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Think Global, Eat Local
by Jim Robbins, Los Angeles Times
The sustainable food movement that began with Berkeley chef Alice Waters has blossomed in Portland, Ore. Are its proponents just dreaming? Or is a real revolution underway?

The Last Of The Indies
by Lynn Hirschberg, New York Times
Although he bristles at the title — his expression hardens, and his face starts to resemble a cloudy day with tunder threatening — Jim Jarmusch is the last major truly independent film director in America.

Under The Covers
by Ann Brashares, New York Times
I don't consider myself particularly prudish or scolding. But "Rainbox Party" did startle me a bit. Because it is extreme, yes, but also because it represents a shift in children's publishing.

What We Talk About When We Talk About Editing
by David Shipley, New York Times
What kind of changes do we suggest — and why? What kind of changes do we insist on — and why? When do we stay out of the way? And the hardy perennial: do we edit articles to make them adhere to a particular point of ivew?

Some Ask If The Disney Magic Is Slipping
by Charles Passy, New York Times
"What kind of Mickey Mouse operation is this?"

In China, A Musical Star is Waiting To Be Born
by Jim Yardley, New York Times
Dai Yichen's dream is to one day perform on a Chinese equivalent of Broadway, though one does not yet exist.

The Church Of Latter-Day Singles
by Huan Hsu, Washington City Paper
Every time Janna Taylor goes to church, she sees babies, wedding rings, and pregnant women — all reminders of what she's missing.

Reading Between The Lines Of Used Book Sales
by Hal R. Varian, New York Times
All in all, it looks like the used book market creates a lot more value than it destroys.

Yes, The Kitchen's Open. Too Open.
by Frank Bruni, New York Times
There was a time when much of the point of fine dining was to be liberated from the frenetic, clangorous, sweaty making of a meal, to have it magically appear, an unlabored gift from unseen elves. Not these days. Not even close.

43 Years Of Tips, Taken And Given
by Vincent M. Mallozzi, New York Times
Long before the cheesecake was famous at Junior's, the Brooklyn restaurant, Mary blevins was a popular item.

The Desire For Tallest Building Persists
by Robin Pogrebin, New York Times
For all the talk about jitters deterring potential tenants of a future Freedom Tower, the 9/11 terrorist attack ahs done little or nothing to diminish a global appetite to touch the sky.

Learning Words They Rarely Teach In Medical School: "I'm Sorry"
by Richard A. Friedman, New York Times
There is nothing in the Hippocratic Oath that tells doctors what to do when they make a mistake with a patient. Nor is there much on this subject in medical school curriculums or in residency training programs. But there should be.

Whose Work Is It, Anyway?
by Scott Carlson, Chronicle Of Higher Education
The use of 'orphan works' of art and literature, whose creators cannot be identified, puts scholars and artists at odds over changes in copyright law.

Tragedy Of The Airport
by Austan Goolsbee, Slate
Why you get stuck for hours at O'Hare.

Mmm, Chocolate Bars
by Kristin Kloberdanz, Time
When you've overdosed on cappuccino and it's too early for drinks, there's no sweeter place to meet.

Hong Kong's Poet Of Regret
by Scott Timberg, Los Angeles Times
Witness to relentless change, director Wong Kar-Wai contemplates memory and missed opportunities.

There Are Only So Many Fish In The Sea
by Clive Thompson, New York
Fresh seafood is, like oil or gold, a valuable and volatile commodity — and one that loses its value fast. As the top restaurants scramble to get their hands on the very best, what's left for the rest of us?

Where Have All The Jockstraps Gone?
by Daniel Akst, Slate
The decline and fall of the athletic supporter.

Along With That Caffeine Rush, A Taste Of Seattle
by Marc Lacey, New York Times
The hottest cafe in the Ethiopian capital is not a Starbucks at all but a knockoff, the creation of a Starbucks devotee who tried to bring the real thing to Ethiopia, the birthplace of coffee, by many accounts. But she had to settle for a look-alike after the Seattle coffee giant rebuffed her partnership request.

