What makes puzzles so alluring? A.J. Jacobs looks for clues.

In his new book “The Puzzler,” Jacobs explores the history and psychology of games like Sudoku and Wordle. Continue reading at 'The Washington Post'

[ The Washington Post | 2022-04-29 10:00:00 UTC ]

Other news stories related to: "What makes puzzles so alluring? A.J. Jacobs looks for clues. "


15 open-source apps that make any Windows PC better — for free

One of the most exciting things about using a PC is the abundance of free software that’s available to users — so much so, that it can be hard to find the real gems. In fact, most people stop at the free versions of well-known commercial software, but there is a whole universe of... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2024-08-27 10:30:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ebooks #ebook reader #kindle #tv channels #playback speed


Martha Baillie on the Ethics of Making Literature From a Loved One’s Suffering

In all of Martha Baillie’s books you can feel her sister. Her words offer a portal to the multiplistic experiences of existence—to understand better how cut off we can be from each other and where true connection flickers too. This year, Baillie’s memoir There is No Blue was published by Granta... Continue reading at Electric Literature

[ Electric Literature | 2024-08-23 11:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #memoir #electric literature #granta books


IBPA and EveryLibrary Make a Play for the Freedom to Read

We Are Stronger Than Censorship is a new program aiming to supply diverse books to young readers, which has begun fundraising and bringing partners on board ahead of a September 9 launch. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-08-22 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #young readers


The Google TV Streamer makes Apple TV look dated

The Google TV streamer, a Chromecast replacement, is truly an AI-first device, using Gemini to offer content summaries and screen savers. The Apple TV version, with Apple Intelligence, can’t be far behind. I’ve long been a fan of the Apple TV (Apple’s digital media player set-top, box–not to be... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2024-08-17 09:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #digital media #operating system #large part #streaming service #apple tv #set-top box


CIA brainwashing experiments helped make Outlast an iconic horror series

The Sleep Room in The Outlast Trials is named after a real-life space at McGill University’s Allan Memorial Institute in Montreal, where from 1957 to 1964, doctors conducted mind-control experiments on patients as part of the CIA’s MK-Ultra initiative. Led by Dr. Donald Ewen Cameron, these tests... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2024-08-14 19:50:55 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #graphic novel #art director #recently hired #creative process


With a new life and fresh ideas, Sandra Lee makes a TV comeback with a Netflix food competition show

Cookbook author and TV personality Sandra Lee is a co-host and judge on a new Netflix competition series called “Blue Ribbon Baking Championship" out Friday Continue reading at ABC News

[ ABC News | 2024-08-08 14:54:47 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #cookbook #cookbook author #fresh ideas


SDCC 2024: Kids’ Comics Make a Comeback

While children colored Bluey pages and adults geeked out over the latest Marvel and DC announcements, there were indications of a growing middle ground of titles for all ages at last month’s Comic-Con International in San Diego. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-08-01 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #san diego #comic-con international


Freud's Writings Get an Update—30 Years in the Making

'The Revised Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud,' copublished by Rowman & Littlefield and the Institute of Psychoanalysis, took three decades for editor and translator Mark Solms to complete. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-08-01 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #rowman littlefield


Indie Presses Make Welcoming Homes for Immigrant Writing

At Restless Books, Black Lawrence Press, and Academic Studies Press, first-generation American editors want to hear from writers with cross-cultural stories to tell. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-07-26 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #restless books


A new generation of authors is finally making book merch interesting

Sable Yong’s debut book comes with some unusual marketing merchandise—a perfume to match. Sable Yong always wanted to make a perfume. She calls herself a “frag-head,” having previously written about fragrances for Allure and hosting the podcast Smell Ya Later with Tynan Sinks. Still, producing... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2024-07-22 09:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #debut book


2 Books to Make You Love Karaoke, or at Least Respect It

In a memoir and a novel, the characters deal with grief by singing in front of strangers. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2024-06-29 11:50:03 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #memoir


Engadget Podcast: Motorola's 2024 Razrs make a compelling case for foldables

Motorola is still trying to reclaim the glory of its original Razr phone with its latest foldables. The new Razr and Razr+ are more stylish than the previous models, and at $700 and $1,000 respectively, they're surprisingly affordable for devices with massive folding OLED screens. In other news,... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2024-06-28 11:30:27 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #picture book #managing editor #outro music #theme music #hong kong


Toys 'R' Us uses OpenAI's Sora to make a brand film about its origin story and it’s horrifying

The rise of artificial intelligence in our media and entertainment industries has raised a lot of concerns about programs like Open Al’s text-to-video maker Sora replacing the artistic endeavors and aspirations of humans. If those AI made movies are anything like a new brand film about the Toys... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2024-06-25 21:47:30 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #dr. seuss #fell swoop #current state #magical place


Most freelance book critics are making less than minimum wage.

Since September 2023, the book criticism working group of the Freelance Solidarity Project (a union of digital media workers, organizing to raise labor standards across the industry) has been collecting data on freelance rates. Its findings, published earlier this month, are pretty damn bleak.... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-06-20 20:53:12 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #digital media #book critics #published earlier #collecting data #minimum wage


Modder gets Android on the Rabbit R1 AI gadget, makes it actually useful

For all the hullabaloo around AI this year, the consumer products that feature AI seem a bit lackluster. They’re either augmenting existing designs (like “AI PCs”) or they’ve flopped hard. Take the Rabbit R1, which was such an instant failure that it made its way into mainstream news.... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2024-06-10 15:16:41 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #barnes #8-inch screen #sim card


This NYC vet makes house calls. In 'Pets and the City,' she's penned a memoir full of tails

As a city kid, veterinarian Amy Attas had big dreams of roaming the countryside healing animals a la the classic “All Creatures Great and Small.” Continue reading at ABC News

[ ABC News | 2024-06-10 13:18:31 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #memoir #big dreams


The Complex Truths That Make Up a Family

This memoir by a gay Appalachian man is about reckoning with a homophobic family but one full of love, forgiveness, and understanding. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2024-05-24 13:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #memoir


MrBallen Makes a Strange, Dark, and Mysterious Graphic Novel

PW talks with John B. Allen—aka YouTuber and podcast host MrBallen—about the comics adapted from his viral storytelling. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-05-24 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #allen—aka youtuber #viral storytelling #comics adapted #mysterious graphic #mrballen makes


Will Human-AI Partnerships Make Publishing Workers More Innovative?

The journey is just beginning, but we can already see that publishing workflows are especially ripe for AI integration that enables the automation of rote tasks—and AI-driven support for more humans making more complex decisions and judgments. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-05-24 04:00:00 UTC ]
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MrBallen Makes a Strange, Dark, and Mysterious Graphic Novel

PW talks with John B. Allen—aka YouTuber and podcast host MrBallen—about the comics adapted from his viral storytelling. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-05-24 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #allen—aka youtuber #viral storytelling #comics adapted #mysterious graphic #mrballen makes