UTFORSKA populära artiklar om ZINIO

TAD CE1TX

The most money I’ve ever spent on a pair of loudspeakers was back in the early 1990s, when I bought a pair of used TAD TH-4001 wooden horns and their associated TD-4001 compression drivers. The TAD horn’s smooth, microre-solved response was a refinement upgrade from my multicell Altec horns; plus, the TADs’ French-polished wood looked radically less industrial than the soldered-tin, tar-filled 1005/288C horns they replaced. None of my horn-fanatic friends had anything sonically or aesthetically comparable, and all of them were envious. I didn’t keep the TADs long, because the friend who admired them most made me a very “friendly” offer. That was my first experience with Japanese loudspeaker design, and it exposed me to a level of engineering precision and fine craftsmanship I had not yet encountered in American-made…

TAD CE1TX
MEASUREMENTS

MEASUREMENTS

Before I tested one of the Dan D’Agostino M400 MxV amplifiers, serial number 5879, with my Audio Precision SYS2722,1 I preconditioned it by following the CEA’s recommendation: I ran it at one-eighth the specified power into 8 ohms for 30 minutes. At the end of that time, the side-mounted heatsinks were hot, at 106.1°F (41.2°C), and the top panel was hotter, at 110.5°F (43.7°C). After testing the amplifier at high powers, the temperature of the top panel had risen to 120.4°F/49.1°C. The M400 MxV needs to be well-ventilated. The D’Agostino’s voltage gain was 26.9dB into 8 ohms, and the amplifier preserved absolute polarity (ie, was noninverting). The specified input impedance is 1M ohm. I measured 183k ohms at 20Hz, 152k ohms at 1kHz, and 129k ohms at 20kHz. Though lower than…

В ГОСТЯХ У ПРОШЛОГО

В ГОСТЯХ У ПРОШЛОГО

МУЗЕЙ ВАН ЛОН АМСТЕРДАМ Построенный еще в XVII веке, дом на канале Кайзерсграхт в XIX стал собственностью семьи Ван Лон, глава которой был одним из учредителей Ост‑Индской компании и богатейшим человеком своего времени. Поэтому здесь есть все, за что мы любим голландское искусство, но в великолепном, не свойственном для сдержанных голландцев изобилии. Со всех стен смотрят бесчисленные портреты, полки ломятся от китайского и европейского фарфора, а окна комнат обращены на канал и великолепный регулярный сад, один из лучших в Амстердаме. ДОМ-МУЗЕЙ ХЕМИНГУЭЯ ФЛОРИДА Особняк на острове Ки-Уэст, построенный еще в середине XIX века, в 1931 году стал домом Эрнеста Хемингуэя, его второй (и далеко не последней) жены Полины Пфайффер и сыновей, Патрика и Грегори. Здесь Хемингуэй прожил свои самые спокойные и респектабельные годы. Богатая наследница, журналистка и знаток моды, Полина взялась за обустройство подаренного ей…

Take a Twirl

“This dish is so versatile. You can use shelled favas instead of peas, and any delicate spring green in lieu of spinach.”—assistant food editor Riley Wofford 1 Spaghetti With Spinach, Peas, and Herbed Ricotta 12 ounces whole-milk ricotta (1½ cups)½ teaspoon grated lemon zest, plus 2 tablespoons fresh juice2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil, plus whole leaves for servingKosher salt and freshly ground pepper3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving1 sweet onion, such as Vidalia, thinly sliced (1½ cups)3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced12 ounces fresh spinach, tough stems removed, cut into 2-inch pieces (6 cups)12 ounces spaghetti1 cup fresh or frozen peas 1. In a bowl, combine ricotta, lemon zest and juice, and basil; season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium. Add onion and garlic; cook,…

Take a Twirl
What Is C-Band, and What Does It Mean for the Future of 5G?

What Is C-Band, and What Does It Mean for the Future of 5G?

A half-dozen companies are potentially ready to spend $80 billion for C-Band, a new set of airwaves that promise to fix the perilous state of American 5G, at an FCC auction. That’s a vast amount of money, and it shows how important C-Band is. But what is C-Band, and what does it mean for 5G? Do you need a C-Band phone? Is C-Band a new frequency? Should you be scared of C-Band? I can explain. RECOVERING THE SATELLITES According to wireless testing firm Rohde and Schwarz, the C-band is all frequencies between 4GHz and 8GHz. When US wireless geeks talk about C-Band, though, they’re talking about 3.7GHz to 4.2GHz—and specifically, in this case, the range from 3.7GHz to 3.98GHz. This frequency had been used for satellite TV since the 1970s, but as C-Band…

JEWEL OF ANCIENT JORDAN JERASH

JEWEL OF ANCIENT JORDAN JERASH

The Old Testament of the Bible describes the journey of the Israelites to the Promised Land. They needed to cross the kingdom of Edom, a land that straddled modern southern Israel and Jordan. The Israelites pleaded with the Edomites to “go by the King’s Highway until we have passed through your territory” (Num. 21:22). The existence of the King’s Highway can be traced back to the Bronze Age. This royal route was central to trade in the Middle East, connecting Egypt via the Gulf of Aqaba on the Red Sea all the way north to Damascus. No great empire was centered along this road, but the cities along it grew rich from commerce, as traders bearing grain from Egypt, incense from Yemen, pearls from the Red Sea, and spices from India…

Layout in the family room

Layout in the family room

Many of us dream of having a large model railroad in a basement or garage, with scale miles of track and long trains. But we’re often confronted with the reality of a lack of separate space to dedicate to a layout. By re-examining the space we have, it might be possible to build a layout in another part of the home that shares other family activities. It would take a tolerant spouse to agree to building a layout in the formal living room, dining room, or master bedroom. But family rooms and dens, with their ubiquitous televisions and children’s toys, are fertile ground for a model railroad. That’s exactly what I did. When I wanted to build a modern HO layout to complement my existing O scale Civil War-era layout, I…

The Morristown & Erie Railway

The Morristown & Erie Railway

Today’s shortline railroads offer advantages for modelers with an interest in the contemporary scene, but who don’t care to tackle a Class 1 railroad. If the idea of running 50-year-old diesels alongside new passenger locomotives and cars appeals to you, the Morristown & Erie Railway may be the prototype you’ve been looking for. The M&E originated as the Whippany River Railroad in 1895. The line, renamed Morristown & Erie after a merger in 1903, served paper mills and heavy industries until the 1970s when these core customers began to disappear as a result of a general downturn in manufacturing in the Northeast. The Morristown & Erie of today dates to 1982 when a local businessman, Benjamin Friedland, bought the railroad out of bankruptcy and launched an aggressive campaign to develop new customers.…

BEST-LAID PLANS

BEST-LAID PLANS

IT’S TAKEN LUCID 13 years to get here, from a humble battery supplier to an American EV start-up that’s valued at roughly $39 billion before delivering a single customer car. It takes less than 10 seconds to realize it’s been worth the wait. That’s how long the 1111-hp Lucid Air Dream Edition Performance needs to crack the quarter-mile, specifically 9.9 seconds at 144 mph. Here in the Arizona desert, just a few hours from Lucid’s greenfield factory in Casa Grande, I content myself with lung-squeezing whomps to 120 mph in the time it takes many cars to hit 60. With the Air in its electron-huffing Sprint mode, I struggle to put the spatial dislocation into words. You know how you flick a stray ant off a picnic table? In the Lucid…

