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So in the August 30 New Yorker, there's also an article by Raffi Khatchadourian on the laughing guru, Madan Kataria (behind the wall), that contains the following:

Laughter is a funny thing. Even in the eyes of modern science, it remains mystifying, in part because it is so difficult to study. In the nineteenth century, scientists used a device called a magneto-electric machine to probe happy faces. More recently, they have taken blood and urine samples of people watching videos of the comedian Gallagher smashing watermelons or of other standup routines.

And so on and so forth. Anyway, I hope it wasn't that recently. And does having your blood and urine sampled while watching Gallagher videos really sound that hilarious?

One of the few things not behind the wall in this issue is Jane Mayer's long, scary article about David and Charles Koch. Or you could just read this Tom Tomorrow cartoon. But if you're looking for a Halloween fright, I'd recommend the article instead.

Also, in the name of not promoting my own originality while attempting to skewer someone else for having the same problem, I am not the only one who noticed David Musgrave's poem. Ogden Nashy as the title plus the work may be, it's still far from new.

On to the September 6 issue, which has wonderful pieces from John McPhee on golf (seriously, the man is a master of making things I find unutterably boring--geology, golf, fishing, trains--incredibly interesting; it's like a magic trick) and Carl Elliott on psychopathy, both of which are behind the wall. There's also Jill Lepore's review of books on the Great Migration, which is super interesting but contains the following fact that I still can't buy: "Today, more African-Americans live in the city of Chicago than in the state of Mississippi." Really? I'm guessing this has to do with how metropolitan areas are defined. Plus, Chicago pretty much has a bigger population than Mississippi. Yes, there was a great migration, and the demographics of the nation shifted, but the North is still surprisingly white every time I go there.

In the September 13 issue, I'd like to direct your attention to the story by Wells Tower, one of the 20 under 40 and, I'm beginning to see, one of my favorites among them. It feels fresh, unlike most of them. He's getting lots of attention, but I think he might deserve it. Also, is post-crash fiction a small genre you could build a class around? You could probably at least pick up enough examples for a lecture series.