The inaugural issue of Mythological Studies Journal is now out. John D. Inazu (Duke): Liberty's Refuge: The Forgotten Freedom of Assembly. Elizabeth F. Emens (Columbia): Intimate Discrimination: The State's Role in the Accidents of Sex and Love. Funerals for medical cadavers have become increasingly common of late. If you were desperate and hopeless enough to log on to a suicide chat room in recent years, there was a good chance a mysterious woman named Li Dao would find you, befriend you, and gently urge you to take your own life. David Cay Johnston on measuring the public benefits from taxes. Bruce Bartlett on taxing sin: A win-win for everyone? Overoptimism and overpessimism sells, but let’s face reality: Here are 10 things we won’t have by 2030. Stories vs. Statistics: How do the worlds of storytelling and scientific probability differ? John Allen Paulos counts the ways. Looking at the world's tattoos: Photographer Chris Rainier travels the globe in search of tattoos and other examples of the urge to embellish our skin. Gizmodo takes a look at the Nokia 1100, the most popular phone in the world. Russia and Kazakhstan share an endless border, a language and many mutual interests; there should be no relationship crisis, yet the young central Asian republic is increasingly trying to assert its independence. Humour is their rubber sword: Welcome to the world of Indian-American stand-up comedy. Fascism as an ideology grounded in global notions of history and politics: Federico Finchelstein on his book Transatlantic Fascism: Ideology, Violence, and the Sacred in Argentina and Italy, 1919-1945. A review of The Professional Guinea Pig: Big Pharma and the Risky World of Human Subjects by Roberto Abadie. Is "modern culture" bad for our health and well-being?