Wave of Pearls Bracelet

HERRINGBONE IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE bead-weaving stitches. I love the look, feel, and smooth flat profile. Herringbone is fairly versatile and creates a flexible finished design. Developing a herringbone pattern takes a bit of planning, but the stitch works up quickly once you get started. Increasing and decreasing in herringbone stitch is easy, as this project illustrates. The contrasting seed beads and pearls add a bit of elegance and interest to the simple band in this design. Whether you’re honing your herringbone skills or you’re just looking for a simple but sophisticated bracelet, this is a great project to try. I’ve stitched one for almost every outfit! TECHNIQUES Ladder stitchHerringbone stitch PROJECT LEVEL MATERIALS 1 g metallic green-gold size 11° seed beads (A)15 g transparent garnet size 8° seed beads (B)3 vintage gold 8mm crystal…

Wave of Pearls Bracelet

BEAD SOUP

Handy Dandy B&B’s Guide to sizing bracelets 5 tips for the perfect fit! Whether you make them for yourself, friends & family, or a customer, making bracelets to the right size can be a challenge. These five tips will help you create bracelets that fit every time. 1 The law of averages Industry guidelines for average bracelet sizes can be a good starting point if you want to make bracelets to fit a range of people of unknown sizes. If you’re going to sell bracelets at a craft fair or art show, for instance, consider making each style in at least two sizes. Woman’s size Adult small/petite Adult medium Adult large Adult plus Bracelet length 7 in. (18 cm) 7½ –8 in. (19.1–20 cm) 8½ in. (21.6 cm) 9 in. (23 cm) 2 Customize it For the best results, customize your creations based on actual wrist…

BEAD SOUP

Touch of Sparkle

MAKE A SWAROVSKI CRYSTAL rivoli appear larger with an easy-to-stitch bezel. These sparkly earrings will dress up all your holiday outfits! TECHNIQUES Circular netting Right-angle weave variation PROJECT LEVEL ○○○ MATERIALS 0.5g red gold luster opaque size 15° Japanese seed beads (A) 1g champagne Duracoat size 11° Japanese seed beads (B) 0.5g champagne Duracoat size 8° Japanese seed beads (C) 16 matte metallic flax 6×2mm 2-hole CzechMates bars (D) 8 crystal aurum 2X 3mm Swarovski crystal bicones (E) 8 light Siam 4mm Swarovski crystal bicones (F) 16 gold 3mm Swarovski crystal pearl rounds (G) 2 foil-back scarlet 10mm Swarovski crystal rivolis 2 crystal AB 5.5×11mm Swarovski crystal drop pendants 1 pair of gold-plated 15×18mm ear wires Smoke 6 lb FireLine braided beading thread TOOLS Scissors Size 12 beading needle FINISHED SIZE 2" artist’s tips > Always make sure to check that both holes are open before stringing 2-hole beads. > Miyuki seed…

Touch of Sparkle
HOW TO USE SNAP LAYOUTS IN WINDOWS 11

HOW TO USE SNAP LAYOUTS IN WINDOWS 11

Windows 11 may be better known for its centered taskbar and rounded window borders, but the new Snap Layouts feature (sometimes also called Snap Assist) might be a more useful UI innovation. Windows, as its name implies, has long been excellent at managing and rearranging program windows, but Snap Layouts elevate the operating system (OS) to the next level. HOW DO SNAP LAYOUTS WORK? To get started with this new productivity tool, you simply hover the mouse over the Maximize icon in a program window’s upper-right corner. You’ll see a choice of layouts, like this: Note that not every application supports this feature. In my testing, the Firefox and Spotify programs showed only the old Maximize option. But you can still position them within a Snap Layout after starting the process with an…

The Best of CES 2018

The Best of CES 2018

Even after 51 years, CES still manages to pack some surprises. We’re not talking about the rain that caused crazy floods or the two-hour blackout in Central Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center. We’re talking about 65-inch rollable OLED displays, robotic dogs, and $4,000 treadmills that deliver live workout classes on HD screens. There were plenty of less surprising, though no less welcome, innovations on display as well. We weren’t surprised to see voice assistance play a bigger role than ever this year, for instance. But we didn’t necessarily expect to see it embedded in the bathroom, where it can start your shower or turn on your toilet’s foot warmer. We’ve gathered our favorite 21 new products and technologies from the show. Although they aren’t all guaranteed to the make it…

Die Reise des GOLDKÖNIGS

Die Reise des GOLDKÖNIGS

Es ist der 19. Juli 1324, und in Kairo herrscht Aufruhr: Von den Marktplätzen, aus den Moscheen und den Basaren der Metropole strömen die Menschen zum Westtor, schauen staunend in Richtung der Pyramiden von Gizeh. Aus der schattenlosen Gluthitze der Sahara nähert sich eine gewaltige Karawane. Trommeln und Trompeten kündigen ihr Kommen an. Tausende Sklaven, Männer und Frauen von vielerlei Hautfarbe, gehüllt in Brokat und persische Seide schreiten über den Sand. Die Prozession funkelt in der Sonne: Etliche der Teilnehmer tragen Geschmeide aus Gold und Silber, haben Goldfäden in ihre Haare, ihre Kleidung oder die Mähnen ihrer Pferde gewoben. Eine Kohorte aus 500 Sklaven präsentiert kiloschwere Stäbe aus purem Gold. 80 Kamele sind beladen mit Taschen voll mit dem edlen Metall. Tausende Fußsoldaten mit Bögen und Lanzen marschieren neben bewaffneten Reiterkriegern. Stunde um Stunde…

SOUTHERN PACIFIC ALONG THE SHASTA ROUTE

SOUTHERN PACIFIC ALONG THE SHASTA ROUTE

Tearing down a model railroad that one has worked on for a long time, exerting a lot of sweat and blood, isn’t a fun task. It can bring a grown man to tears. However, one thing that makes it worthwhile is the thought that the next railroad will be better. In our minds we picture better trackwork, wider curves, longer sidings – the list goes on. What an opportunity! When my family was getting ready to build a new house, a place to build a new railroad was paramount. I ruled out a basement or attic, as both required stairs. Let’s face facts, we’re all getting older. Right now, stairs are no problem, but the time will come where our knees will balk at them. The answer was a separate but…

Passwords Are Terrible, But We Still Need Them

Passwords Are Terrible, But We Still Need Them

For years, security researchers have complained about the problems with passwords and dreamed of a better, password-free future. But that glorious dream remains elusive—this clunky, outdated technology is still the best solution we have. PROBLEMATIC PASSWORDS What has made passwords so compelling is that they solve multiple problems simultaneously. A password verifies the identity of an individual, since only the correct person would know the correct password. Requiring a password limits access to files and infrastructure, allowing multiple people with different levels of access to use the same systems. Most important, a password lives outside the computer, safely stored in someone’s head. Unfortunately, passwords have not kept pace with the number of sites and services that require them. In 2018, password manager Dashlane reported that the average person had 150 accounts that required…

GAME-IMPROVEMENT IRONS

PERFORMANCE INNOVATION LOOK • SOUND • FEEL DEMAND PLAYER COMMENT “The ball rockets off the face with a climbing, driving trajectory. Love the silver-clubhead, black-badge combo.” CALLAWAY APEX DCB $185 (prices are per iron) The Apex name has long been associated with clubs for better players, dating to when it adorned many noteworthy Ben Hogan iron models. Callaway now has expanded its Apex family to include a game-improvement iron that lives up to the name’s heritage. The forged, carbon-steel body features a cavity-back that is a little deeper and a sole a tad wider than the standard Apex, but there are many shared technologies. Chief among them is a cupface that wraps around part of the topline and sole to maximize rebound on the 4-through 9-irons. The company also continues its use of tungsten encased in microsphere-filled urethane,…

