August 19, 2013: Afternoon
- The NSA has violated privacy rules or overstepped its authority thousands of times every year since 2008, when its powers were broadened.
- A report from the National Hobo Convention.
- Next weekend in Asbury Park, a movie theater will screen classic noir and discuss its influence on Springsteen.
- White Americans believe college admissions should be based on testing—until they learn other groups tested better.
- See also: When admissions processes are digitized, general and racial discrimination is exposed.
- Inside the scandal surrounding a Twitter comedian accused of stealing other comedians' jokes.
- Before 3D printing can revolutionize medicine, first we must learn to create the basics—e.g., cartilage.
- Related: The Art of 3D Print Failure: "When 3D prints go wrong."
- Human breast milk contains 19 milligrams of free glutamic acid per 100 grams. We're programmed to crave umami from the womb.
- Tumblr of the Day: Hot-Dog Legs.
- Surowiecki: Why lobster is so expensive—because it can be, and it makes everything else look affordable.
- Irresistible watercolors of mouthy cowboys, automobile wrecks, boxing matches, and rock bands.
- The standoff between workers and management...underscores an intensifying battle over hiring and firing practices in Japan.
- Shriver: "Readers at my events for Big Brother have objected that most authors exclude fat characters from the cast altogether."