From The New York Times Magazine, a special issue on food. The first chapter from Swindled: The Dark History of Food Fraud, from Poisoned Candy to Counterfeit Coffee by Bee Wilson. A review of What the Nose Knows: The Science of Scent in Everyday Life by Avery Gilbert. From PUP, the introduction to Globalizing Capital: A History of the International Monetary System by Barry Eichengreen; and the introduction to The Venturesome Economy: How Innovation Sustains Prosperity in a More Connected World by Amar Bhide. A review of The Rise of Mutual Funds: An insider’s view by Matthew P. Fink. The introduction to Trucking Country: The Road to America's Wal-Mart Economy by Shane Hamilton. Is rational man extinct? Searching for Homo Economicus. What can Cameron do? Ross McKibbin on the Tories and the financial crisis. An interview with Damon Brown, author of Porn & Pong: How ‘Grand Theft Auto,’ ‘Tomb Raider’ and other Sexy Games Changed Our Culture. The first chapter from Thinking of Others: On the Talent for Metaphor by Ted Cohen. From NYRB, Harold Bloom reviews History of the Yiddish Language by Max Weinreich; and who killed Anna Politkovskaya? Amy Knight investigates. It’s no joke, humour is vital for alien understanding: Vicky Allan on messages in outer space.
