“Tech and the liberal arts have always been at war. Don’t assume Silicon Valley will win.”
education
The Year Mahbuba Found Her Voice
“The young refugee from Afghanistan arrived on the doorstep of a Chicago school. She was deaf and had no previous exposure to formal sign language. What happened next was transformative.”
What Does It Mean to Protect Children?
“This is the question that ripped an idyllic high-plains town asunder.”
The World Is Going Blind. Taiwan Offers a Warning, and a Cure
“So many people are nearsighted on the island nation that they have already glimpsed what could be coming for the rest of us.”
When We Are Afraid
On teaching in a red state, the silences in our history lessons, and all I never learned about my hometown.
The Hunt for the Atlantic’s Most Infamous Slave Shipwreck
“Nearly 200 years ago, the slave ship Guerrero sunk, killing forty-one Africans. The wreck vanished. Until now.”
The First Year of AI College Ends in Ruin
“There’s an arms race on campus, and professors are losing.”
Amor Eterno
“One year ago, before the school shooting in Uvalde, Kimberly Mata-Rubio had never been on a plane or given a public speech or scolded a U.S. senator right there in his office. A year in the life of a grieving mother.”
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
This week’s edition highlights stories by Elissa Nadworny and Claire Harbage, Thomas Lake, Jeff Sharlet, Jasmine Attia, and Brett Martin.
Inside the Chaotic World of Kids Trying to Play Video Games on School Laptops
“Most school children have a Chromebook, and every day, it’s a war between kids, teachers, and the developers trying to entertain bored students.”