GAME-IMPROVEMENT IRONS
Apple iPad Air (2022): Ideal for Creators

Apple iPad Air (2022): Ideal for Creators

Apple’s 2022 iPad Air is the epitome of a mobile tablet, with a nearly perfect balance of features and performance. The company’s M1 chip is impressively powerful, and support for the second-generation Apple Pencil makes the new Air a better creative tool than its predecessor. While battery life could be better, it’s not bad, so that’s a relatively minor complaint. If you’re looking for a do-it-all tablet with top-notch accessories, the 2022 iPad Air is the best choice in Apple’s tablet lineup—and a better bet than any Android tablet—earning it our Editors’ Choice award. PROS • Excellent performance • Works with second-gen Apple Pencil • Fits existing iPad cases and keyboards • Light and easy to carry CONS • Battery life could be longer • No millimeter-wave 5G support BOTTOM LINE The 2022 iPad Air offers many of the benefits…

How to Check Your Hard Drive’s Health

How to Check Your Hard Drive’s Health

Your hard drive hasn’t been acting the same lately. It’s starting to make clicking or screeching noises, it can’t seem to find your files, and it’s moving really slowly. Every hard drive dies eventually, and when it’s near death, you’ll see the signs: Strange noises, corrupted files, crashes during boot, and glacial transfer speeds all point to the inevitable end. This is normal, especially if your drive is more than a few years old. On older spinning drives, moving parts such as the motor can degrade over time, and a drive’s magnetic sectors can go bad. “Your computer can notify you before data loss occurs, and the drive can be replaced while it still remains functional.” Newer solid-state drives (SSDs) don’t have moving parts, but their storage cells degrade a little every…

15 Years Ago, the iPhone Created ‘Big Tech’

15 Years Ago, the iPhone Created ‘Big Tech’

Fifteen years ago, on January 9, 2007, I sat on the floor of a Las Vegas Convention Center entryway and pondered the iPhone. While I was running around the Consumer Electronics Show looking at the latest LG Chocolate, Steve Jobs was over at Macworld changing the world. I’d been covering smartphones for three years by then, and they were complex gadgets for road warriors. With the iPhone, Apple simplified the smartphone and made it a must-have for everyone. This wasn’t solely about Steve Jobs’ brilliance. He struck when several other technologies were becoming available—3G for the mobile web and capacitive touch screens for finger-friendly interfaces. And he worked without the legacy-software hangovers that Microsoft, Nokia, and Palm all struggled through from the first generation of proto-smartphones. The iPhone has made a huge number…

Everything is expensive

JANI, A 4-FT. PLUSH GIRAFFE, ARRIVED on my doorstep in mid-July, her brown eyes glassy as if she were still finding her bearings after a long journey at sea. What a journey it has been. It was August of last year that Viahart, the company that sells Jani on Amazon, ordered a container’s worth of plush toys, including her. This was around the time U.S. consumers started spending again after an initial dip at the beginning of the pandemic. And as demand for toys and TVs and couches rose, the ships and trains and trucks carrying them got overwhelmed. That made it much more expensive to get Jani to my doorstep. “Good Day, No rail schedule yet. Rail delays due to chassis shortage & port congestion. Please continue to monitor,” reads an…

Everything is expensive

NADIA OLIVE SCHNACK

1. Intente definirse a sí misma en cinco palabras. Divertida, curiosa, academicista, sociable y con una mentalidad internacional. 2. ¿Cómo es su casa? Es una gran villa de 1911 en Copenhague. 3. ¿Cómo describiría su estilo? Ecléctico sin duda. 4. ¿Quiénes han sido sus maestros? Los diseñadores que han marcado la diferencia y no han puesto barreras a su creatividad, como David Hicks, Madeleine Castaing, Josef Hoffmann o Josef Frank. Aunque mis verdaderos héroes son Wes Anderson y la Wiener Werkstätte, esa escuela vienesa de principios del siglo XX que revolucionó las artes aplicadas. 5. ¿Qué le inspira? La música, el cine y los estampados de papeles pintados y textiles. Me ayudan a arrancar un proyecto. 6. ¿La regla n° 1 de su profesión? El equilibrio es siempre la clave. 7. ¿Es coleccionista de algo? Gallos…

NADIA OLIVE SCHNACK
Hegedus is not alone

Hegedus is not alone

There’s a whole subculture out there of passionate people building vehicles in their garages, and not just kit cars. You’ve heard of homebrewed beer. These are homebrewed cars. In most cases builders use a mix of common components and hand-built one-off items to create a totally unique vehicle. Take Joe Harmon, for example, from Mooresville, North Carolina. While studying industrial design in grad school, Harmon decided to build something for his final project that had no precedent: “the world’s only wooden supercar,” as he put it. He built the Harmon Splinter over some 20,000 hours. The all-wood body was made of strips woven like carbon fiber on giant looms. He even handcrafted the wheels, which have floating spokes of walnut and ash, and packed a modified Chevy LS7 V-8 behind the…

THE COMPETITION: Porsche 911 GT3 Cup

THE COMPETITION: Porsche 911 GT3 Cup

The newest 992-generation Carrera Cup race car is the fastest in the Porsche single-make series’s 30-year history. It is, therefore, the best Cup car ever. Exactly how “best” is it? That’s the murky part. Objectively, it is about 1 percent faster around any given racetrack than the outgoing 991-generation car. To an engineer, a race-team owner, or a pro-level driver, that’s the difference between first and fifth. To almost everyone else, it’s inconsequential. According to Leh Keen, the lanky Atlantan who regularly puts this 311RS Motorsport Cup car on the podium, the new model is not just objectively superior; it’s also subjectively better. It’s easier and more comfortable to race, and more fun, too. And with service intervals for the engine and gearbox long enough to squeeze in two full seasons,…

3 American Beauty

3 American Beauty

Competition is the impetus for innovation. Which, in racing, translates to rising speed. Consider that the Ferrari 250 P that won Le Mans in 1963 maxed out at around 180 mph on the Mulsanne. Three years later, at the height of the Ford-Ferrari war, the GT40 routinely cracked 200 mph. The advancements in top speed made the Mulsanne all the more important to victory. And even more dangerous. “THE MULSANNE STRAIGHT, if you’ve got a good car, is a place to use the superiority that you’ve got,” says Richard Attwood, a Le Mans champ and one of the few still-living drivers of the original GT40 at the Circuit de la Sarthe. “You used all of the Mulsanne straight. We never eased off, unless it was raining or there was any sort…

DEATH KARTS

Modern race cars are magnificent things, objects of danger and beauty that glisten with temptation in our fantasies. In great temples of speed, we gather to watch them race. Daredevil elites who centuries ago would’ve battled on horseback pilot them. The action is dramatic, poetic, thrilling. And utterly beyond our grasp. But how ’bout some fizz for the common man? For thrill-seekers without Red Bull patches affixed to their Nomex suits (or even a comma in the bank-account balance), there is an answer, so long as you ask the right questions of racing. I offer the humble, spectacular Cyclekart. The Cyclekart was conceived as a one-fingered salute to the establishment, so the legend goes. From a circle of insiders gathered around Negronis and Rainier tallboys in an industrial Seattle warehouse, several versions of…

