On New Year’s Day, a Telegram user in Portugal posted an ominous message that the wait was over. This was the year to stop the “Population Replacement” — a conspiracy theory that immigrants of color are taking over. On New Year’s Day, a Telegram user in Portugal posted an ominous message that the wait was…
In the spring of 2021, Chet Hanks, the singer, actor and son of Tom, posted a series of statements and a music video with a refrain that caused confusion, not to mention a fair bit of cringing. He declared it was going to be a “white boy summer.” Whatever exactly he meant at the time,…
Imagine, with a summertime wedding or party in mind, you want to buy a new piece of fine jewelry, the category that includes items made of precious metal and glittering with gems. Even if you’re shopping from your favorite chair at home, finding the right piece isn’t always easy. A recent Google search for a…
When Suzette Mullen finally acknowledged her complicated feelings for the woman she considered her best friend, she felt the weight of a significant question: Am I gay? Ms. Mullen, then 54, had been married for more than two decades to her husband, whom she loved. They lived together in Montauk, N.Y., and had two adult…
Deb Schmill has become a fixture on Capitol Hill. Last week alone, she visited the offices of 13 lawmakers, one of more than a dozen trips she has made from her home near Boston over the past two years. In each meeting, Ms. Schmill talks about her daughter Becca, who died in 2020 at age…
If you or someone you love speaks almost exclusively in internet references — “It’s giving golden retriever boyfriend energy” or “Show it to me Rachel” — they may be suffering from a condition known as “brainrot.” The term refers primarily to low-value internet content and the effects caused by spending too much time consuming it….
Last week, Google unveiled its biggest change to search in years, showcasing new artificial intelligence capabilities that answer people’s questions in the company’s attempt to catch up to rivals Microsoft and OpenAI. The new technology has since generated a litany of untruths and errors — including recommending glue as part of a pizza recipe and…
Kate Middleton has long been a magnet for unproven rumors: She pressured an art gallery to remove a royal portrait! She split from her husband! She changed her hairstyle to distract from pregnancy rumors! She did not give birth to her daughter! This year, speculation kicked into overdrive. Ms. Middleton — now Catherine, Princess of…
The latest hefty volume quarried by the team at Modernist Cuisine, the research kitchen, photography studio and cookbook publisher founded by Nathan Myhrvold, is “Modernist Bread at Home.” It’s a follow-up for nonprofessionals to “Modernist Bread,” published seven years ago. Lavishly photographed with step-by-step instructions for hundreds of breadstuffs, it includes scientific and practical techniques,…
Sonia Elyss, a 38-year-old beauty marketing specialist in New York City who has worked in influencer marketing for a decade, acknowledged the problem. “This isn’t the first time that I personally have witnessed influencer fatigue,” she said. “At peak influencer culture for Instagram, before TikTok was even a thing, we had the same scenario.” The…
