* American citizen sentenced to 15 years of hard labor in North Korea—possibly to entice an American president to come free him. * Roots of Buddhists killing Muslims in Burma and Sri Lanka traced back to "a Faustian pact with state power." * Chart weaves together economic growth in Africa
* Theories abound over why North Korea has gone quiet, though many point to China and John Kerry. * Chilly Gonzales discusses his experience of recording music with Daft Punk. * Computer historian names his holy grail: “the CompuServe backup tapes.” * British pharmacy quits labeling science toys as suitable for boys, not girls,
The internet is an unrelenting enabler of our flaws and an unforgiving archive of them—so should you google your new love interest, or hold off? And what if they google you first?
* Forty-two percent of Americans aren't sure if Obama's health care reform is still law. * Boston Marathon victims who lost limbs will be provided with (mostly) free prosthetics. * In light of the Boston Marathon bombers, prison interview with the Unabomber, whose younger brother/former acolyte put
* Obama says Guantanamo Bay needs to be closed, orders review of operations, plans to "renew discussions with lawmakers" who want it open. * Boy Scouts leadership recommends banning gay leaders, but not gay scouts. * At the Nakizumo crying-baby festival in Tokyo, parents hand their babies over to sumo
New Yorkers don't fade away—they just move. But to where? From Miami to Austin to Berlin, detailed maps of nearly every other significant city's neighborhoods show ex-pats exactly where to emigrate.
* Government blames deadly explosion in Damascus on rebels; rebels blame a government seeking sympathy. * Syrian hackers have two purposes: to punish Western media for criticizing the new regime and to provide an "alternative narrative." * Best jokes corralled from Saturday's White House correspondents dinner, hosted by Conan
* In China, 87 percent of the population shares 100 names. * On the black market, a totoaba fish bladder demands $5,000 in the U.S.—and $10,000 in Asia. * The wild-pig population is exploding, destroying the planet and costing billions of dollars. * Why your supermarket only sells five
India’s prevailing image is one of noisy animation—development, overcrowding, and horrible traffic. In comparison, night-scapes of urban India capture the life, or lack thereof, that darkness conceals.
* One hundred and two hours in pursuit of the Boston Marathon suspects. * Today I was able to meet "Misha," whose real name is Mikhail Allakhverdov. * Zubeidat Tsarnaeva contends her sons are innocent—Larry David knows why. * Though it's still unknown why Tamerlan Tsarnaev radicalized, it occurred