DEATH KARTS
MEET THE EXPERTS

MEET THE EXPERTS

Michelle Weisfelner Bloom, MD Associate professor, Division of Cardiology; director, Heart Failure and Cardiomyopathy Center; and codirector, Cardio-Oncology Program at Stony Brook University’s school of medicine in New York Dendy Engelman, MD Assistant clinical professor of dermatology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and head of dermatology at Shafer Clinic Fifth Avenue in New York City Karen Fields-Lever, DDS Founder of 28 to Brush Dental Studio in Forest Park, Illinois Carol Figuers, MS, PT, EdD Professor, Doctor of Physical Therapy division at the Duke University School of Medicine Christine C. Greves, MD Board-certified ob-gyn at the Orlando Health Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women & Babies Michelle Henry, MD Clinical instructor of dermatology at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City Bridgette Hill Certified trichologist, colorist, and founder of the Root Cause Scalp Analysis Angela Holliday-Bell, MD Board-certified physician, certified clinical sleep health specialist,…

ALL SYSTEMS GO

EVER WONDER WHY your lymph nodes swell when you’re under the weather? Or why celebs rave about lymph drainage massage? The answers lie in your body’s vast and vital self-cleansing apparatus: “The lymphatic system is a key detoxification pathway,” says lymphedema therapist and educator Lisa Levitt Gainsley, CLT, author of The Book of Lymph: Self-Care Practices to Enhance Immunity, Health and Beauty. It’s a network of vessels, tissue, and organs that helps get rid of invading microbes and other foreign particles and remove waste. You can think of it as a sort of “housekeeping system,” adds Ronda Crary, a manual lymphatic drainage therapist in the Philadelphia area—“picking up what doesn’t serve the body.” Inner Workings The vessels of the lymphatic system circulate lymph—a clear, watery fluid—throughout your body; as the lymph flows,…

ALL SYSTEMS GO

It’s TEQUILA O’CLOCK In NYC

Down the street from the Red Lobster and the shuttered Broadway theaters, a large model of Jimmy Buffett’s seaplane, Hemisphere Dancer, was being uncrated inside his brand-new 32-story hotel. It was 14 weeks before the grand opening of the Margaritaville Resort Times Square, and there was much to do: Lumber and scaffolding were everywhere, and walls of hand-painted palm trees were being touched up. Many of the 234 guest bathrooms were still waiting for their whale-tail faucets. “Ahoy!” shouted a masked worker rolling a giant compass toward the lobby where, hiding under a tarp, was a 32-foot replica of the Statue of Liberty, hoisting a margarita to the blue skies ahead. The development, which cost almost $370 million and will have taken more than three years to complete when it opens in…

It’s TEQUILA O’CLOCK In NYC
The Wand EQ £1,400

The Wand EQ £1,400

Wand is principally the name of Design Build Listen’s matching tonearm that, appropriately enough, sits on the company’s Wand turntable. Even so, the subliminal undertone is magic and that goes for the matching phono preamp as well. The EQ part of the moniker refers to ‘Emotional Quotient’ – as in that hidden within the microgrooves of a vinyl record, waiting to be maximised, through assiduous design and fine-tuning, by The Wand EQ. What more could one reasonably ask of a phono preamp? And that’s really the point this bijou box is setting out to make. Battleship build and eye-watering price tags are all very well, but when it comes right down to it, a small wooden box with the right smarts and focus will get the job done just as well…

How to Clean a Smartwatch or Fitness Tracker

How to Clean a Smartwatch or Fitness Tracker

Smartwatches get dirty—filthy, even. But cleaning a smartwatch or a fitness tracker is a simple project, as long as you know a bit about the device and its materials. For example, if you have an Apple Watch, you need to know what kind of wristband you have, such as silicone, stainless steel, leather, or gold. Once you know your materials, you just have to pick the right cleaning supplies. In many cases, you won’t even have to buy anything special. Many common household items will do. SUPPLIES Here’s a list of any supplies you might need, many of them common household items: • water• mild liquid soap, either dish soap or hand soap• distilled white vinegar• microfiber cloth• unused coffee filter• cotton ball• all-purpose leather cleaner and conditioner• clean cotton sock• cotton swabs…

Could a Robot Be a Friend?

Could a Robot Be a Friend?

When COVID-19 first hit, I was terrified to leave my home. As the father of three and a husband of 25 years, I felt helpless to protect my family as the narrative changed seemingly day-to-day. I knew fashioning medical masks from scarves was far from ideal, so I made masks for my family, friends, and any elderly customer that wanted one, using my 3D printer and some micron-level cloth filter material intended for residential HVAC systems. Still, I felt like I had no control over what was happening. The CDC reported in 2020 that between June 24 and 30, close to 40% of adults in the US reported at least one adverse mental health concern, including anxiety, depression, substance use, and suicidal ideation, among others. UK-based researchers introduced the term “COVID-19…

GET A GREAT GUITAR SOUND

GET A GREAT GUITAR SOUND

Once spurned by electronic musicians, the guitar has seen something of a rebirth over the last decade. It has shifted from being a symbol of rock’s ubiquitous dogma, to becoming a creative paintbrush with which kaleidoscopic new sounds have been weaved via the use of software effects and samples, while the once restrictive price tags of high-end amplification can now be replicated via a range of simulations. So, if you’re a traditionally equipped guitarist looking for new ways to explore your instrument with software, or even if you’ve never previously recorded, come along for a tour! A very brief history Across its many decades of life, the guitar has always been an instrument that its players have sought to wrangle new sounds from. The blues players of the Mississippi Delta back in…

AFFLECK & J-LO:S DJUPA KÄRLEKSKRIS!

”Han skrek hysteriskt!” Hur mår Ben Affleck, 49, egentligen? Efter återföreningen med Jennifer Lopez, 52, i våras har stjärnan sett ut att stråla av lycka. Men något har förändrats den senaste tiden, och källor i hans närhet vittnar om att allt inte är så kärleksfullt bakom lykta dörrar som stjärnparet vill ge sken av... ”INTE HELT RÄTT I HUVUDET” Att Ben är under stor press syns enligt källor i hans närhet på hans allt kortare stubin. – Han är inte helt rätt i huvudet. Han fattar många dåliga beslut, säger en insider i OK! magazine. Hans korta stubin blev tydlig när han häromveckan syntes skrika på sin exfru Jennifer Garner, 49, på öppen gata. Anledningen till storbråket sägs vara Bens nya tjej, J-Lo. Ett vittne säger i tidningen National Enquirer att Ben ”skrek hysteriskt” på…

AFFLECK & J-LO:S DJUPA KÄRLEKSKRIS!

