To kick off a new publication I see it only fitting to learn about how one of the most prominent and established publications runs. Wiedeman goes in depth to look at how everything from getting out sport scores at record pace, all the way to printing and distributing the most recognised newspaper in the world works.

Obviously I'm biased towards enjoying this read, but Wiedeman has done a great job of covering so many aspects of the running of the NYT that most people will take something away from it. It's amazing how much technology is used in what is considered “old media”, it really is a testament to the NYT’s ability to innovate in a shrinking market.

…the problems that arise from hemorrhaging mates as you move towards a more grown-up lifestyle is something that isn't often discussed. Charlie Coulton, a researcher specialising in social interactions, wants that to change… You may not have noticed, but if you're a man in your mid 20s, your world has probably started to shrink. Friends you used to see regularly are dropping off into the periphery as they settle down, move away, or just stop being around.

Unlike the NYT above, the web has destroyed Playboy's main premise. The only way for the company to overcome its dwindling sales and almost irrelevancy is to compete not with nudes but more “cleaner PG-13” content. Already having toned down its online presence years ago to be allowed onto social networks with strict indecency policies (i.e., Facebook) Playboy makes most of its profit from licensing the name to the Chinese market.

“That battle has been fought and won,” said Scott Flanders, the company’s chief executive. “You’re now one click away from every sex act imaginable for free. And so it’s just passé at this juncture.”

As someone who doesn't game very much (I don't have any consoles right now) simulation and city-builders have always been my favourites type of games. With the exception of the newest Sim City, the Sim City franchise has been a smash hit amongst gamers and non-gamers the world over. Richard Moss looks at twenty-six years of Sim City and the cultural influence the franchise has had on both itself and other games.

As an asside, I've been playing Cities: Skylines a lot this year, and while it's not perfect it's what Sim City 2013 should have been.

An interesting look at why across so many languages these two words are so similar. Hint: it has something to do with ease of making those sounds. I've always found it fascinating that English is the only language that calls the 🍍 pineapple the pineapple. Every other language uses some form of “ananas”. That is an easy one to explain, Columbus wanted an exotic name for the first exotic fruit from the New World.

It's still intersting how mum and dad transcend millennia of language. Oh, and then in Finnish it's isä and äiti.

The illegal trade in elephant tusks is well reported, but there’s a type of “ivory” that’s even more valuable. It comes from the helmeted hornbill - a bird that lives in the rainforests of East Asia and is now under threat.