Three Words for My Younger Self: Own Less Stuff

Dear Younger Self,

The Truth About Making an Indie

How shaky financing, uncertain casting, and an ever-changing script…

Is There Mind After Death?

The science of immortality and the loss of a friend

Five Travel Rules You Should Always Break

The act of travel is, at its heart, an act of rebellion. When we board a plane, we are…

Does This Book Make Me Look Gay?

On writing across difference

“Oh, I thought you were straight!”

It’s an exclamation that shouldn’t thrill me. Not anymore. I’m 36, and belong to that unique generation of gay Americans fortunate enough…

Mental Illness and the Call of the Wild

There are times when the world can feel brutally unfunny and dully predictable. But then someone like my former East Stroudsburg University student Jeff White comes…

How Mathematics Can Predict March Madness

As a mathematician, I’ve long been interested in the science of gambling. From lotteries to sports leagues, what is the best strategy? Where are the loopholes? How is it possible to beat the house? With NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Championship —…

What’s Your (Past-Life) Story?

I’m looking for your stories — those moments or events that caused you to think differently about how we exist. Maybe it was something your child said. Or something odd you “remembered.” A dream you had, or some unusual, intense connection with a stranger.

The Beast Side of Baltimore

I saw bullets rip through the faces of adolescents.