Q&A

When did people start wearing glasses? Various ancient peoples knew of the magnifying properties of lenses. There’s fragmentary evidence that the ancient Egyptians may have used them, while the Roman emperor Nero improved his view of gladiatorial games by watching them through an emerald. By AD 1000, the Persian scholar Ibn Sahl had written a famous treatise on optics. In it he described “reading stones” – made of quartz or rock crystal, or glass spheres cut in half – which could be placed over a text to magnify it. Eyeglass technology had advanced further still by the early years of the Italian Renaissance. We know this because several writers, including Petrarch (1304-74), were describing people holding pairs of lenses over their eyes, or suspending them from the bridge of their noses. The theologian…

Q&A

Ice Capades

CHEF ASHLEY CHRISTENSEN and food writer Kaitlyn Goalen warmed up to their freezer big-time after collaborating on a cookbook for Poole’s, Christensen’s beloved Raleigh, North Carolina, diner. The couple ended up with a gold mine of extra goodies from recipe testing—think béchamel, compound butters, and meat and vegetable stocks. “We froze a lot of those leftovers and spent the next year using them up, which turned into a fun way to make our home cooking much more delicious,” says Goalen. In It’s Always Freezer Season (Ten Speed Press) they share their expertise, and the contents of their shelves. “It’s not all waffles and pints of ice cream,” says Christensen (though they do offer a mean sage-and-sausage-waffle recipe). One section of the book is devoted to savvy storage tips—we highlight a…

Ice Capades

Holidays on Ice

Planning a holiday party doesn’t have to be complicated. The trick is to serve a pared-down but special-feeling menu. One of my favorites, which I serve at my annual open house in Bedford, is a delicious fresh-seafood buffet of oysters and shrimp, accompanied by a bar stocked with icy-cold whites, a delectable rosé, and a sparkling wine or two. As a young married woman in New York City, I experienced such a buffet at the town house of some friends before a performance of the Messiah at Carnegie Hall. It occurred to me at the time that our hostess was a genius to focus on such a limited yet tasty and refined menu. We ate our fill, then trekked to the concert sated and happy. When preparing this spread, make sure…

Holidays on Ice

Роман Толстой

Глядя на уютные, наполненные семейными картинками, вышитыми подуш ками, цветной мебелью и винтажным текстилем ин терьеры дома Александры Толстой в Баттерси, невозможно поверить, каким драматичным было путешествие к этой идиллии. “Мы поселились здесь осенью 2020‑го, после того как меня с детьми выселили из дома в Челси по решению суда. Я ремонт тут сделала за десять дней”, – рассказывает Александра. История жизни Толстой, красавицы-аристократки с русскими и английскими корнями, похожа на сценарий сериала. Она выросла в сказочном мире старых поместий, полных антикварной мебели и живых традиций. Училась в Эдинбурге – русской литературе: перед университетом она полгода прожила в Москве и влюбилась в культуру и искусство. Еще студенткой ездила в Крым и на Кавказ – жадно впитывала цвета, фактуры и орнаменты. Попыталась поработать в финансовой сфере, но быстро поняла, что это не для…

Роман Толстой
SAMURAI Of YOSEMITE

SAMURAI Of YOSEMITE

Seemed like a swell idea at the time. This past March, an intrepid trio of veteran backcountry trekkers gazed upon Half Dome, the granite monolith that rises majestically from California’s Yosemite National Park, and decided to ski down a steep, icy furrow that runs near its famously sheer northwest face. Never mind that their chosen route, dubbed Bushido Gully after the moral code of the samurai, is seldom used even for summer climbing ascents, and never for descents in inclement weather—too rugged, too exposed, too damn easy to slip to certain death. That’s just the sort of wintertime fun they crave. Shortly after a frigid-but-glorious sunrise, the trio’s deputized photographer, Eric Rasmussen, balances shakily on a precipitous slope with Half Dome’s lookout spot, known as the Diving Board, looming over his…

In search of new challenges

Change is coming once again to my basement, where my 1951 Santa Fe layout is slowly being dismantled and replaced with one depicting the mid-1950s Norfolk & Western in HO. Rather than repeat the two-week marathon demolition job that removed my Missouri, Kansas & Quincy to make room for the Santa Fe layout, this time I’m removing sections of the old layout only when needed to make room for the new. That way, I’ll always have an operational railroad available when I get the urge to run trains. I chose the N&W as the main prototype for several reasons. I’d never modeled an East Coast railroad, even though I grew up there and vividly remember the Pennsylvania RR and the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western. Several other candidates were also on my short…

THE SPORTS-CAR DRIVER’S OFF-ROADER

THE SPORTS-CAR DRIVER’S OFF-ROADER

DON’T THINK OF RIVIAN as a truck company. Sure, the brand’s first production vehicle, the R1T you see here, is a four-door pickup truck. And next to launch will be the R1S, a three-row SUV based on the R1T. And then there’s the cartoonish RPV, an electric delivery van with up to 900 cubic feet of cargo space. Amazon hopes to have 100,000 of these rigs in service by 2030. Trucks, all of them. But when founder RJ Scaringe launched his company—in 2009, in his twenties, having just finished engineering school—his dream was to build a mid-engine hybrid sports car. And if you want to understand Rivian, you have to think of it as a sports-car company. The evidence sits snug on the centerline of the R1T’s chassis: four electric motors, one…

Constellation Pendant

WEAVE A THREE-DIMENSIONAL star pendant using circular peyote and herringbone stitches. Embellish curls in the beadwork with pearls and crystals to create a piece bursting with depth, texture, and sparkle. TECHNIQUES Circular peyote stitch Circular herringbone stitch PROJECT LEVEL MATERIALS 5 g eggplant galvanized Duracoat size 11° Japanese seed beads (A) 2 g silver galvanized Duracoat size 11° Japanese seed beads (B) 4 amethyst AB 4mm crystal bicones (C) 4 amethyst 8mm crystal bicones (D) 13 silver-plated AB 2mm fire-polished rounds (E) 28 metallic crystal lavender 3mm fire-polished rounds (F) 4 eggplant 8mm pearl rounds (G) Purple One-G nylon beading thread TOOLS Scissors Size 10 or 11 beading needle FINISHED SIZE 21⁄8 × 2¾ " 1) BASE. Use circular peyote and herringbone stitches to form the base: Round 1: Use 4' of thread to string 4A, leaving a 4" tail. Pass through the beads again to form a tight circle;…

Constellation Pendant

All That Glitters

EVERY YEAR, Kevin Sharkey devotes pretty much an entire December weekend to decorating the 14-foot tree that grazes the ceiling of his sleek New York City apartment overlooking the Hudson River. “You’d think it would take longer because the tree is so tall, but it actually goes by pretty quickly,” he says. Moreover, he enjoys every minute of it, and his efforts are fueled by the excitement of good times—and good friends—to come. There’s a thoughtful method to his yuletide madness, too. He stores his ornaments in bins organized by type, then arranges similar ones in groups before hanging them. “It’s a great exercise of all my styling muscles and instincts,” he says. “I want it to look like it’s encrusted in baubles.” And to that end, he goes for…

All That Glitters
RESEARCH

RESEARCH

Men, women show different interface with behavioral care November 6, 2020, OTAGO, New Zealand—Treatment patterns and use of national health services in New Zealand appear to differ between men and women with bipolar disorder, a new study suggests. Researchers found that the rates of people with bipolar in contact with specialist mental health services were 30 percent higher among women. In addition, women were more likely to receive only outpatient treatment and to have co-existing anxiety. Men had higher rates of co-existing substance use disorder and were more likely to be convicted of crimes when unwell, receive inpatient treatment, and receive compulsory treatment orders. The study, which appeared in the journal BJPsych Open, was entitled “Gender and mental health service use in bipolar disorder: National cohort study.” • Quality of life can predict mood states January 1,…

Hiri Makes Email Less Horrible

For working people, email is still a necessary evil. A whole class of productivity apps has emerged to mitigate some of email’s inherent problems, and Hiri is one such contender. This downloadable app is an alternative interface for your Microsoft email account. It adds a wealth of tools designed to make email better. A dashboard with a timer discourages you from checking your inbox obsessively. A to-do list off to the right side of the screen holds synopses of messages that you’ve turned into tasks. Hiri’s price is competitive, and its features are actually beneficial. It works with Microsoft email only, however, and it doesn’t offer any mobile features. Hiri Editors' Choice $39.00 Pros: Contains excellent features for making email better. Incorporates a to-do list and calendar. Competitive price.Cons: Supports Microsoft-based email only. No…

