Small Talk


Math-Challenged Matrimony

L.A. Weekly's chief film critic Amy Nicholson applauds an Indian woman who broke off an arranged marriage -- at the altar -- after the groom gave a very wrong answer to a simple question.


Artist Tim Youd performs at Aqua Art Miami VIP Preview on December 4, 2013 in Miami Beach, Florida. / Photo credit: Aaron Davidson/Getty Images for Art Miami

Tim Youd Types up Tribute to Writers

Sadie Stein, contributing editor at the Paris Review, tells us about artist Tim Youd. He pays tribute to writers by retyping classic novels using the original typewriter model the author worked with ... for the purposes of art, not after-school punishment.


The No-Motor Boat Race

Luke Burbank hosts the radio show "T-B-T-L" and, it happens, bears annual witness to one of America's strangest naval feats... a NO-motor boat race.


Limpets Are the Least Limp of All

New research suggests that the strongest creature in the world may be rather more shell-bound, small, and squishy than you would expect.


Al Barry/Three Lions/Getty Images

The Myers-Briggs of Major Bugs

A new study suggests that even cockroaches come in introverted and extroverted varieties. Some are more shy, others are bold explorers. We kind of hate them all, either way.


Richard Heathcote/Getty Image

A Story You May Think You’ve Heard Before

Reyhan Harmanci, senior editor of Fast Company, tells us about the unusual situation of a 23 year old man in England who suffers from a particularly terrible case of deja vu as a complication of his anxiety.


Manjunath Kiran/AFP/Getty Images

The Technophobe Dream Town Where Wi-Fi is Banned

Green Bank, WV falls within a government-mandated "radio quiet zone" due to the nearby radio telescopes. That means residents cannot have wi-fi, cell phones, or many other modern devices.