* Politics and the recession have taken their best shots, but SETI won't die due to enthusiasts and the private sector. * The lab that won't quit: still making medical history in facilities meant to be torn down in 1966. * Discovered: 1972 documentary of Future Shock, narrated by
* Major Syrian offensive against rebels sees fighting hit 10-month peak. * Iraq says unauthorized U.S. drone patrols are an affront to its sovereignty. * Italy says Costa Concordia recovery, cleanup could take 10 months. * Photos from the Titanic aftermath and resulting media storm, once the survivors reached land. * After 80
* There have been 434 Iraqis killed in attacks since U.S. military withdrew last month. * Arab League suspends Syria mission due to upswing in violence. * Taliban softening extreme positions, unclear if they'd be responsible if returned to power. * On American declinism Obama "is personally enamored with."
{image-1} Every Friday we take a look back at the week’s headlines, centering on a theme we’ve singled out as particularly important. While “interesting” is diluted and obscured to the point of redundancy, “epic” continues to diminish in stature. Meanwhile, “unexpected” lurks in quiet inescapability. Amid all
* Egypt blocks American pro-democracy workers from leaving. * Alan Gross, a 62-year-old U.S. citizen, has been imprisoned in Cuba since December 2009. * it is now a matter of fundamental faith among conservatives that the GOP went astray during the Bush years by betraying its conservative principles. * Former
* Wind and solar firms fear reduction in subsidies at the moment they're almost competitive. * No matter what Gingrich says, space sex is probably not a good idea. * Discovery in old textbook suggests da Vinci may not have been the originator of the Vitruvian man. * De Botton wants huge
* South Sudan shuts down wells, accuses Sudan of extortion, stealing its oil. * A rural school district in Texas turns off its Friday night lights until budgets and grades improve. * Lessons from the paperback revolution. * An extensive look back at Obama's first three years in office. * The weirdest thing
* Egypt's bloggers consider their year of revolution. * Iran begins arrests and intimidation of bloggers, journalists, prior to parliamentary elections in March. * U.S. military's use of unmanned drones proving costly and unreliable. * Nanotechnology is a $225 billion market, but scientists voice health concerns. * New study suggests
* Hostages in Somalia not rescued by same Navy SEAL team that killed bin Laden, as reported earlier. * Nonprofit intends to tempt children into reading via banned books. * Slaughterhouse in Texas dumps blood into nearby creek; amateur pilot snaps a pic. * "Nasal packing with strips of cured pork" [is]
* There are now more iPhones being sold than babies being born. * Paterno's death will weaken the case against two former Penn State officials who failed to report Sandusky. * Maria Popova makes the case for an information diet, becoming "selective about the information we consume." * Attending a