When It Comes To TV Stats, Viewer Discretion Is Advised
by Carl Bialik, Wall Street Journal
Ultimately, it doesn't matter much.

The Slowest Food
by Sara Dickerman, Slate
Why American chefs have taken up sous-vide cooking.

Mini Explosion
by Russ Parsons, Los Angeles Times
They may be tiny, but these tomatoes are bursting with flavor. And now they're everywhere.

Tattooed Fruit Is On Way
by Julia Moskin, New York Times
Laser coding could mean the end of those tiny stubborn stickers that have to be picked, scraped, or yanked off produce.

Beethoven (1.4m) Beats Bono (20,000) In Battle Of The Internet Downloads
by Charlotte Higgins, The Guardian
Music industry forced to take note as composer's complete symphonies outshine rock acts in online chart.

Stacks' Appeal
by Thomas H. Benton, Chronicle Of Higher Education
Teachers increasingly find it difficult to get students to consult printed materials, and yet we are making those materials even harder to obtain.

Life's Highway
by Lonnae O'Neal Parker, Washington Post
Along a well-traveled road, a young widow marks the spot where her memories lie.

Starbucks: The Daily Grind
by Nick Duerden, The Independent
This isn't a particularly easy thing for me to admit, but then dark confessions so rarely are.

Reworking Work
by Jyoti Thottam, Time
What happens when employees punch their own clock? They're happier — and more productive. An inside look at Best Buy's bold experiment.

If MSG Is So Bad For You, Why Doesn't Everyone In Asia Have A Headache?
by The Observer
To begin to answer this we must go back to Japan a century ago.

Holding Forth
by David Hare, The Guardian
I have never failed to feel a thrill of genuine anticipation when someone calls for silence and rolls out the magic words: "Unaccustomed as I am to public speaking."

Eye Vs Eye: Inside The Photo Wars
by David M. Halbfinger and Allison Hope Weiner, New York Times
This much the stars and the paparazzi can agree on: The streets of Los Angeles have become a battleground. But just who is at war is an unsettled question.

Little Terrors: Kids' Stories Aren't Afraid Of The Dark
by Neely Tucker, Washington Post
Ah, sumer. The glory of childhood, its angelic idyll. Let's consider three massively popular tales out this week that impressionable young children can't get enough of.

Thin Pickings
by The Economist
Tough times for America's restaurants.

It's A Bird. It's Plain: It's Super
by Tony Perry, Los Angeles Times
If you've got a comic book, movie, card game, action figure, video game or other entertainment item you hope to sell to the youth market, you'd better be here.

Rumblings At A Bus Stop: The Revolution Is Running Late
by Elisabeth Malkin, New York Times
Mexico City's Metrobus experiment has had a bumpy start, yet plenty of passengers have been won over.

On The Buses
by Laura Barton, The Guardian
It is easier to fall in love with London when on eis looking at its buxom charms, rather than being moleishly buried beneath.

Using Fiction To Sell Fiction
by Vauhini Vara, Wall Street Journal
Book publishers create fake web sites, offer free downloads to promote titles.

Something's Brewing In Office Coffee
by Michaele Weissman, Washington Post
Throughout the region, more workers are drinking upscale coffee in the workplace.

Stop Testing Our Endurance And Give Us A Break
by Rupert Christiansen, Telegraph
Excess of interval can be a curse, but rightly judged and placed, it can have aesthetic as well as utilitarian benefits.

Rachael Ray
by Jill Hunter Pellettieri, Slate
Why food snobs should quit picking on her.

Building In Iceland? Better Clear It With The Elves First
by Sarah Lyall, New York Times
Polls consistently show that the majority of the population either believes in elves or is not willing to rule out their existence.

Driving Upstream: A Road Trip With Stops For Salmon
by Sam Sifton, New York Times
The idea was to drive a cool car north from Seattle, ripped on strong coffee and the smell of rain, and eat some salmon. The idea was to eat so much salmon, in fact, that driving would become difficult.