How to Deal With a Swollen Laptop Battery

How to Deal With a Swollen Laptop Battery

Lithium-ion batteries pack an amazing punch for their size. They’re robust enough to run our laptops for hours on a single charge, they’re at the core of the latest smartphones, and they even serve as the power plant behind cutting-edge electric vehicles such as the Tesla line. But lithium-ion batteries do have limits. Given how powerful laptops have become in the last few years, we’re relying on our machines for longer than ever. That has implications for batteries: They’re in service a lot longer, too. And sometimes, that means they show the limits of their technology. You may have had this happen to you: A laptop or phone you’ve had for years suddenly stops working, or maybe just starts showing some sign of internal physical swelling. The screen of your phone…

Stuff This in Your Stocking

Welcome to GQ’s 27th annual Men of the Year issue. I happen to think this is one of the most exciting and wide-ranging MOTYs we’ve done–a twisted issue full of twisted people celebrating a twisted year—but ultimately that’s for you to judge. I could use this page to enumerate all my favorite things about the incredible stories in this issue, but it’s probably more fun and helpful if I do your holiday shopping for you instead. Herewith, my personal list of cool things you should buy as gifts, or try to finesse out of your loved ones, or better yet just go buy for yourself. Let’s start with a forgotten classic, the navy blazer. For decades, a navy blazer was one of the most foundational elements of a man’s wardrobe,…

Stuff This in Your Stocking
A LAYOUT FORGED IN FIRE

A LAYOUT FORGED IN FIRE

THE INSPIRATION FOR Mike Rabbitt’s HO scale H&R Steel Co. layout came to him in a flash – literally. As a youth in Sandusky, Ohio, Mike entertained himself riding his bicycle through the industrial landscape, observing the workings of the many factories and railroads in the city. One day he was outside a steel mill that he could look inside to see workers loading an electric arc furnace that converted scrap metal into steel. A sudden flash of light and blast of hot air almost knocked him over as the melting process began. The sight – as well as a wave of searing heat – took his breath away. It was a moment that kicked off a lifelong study of iron and steel, and ultimately the construction of several model railroads focusing…

12 Ways to Be More Secure Online

12 Ways to Be More Secure Online

When a big company with lax security suffers a breach that exposes your personal data, passwords, or profile pics, there’s not much you can do about it. That doesn’t mean you’re powerless to protect yourself, though: You can strengthen your security and guard your privacy at home. You don’t want to lose the novel you’re writing to ransomware or let a banking Trojan siphon off all your cash, right? Fortunately, you can mount a local defense against these local problems. Making your devices, online identity, and activities more secure really doesn’t take much effort. In fact, several of our tips about what you can do to be more secure online boil down to little more than common sense. 1. INSTALL AN ANTIVIRUS AND KEEP IT UPDATED We call it antivirus software, but fending…

Just Like New

Just Like New

ONE OF THE biggest architectural stories of 2021 was the substantial renovation of three former U.S. Open and PGA Championship venues: Baltusrol’s Lower Course, Congressional’s Blue Course and Oakland Hills’ South Course. For clubs with a pedigree for hosting major championships, this is something that happens every 10 or 15 years as they examine what’s necessary to keep their courses relevant as tournament sites and attractive to the governing bodies that parcel out assignments. These days, the transformation that courses must go through for the USGA and PGA of America to deem them capable of hosting their events usually includes building new championship tees, shifting and rebuilding bunkers and installing innovative grasses and irrigation systems. The host organizations, working to coordinate pristine yet demanding setups and fearful of losing tournament days…

Into a Shadow Realm

Into a Shadow Realm

IN THE MIDDLE OF A FIELD in a lesser known part of Ireland is a large mound where sheep wander and graze freely. Had they been in that same location centuries ago, these animals might have been stiff with terror, held aloft by chanting, costumed celebrants while being sacrificed to demonic spirits that were said to inhabit nearby Oweynagat cave. This monumental mound lay at the heart of Rathcroghan, the hub of the ancient Irish kingdom of Connaught. The former Iron Age center is now largely buried beneath the farmland of County Roscommon. Ireland is pushing for its inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage list. Spread across more than two square miles, Rathcroghan encompasses 240 archaeological sites, dating back 5,500 years. They include burial mounds, ring forts (settlement sites), standing stones, linear…

A SINGLE LOCATION layout

The standard two-car garage found in many homes usually measures around 20 x 20 feet and thus forms a useful 400-square-foot layout site. It’s not huge, but it offers sufficient scope for a model railroad that will keep several operators entertained and handle a good-sized equipment roster. Using the space intended for a brace of autos to house a model railway isn’t a new idea; in the United Kingdom where I reside, a goodly number of well-known layouts have called a garage home. Garages forming a part of the house – or at least attached to it – are usually the most accommodating; if they’re not already included in the home’s heating system, they’re usually easily added, while additional insulation can be readily installed to keep things comfortable through the seasons. Probably…

A SINGLE LOCATION layout
My Natural Building Journey

My Natural Building Journey

Building my own straw bale guest house was the culmination of one journey and the beginning of another. After graduating from college in 2005 with a fine arts degree, I decided to pursue a career in environmental conservation. I worked at different nonprofits for a couple of years before going back to graduate school for urban planning. My grad program provided a lot of flexibility, so I explored the fields of affordable housing, community development, and international development in addition to environmental planning. I began to see that you can’t separate people from the environment, and that a lot of the destruction of our planet stems from our desire to see ourselves apart from and above the natural world that surrounds us. After school, I got a job with Pima…

Apple Watch Series 8: The Goldilocks Option

Apple Watch Series 8: The Goldilocks Option

The Apple Watch Series 8 looks exactly like its predecessor, but it offers some notable health and safety improvements that weren’t available on last year’s model. Its biggest upgrade is the ability to measure and track changes in your body temperature while you sleep, with a dual-sensor design for more accurate readings. If you have a menstrual cycle, the Series 8 can use your body-temperature data to estimate the date of your last ovulation. And on the safety front, the watch can detect whether you’ve been in a car crash and automatically call for help. With these upgrades, plus an already unrivaled user experience and app selection that’s further enhanced by watchOS 9, the Apple Watch Series 8 is still the best iPhone-compatible smartwatch for most buyers and remains our…

MIGHTY MINIMULES

MIGHTY MINIMULES

IMAGINE YOU’RE IN charge of powertrain development at Cosworth, the legendary English firm with fingerprints all over racing. Two separate automakers—Aston Martin and Gordon Murray Automotive—have brought a challenge: build a free-revving, naturally aspirated V-12 able to meet today’s strict emissions standards. GMA wanted 650-plus horses from 4.0 liters for its T.50 supercar; Aston Martin wanted 6.5 liters and 1000 hp for its Valkyrie hybrid hypercar. How do you proceed? You’d figure the answer lies in a microchip. Render a V-12 engine in ones and zeros and tweak a million variables until you nail it. You could fiddle for thousands of hours without ever having to machine, cast, forge, or weld a single physical part. Computer simulation is key for Cosworth, but it doesn’t show a complete view of internal combustion. “Imagine…

MISSISSIPPI SPEED

MISSISSIPPI SPEED

LAKE SPEED is famous for beating Ayrton Senna for the 1978 Karting World Championship, but he doesn’t even remember it. “He was just another helmet to pass,” says Speed. Then, fearing he sounds arrogant, Speed adds that in 1978 he was making his sixth attempt at the championship, having failed to claim it five years in a row despite his six national titles back home in the States. “I was totally focused. Senna was from Brazil, and 99.9 percent of the drivers that had won the world championship were from Europe, so I really wasn’t thinking about him at all. The only helmets I was racing against were the ones that were Italian.” Senna never did win a world karting title, although, as Speed says, “he went on and did really…

Charlie Greenhaus wants your next race car to be electric.

