Are You a Nazi? (Infographic)

On a recent Daily Show episode, Jon Stewart pointed out that pundits have used the word “Nazi” when speaking about President Obama’s birth control policy. But that’s far from the only time the other N-word has been slung: Republicans call President Obama a Nazi. Democrats called former president George Bush a Nazi. Director Lars Van Trier called himself a Nazi (albeit retracted).

5 Not-So-Secret Powers of Extroverts

I’m not just an extrovert, I’m an extreme extrovert. I love mixing and mingling with new people. Strangers are just friends I haven’t yet met. I particularly adore meeting introverts because I find them so entertaining: I like the way their faces turn colors when I look them in the eye and ask them direct questions.

Alan Moore Is Satisfied with His Role in the Rise of Anonymous

When creative genius Alan Moore wrote V for Vendetta in 1982, he couldn’t have foreseen the rise of Anonymous, the online group of hacktivists who took up his protagonist’s facemask as their public identity. But Moore (who also wrote the brilliant Watchmen in 1986) is pleased that they did.

5 Fun Facts About Charles Dickens on His 200th Birthday

Today is the 200th birthday of literary hero, Charles Dickens. We all know that Dickens wrote about poverty, injustice, crime with great humor (and at great length). But there are quite a few things we don’t know about the author of A Christmas Carol, A Tale of Two Cities, Oliver Twist, and many, many other classics. To celebrate, here are a few fun facts.

What’s Funny About Taxes? Ask the World’s First “Stand-Up Economist”

Dr. Yoram Bauman is an environmental economist at the University of Washington who has an unusual second career: stand-up comedian. Calling himself “the world’s first stand-up economist,” Bauman spends his spare time performing in comedy clubs, such as Carolines on Broadway, as well as more scholarly venues, such as the American Economic Association. He also authored The Cartoon Introduction to Economics.

My New York Times essay

I didn’t marry my husband for his money, I swear. I married him because he is brilliant, funny, compassionate and handsome. He is also unlike any man I had ever dated. You see, he has a job.

British vs. American cover art

What I don’t know about art can fill a book entitled, “I don’t know if it’s art, but I know what I like.” But on a recent trip to England, even I, the artistically challenged, noticed that British and American cover art was decidedly different: American book covers were more colorful, almost garish, while British book covers were more austere and muted. Big empty swathes of negative space filled the British covers, and they looked practically empty next to their busy American counterparts.

Why the difference?