Longreads

Do you know what BPC‑157 is? This cryptically named peptide is, according to its proponents, a miracle cure for all sorts of illnesses and injuries. Tom Bartlett remains firmly in the skeptical camp as he investigates exactly what research backs up the BPC‑157 claims. Almost all the studies prove to have a link to Croatian pharmacologist Predrag Sikirić—who is all too happy t...

There’s a generational shift happening in the funeral industry: Over the past four decades, female enrollment in mortuary programs has increased from 5 percent to roughly 75 percent of recent graduating classes. But why? For the Los Angeles Review of Books, Andie Eisen examines this trend, speaking with three women working in the deathcare field. Some were drawn in b...

This week we are showcasing stories on dark nutrition, Eurovision, Wikipeida, medjool dates, and the slappy man-hug.

A year ago in tiny Ingram, Texas, a local police officer named Jaron Alexander responded to a noise complaint—a baptism party, it turned out, held by Joanna Martinez and her extended family. Shortly after, Alexander began working in tandem with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, in an arrangement that has

In its heyday, Route 66 was a road of opportunities and dreams. Today, it’s a highway of ghosts, a symbol of what once was, although it still attracts visitors. For Current Affairs, Jesse Wright reflects on America’s historic highway in a time of artificial intelligence, when so much land across the country is being bought up, repurposed, and turned into data centers...