Charlie Greenhaus wants your next race car to be electric.

IF YOU WANT to get behind the wheel of a fully developed, ready-to-run electric race car today, you’ve got about two options. The first: Elbow your way in among the 24 top-flight professional drivers competing in Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile’s Formula E, guys with experience in touring cars, sports-car endurance racing, even Formula 1. You’ll pilot a bespoke carbon-fiber race car fielded by a team with a budget in the double-digit millions and the backing of a major global automaker. If this is a reality for you, you’re probably already on a first-name basis with some Andrettis or Penskes. Or you can go to Sacramento, Pennsylvania, a tiny rural hamlet nestled in the Appalachians, halfway between Harrisburg and more mountains. Pull up at Entropy Racing, a shop with an ancient yellow…

GUIDING LIGHT

GUIDING LIGHT

THINK OF THE GREATEST designs in American automotive history. The 1949 “Shoebox” Ford. The ’57 Chevy. The ’64-½ Mustang. The suicide-door Lincoln Continental. The muscular Sting Ray and all its forebears. Every one of the Forward Look Chryslers that flowed from Virgil Exner’s pen. The gobsmacking Buick Riviera. The razor-sharp Eldorado. The jolie laide Avanti. These designs have practically nothing in common. You’d never mistake a Buick for a Lincoln, a Studebaker for a Chrysler. But take another look at those faces. They’re all arranged around a ubiquitous, generic piece of mandatory equipment: the circular sealed-beam headlamp. It was a regulatory necessity—and an unsung motivator that pushed designers to unparalleled creative heights. Starting in 1940, U.S. automakers agreed on the round seven-inch sealed-beam as the universal standard headlight. It made replacing a…

The Day I Met My Hero

The Day I Met My Hero

Shelby Cobra BY A.J. BAIME SHELBY PHOTOGRAPHS BY MP CURTET “You gotta try this sandwich,” Bruce Meyer told me over the phone. “It’s from Nate ’n Al’s. World famous.” It was the automotive adventure of a lifetime, and it began with a tuna melt. Meyer and I were preparing to meet in his office in Los Angeles, and when I got there, the sandwiches were on his desk. Meyer is the founding chairman of the world’s most important auto museum, the Petersen in Los Angeles. He’s renowned for caretaking, experiencing, and sharing some of the greatest motoring masterpieces of all time. I had come with a big ask. Truly giant. Would he let Road & Track borrow, drive, and photograph his Shelby Cobra CSX2001? It was like walking into the Museum of Modern Art…

CHANGE OF HEART

WHEN I TOLD a friend I’d had heart surgery, she said, “If that can happen to you, I’m never working out again,” feeling vindicated. Actually, I told her, exercise helped save my life—but not in the usual way. Like most of us in the pre-COVID days, I didn’t give much thought to my oxygen levels. Cough, shmough. So when my runs in the park started feeling like breathless exercises in futility, I at first blamed lack of sleep. Then I blamed work stress, too much wine, the kids, and menopause. It wasn’t pain—it was that my heart was on overdrive, pounding so hard I feared it would burst out of my chest. I would get so light-headed I’d be forced to sit down in the grass or the dirt, or wherever…

CHANGE OF HEART

Poverty Propaganda

A STAPLE OF THE FEEL-GOOD NEWS CYCLE—ALONG with pieces about skateboarding dogs and friendships spawned by misdialed texts—is the story of human suffering overcome through community, charity, and old-fashioned pluck. There is the 14-year-old who spent his summer vacation selling homemade popsicles to help his mother pay for food, rent, and a motorized wheelchair. In Utah, a couple crowdfunded $20,000 for their Papa John’s delivery guy, an 89-year-old retiree who returned to working 30 hours a week delivering pizzas because his monthly Social Security checks don’t cut it. Before shuttering his office and retiring, an Arkansas oncologist wrote off the medical debts of some 200 cancer patients, which totaled nearly $650,000. And a group of FedEx employees raised the money to buy a car for their 60-year-old coworker, who had been walking…

Poverty Propaganda
Rega Planar 10 £3,600

Rega Planar 10 £3,600

This radical British high-end vinyl spinner is an essay in minimalism and channels Lotus founder Colin Chapman’s maxim: “add lightness”. Designer Roy Gandy deliberately chose not to make this deck heavy, unlike all other such designs in this group. Rather, its base is made from an ultra-light Tancast 8 polyurethane foam core, sandwiched between two layers of high-pressure laminate, which is thin but rigid. The idea is that mass stores energy like a mechanical capacitor, so the lighter the better. The skeletal, unsprung plinth sports ceramic top and phenolic resin bottom braces, located between the tonearm mounting and main hub bearing. As with all Regas, it’s a belt-drive design but comes supplied with the company’s most advanced electronic power supply, housed in a custom metal case. It spins a handsome ceramic…

Naim Mu-so 2nd Generation £1,450

Naim Mu-so 2nd Generation £1,450

When released a good few years ago the first Mu-so was quite a catch. Here was a highly respected UK hi-fi specialist getting into more lifestyle-oriented audio. It proved a big success and has been further improved with the more recent release of the 2nd Generation update. It is a veritable thing of beauty, and an ergonomic triumph to boot. Naim’s trademark volume control is a lovely way to operate it and the supplied app is as good as these things tend to get – easily the best in this group. It has no display as such, but doesn’t need one. The user experience is minimalist, uncluttered and effortless. This goes for setup too; you just follow the instructions on the app and after a few minutes, it’s up and running. It…

How to Declutter Responsibly: Reuse, Recycle, Resell

How to Declutter Responsibly: Reuse, Recycle, Resell

You’re ready to get rid of the old, unused devices that have accumulated in your home and office. That’s admirable. But what are you going to do with the things you don’t want? You know you should dispose of these items, including electronic waste, in a responsible way. But what constitutes “responsible” leaves a lot of people guessing. When in doubt, leave it out—of the trash, that is. Here’s what else you can try. RESELL COMPUTERS, TABLETS, AND SMARTPHONES Reselling used electronics is a great option for desktops, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. It can work for other items, too, but the aforementioned items are easy wins. The downside is that reselling can be a time-consuming process, so if your priority is getting rid of clutter, you may have to skip this one (look…

How to Clean Your Laptop the Right Way

How to Clean Your Laptop the Right Way

Dust, coffee stains, oil from your fingertips, food particles, plain old grime: If your laptop shows any of those, it’s time to clean and disinfect. Basic cleaning supplies and 15 minutes of time can make your laptop look brand-new again. This guide goes through all aspects of laptop cleaning, including how to deal with its screen, the keyboard, the outside surfaces, the vents, and the ports. We show you what to do and what to avoid, as well as share some handy tips on keeping your laptop looking clean all the time—not just when it achieves grungy critical mass. GET YOUR CLEANING SUPPLIES Most of the cleaning supplies you need might already be in your home. A proper cleaning cloth is first priority. Instead of a cotton rag or paper towels, which can…

John Petrucci

John Petrucci

In the still-youthful genre of prog-metal, Dream Theater are the undisputed silverbacks. Founded 36 years ago in the fertile breeding ground of Berklee College Of Music in Boston, the line-up took the calling cards of classic prog and turned up all the dials, leading the charge for a new movement that made you both bang and scratch your head. Comprising seven extended tracks, groaning with super-technical solos and pinballing between tricky time signatures, this year’s A View From The Top Of The World album represents everything you love/hate (delete as applicable) about the genre. Co-founding guitarist John Petrucci tells us more. Undoubtedly you’re pleased with the new album. I had a feeling when we finished it: “There’s something special about this one.” We started the band in 1985. A View From The Top…

