons could have ended​

A new series on notable episodes of TV in the twenty-first century kicks off with a look at 2011's "Behind the Laughter."

Episodes | Emily St. James

​Album Review: Naive Melodies​

A new compilation explores the African, Latin, and gospel influences on Talking Heads through covers from various contemporary artists reimagining their songs.

Shatter the Standards | Priya Okafor

​Infinite Jest has turned 30​

Defending David Foster Wallace's massive masterwork as more than a punchline about performative reading, especially in our age of inattention.

The New Yorker | Hermione Hoby

​Woodland creatures waken from branches and twigs​

Photographs of sculptures from Rodolfo Liprandi, crafting creatures real and imagined from branches and shrubs.

Colossal | Kate Mothes

​Why your "squirrel-proof" bird feeder never stood a chance​

Squirrels "have millions of years of evolution on their side," turning them into dexterous problem solvers not dissimilar to us.

Slate | Jake Gau

​Swift bricks to be installed on all new buildings in Scotland​

And in bird news, new regulations in Scotland mandate inclusion of hollow bricks to provide homes for swifts and other bird species.

The Guardian | Patrick Barkham

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