A City's Traffic Plans Are Snarled By China's Car Culture
by Howard W. French, New York Times
Enormous sums were spent on spectacular bridges, elevated highways and a brand-new subway system. But today, it is hard to escape the impression that Shanghai, at least for now, is losing its bet.

If You Care About Palau, This Is A Good Place To Be
by Warren Hoge, New York Times
For Stuart J. Beck, a Manhattan television company executive, becoming an ambassador at the United Nations was not the problem it can be for Americans with diplomatic ambitions.

Selling Rapture
by Douglas Kennedy, The Guardian
The rise of the Christian right in American politics has added impetus to an already huge and growing market in evangelical fiction.

What If... No, Don't Go There
by Jan Dalley, Financial Times
"What if" history is very much in fashion at the moment.

I Do. I Do. We're Done.
by Jeff Horwitz, Washington City Paper
The ceremony itself lasts a little over a quarter of an hour, leaving fewer than 15 minutes for photos before the next couople arrives. Then it's three escalators back down and into married life.

The Culler Of Money
by Dave Jamieson, Baltimore City Paper
Late-night infomercial clown Matthew Lesko has authored nearly 100 books on government grants. His formula? "I don't write," he says. "I plagiarize."

Dad's Empty Chair
by Bob Herbert, New York Times
Black kids would be tremendously better off if the cultural winds changed and more fathers felt the need to come home.

Sesame Street Forever
by Jesse Walker, LA Weekly
A serious consideration of an estimable discography — because it's time.

One Way To Get Around L.A. And Still Beat Traffic
by Hugh Hart, Los Angeles Times
Lisa Salem is covering the city by foot while recording her experiences on a blog.

Scent Of A Woman
by Corina Zappia, Village Voice
Equal-opportunity marketing for stinky women and puny men.

Daedalus And Icarus Revisited
by Charles T. Rubin, The New Atlantis
The debate enshrined in Daedalus and Icarus suggests that today the great increase in our powers co-exists with a diminished capacity to think about them with any kind of moral realism.

Hallowed Grounds: Singapore's Coffee Culture
by Rob McKeown, Boston Globe
Coffee drinkers share a common ground whether holding a Styrofoam cup from Dunkin' Donuts or sipping from a delicate porcelain espresso cup in Italy.

Ballroom Dancing Is Hot To Fox Trot
by Jose Antonio Vargas, Washington Post
It's the summer of the rumba, the summer of the cha-cha, the summer of the waltz. The summer when you — yeah, you, the guy over there snickering — wondered: Why ballroom dancing? Why now?
Why not?

When Theater Becomes Propaganda: The Problem Of Political Art
by Terry Teachout, In Character
This necessarily places a heavy burden on the political artist, who must ot only be a good artist but also a competent reporter and researcher.

A Mini-'Magic Flute'? Mozart Would Approve
by Anthony Thommasini, New York Times
You can imagine no one being more excited by the idea of enticing children to opera house with an abridged version of "The Magic Flute" than Mozart.

Presidential Books: A Space On The Shelf
by Richard Wolffe and Tamara Lipper, Newsweek
Now, George W. Bush is mulling his own book.

Hello, May I Speak With A Human?
by Patricia Marx, Time
When calling someone in the modern era, you never know who will answer.

Question Celebrity
by Hank Stuever, Washington Post
Finally we're enjoying a golden era of Hollywood women speaking truth to power.

Musicians Forced Into Fakery
by Anthony Tommasini, New York Times
Officials at the New York Pops may now be thinking, "Be careful what you wish for."

Why Are Pop Singers So Samey And Sexless?
by Barb Jungr, Spiked
Nowhere, it seems, is there a Frank Sinatra — and please, please don't try to sell me Robbie Williams in this context.

A Philosopher's Humanity
by Carlin Romano, Chronicle Of Higher Education
The desire to portray great thinkers as disembodied argument machines remains a powerful force in analytic philosophy.