HEIDI GARDNER

Every cast member has an SNL grind story. What’s yours? The longest I’ve gone without sleeping is 25 hours. You’re just thrown into it and fully along for the ride, letting that take you wherever it’s going to go. My first year I was staying up all night, sustaining on gummy candy. How did you nail your portrayal of a coked-up ’80s movie wife? The cocaine wife was a dream. Sharon Stone is legendary in Casino and getting a taste of that world for two minutes was amazing. I was a stone-faced kid and didn’t let my emotions out much. Sometimes I think maybe it’s this freeing thing in adulthood that I can just go off playing emotional characters. The spoof on The Last Dance, where you played a Chicago Bulls security guard, was…

HEIDI GARDNER
Ultra Prodigy

Ultra Prodigy

MATTHEW HEALY came into the limelight in 2020 when he beat Ryan Sandes' One Day 13 Peaks Record. Then he cemented his place as an ultra running wunderkind when he won his first 100 miler at the 2021 Addo Elephant Trail Run. Discover how a 25-year-old can develop such an impressive work ethic, who inspires him, and why he doesn't like shaking hands. In the night, as I was trying to move as quickly as possible, a jackal appeared in my path. MATTY HEALY is just 25, but is already setting records and winning competitive ultras. He’s decided that trail running will be his career, and he’s just getting started. This is Matthew’s journey so far. Previous life Before running, I was playing rugby at a serious level. Straight after high school I went to the Sharks…

Finding Their Light

Finding Their Light

ALEXANDRA GRAY BENNETT and her husband were ready to nest. Finally back together in their native Minnesota—after they married, he had moved to Boston for business school—the couple were looking for an ideal home to start a family in. “We were basically Trulia regulars,” jokes Bennett. “But I remember the first moment I saw our house in 2017. I just had a feeling.” Set in the leafy Kenwood neighborhood of South Minneapolis, the 2,300-square-foot, two-and-a-half-story 1920s cedar-shingle dwelling had a traditional foursquare design, with a room in each corner and a central hall and stairway. It ticked all their boxes: It was simple and beautiful, close to lakes and trails for their Labrador, and—the kicker—walking distance from one of the city’s best playgrounds. Two years and one positive pregnancy test later,…

ПОЛЕ ЧУДЕС

За пять столетий гольф прошел невероятно интересный путь. Забава бедных шотландских пастухов – загонять палками булыжники в кроличьи норы – обросла множеством традиций, правил, приобрела строгий этикет, терминологию и стала атрибутом успешного стиля жизни. Первое обнаруженное упоминание – указ о запрете этой игры – датируется серединой XV века. Солдаты проводили за ней так много времени, что их мастерство стрельбы из лука стало уступать вражескому. Однако через пятьдесят лет король Яков IV сам стал гольфистом и отменил запрет. Гольф-клуб в Сколково – чуть больше 100 га, территория в половину Монако. Перейти все поле, обойдя все лунки, – уже задача не из простых. Решение построить здесь клуб возникло десять лет назад у компании Millhouse – это часть ее масштабного проекта по развитию территории в Сколково. Два года ушло на изменение рельефа и создание…

ПОЛЕ ЧУДЕС
THROUGH THE BASEMENT AND AROUND IT

THROUGH THE BASEMENT AND AROUND IT

A long-time interest in the transition-era Denver & Rio Grande Western (D&RGW), in both standard gauge and narrow gauge flavors, plus a large (if somewhat inconveniently arranged) space set the stage for this multi-deck track plan. My client – I’m a professional layout designer – had already commissioned two excellent custom plans for somewhat different spaces, but little could be salvaged from either of those for the new space that, while ample, was festooned with doors, posts, and other obstacles. Moreover, it included a number of oddly angled walls. Based on my client’s personal interest and those earlier design efforts, the primary elements to include were Pueblo Junction wye and yard, the famous Hanging Bridge scene near Cañon City, the busy narrow gauge/standard gauge terminal at Salida, and as far north…

A SIKH TRAGEDY

Despite the summer heat enveloping the walled city of Lahore in late June 1839, a chilling sense of anxiety and grief pervaded the hearts of Punjabi ministers and courtiers gathered inside the royal chambers of the imperial palace. Their master, Maharajah Ranjit Singh, lay senseless and on the verge of death in his opulent bedchamber, inside the Lahore Fort. Countless prayers were being offered for his recovery, and vast sums of alms – gold, jewels and elephants, no less – were given away from the fabulous riches of the Sikh imperial treasury, in the desperate hope of saving Ranjit Singh’s life, or at least procuring God’s mercy for his soul. The palatial apartments occupied by the ailing maharajah were originally constructed centuries before by the great Mughal emperors, but they had…

A SIKH TRAGEDY

FRENCH TWIST

Handbag designer Tyler Ellis is the daughter of American fashion icon Perry Ellis and television writer and producer Barbara Gallagher, and much like her late father, she has a taste for what might best be described as modern classics—a deftly calibrated mix of simple, timeless lines and contemporary panache. The style applies not only to her own luxury creations—a staple of Hollywood’s endless red-carpet parade—but also to the chic, breezy Brentwood home she shares with her husband, investor Benjamin Shriner. Seduced by the property’s French-inflected, classical-meets-Deco architecture and its abundant Italian cypresses, the two purchased the house five years ago and called upon its original architect, William Hefner, and Ellis’s longtime interior designers, the Los Angeles–based AD100 firm The Archers, to reinvent the place to reflect the young couple’s taste…

FRENCH TWIST
Manifold Destiny

Manifold Destiny

Lamborghini Countach That the Piedmontese word countach translates roughly to “holy shit!” tells you all you need to know about the impact of this quintessential Lamborghini. Unlike earlier supercars, whose sensuousness was often compared to reclining nudes, designer Marcello Gandini’s brutal masterwork looks more like a deadly weapon, a flying ax-head. This is the Countach’s legacy: It defined a level of outrageousness against which all future supercars would be judged. But the Countach itself is defined by its mechanical packaging. Mounting the radiators at the sides meant the nose could plunge to a honed edge. The huge, longitudinally oriented V-12 faced rearward, its transmission pointed toward the front, centralizing the car’s weight and pushing the passenger compartment forward, inverting the typical sports-car proportions. Also, in the post-Countach era, a supercar without…

MALTESE CROSS BRACELET

DIFFICULTY square stitch / bead weaving Capture crystal chatons in square stitch bezels, and secure them with a crisscross of seed beads. Embellish them with even more crystals in a design that resembles a Maltese cross. FIRST MALTESE CROSS UNIT 1) On 1 yd. (.9 m) of thread and leaving a 6-in. (15 cm) tail, pick up 20 11° seed beads, and tie the beads into a tight ring with a square knot. Sew through the next several beads, pulling the knot into a bead. 2) Pick up two 11°s, skip back two beads in the ring, and sew through the two beads you skipped and the next two in the ring (figure 1, a–b). Repeat this stitch nine times to complete the round (b–c). Sew through all the beads added in this round to…

MALTESE CROSS BRACELET

Big Acts of Storytelling

IN 2013, WHEN I WAS A REPORTER FOR THE magazine Ad Age, I had occasion to interview David Granger, who at the time was three quarters of the way into his nineteen-year tenure as Esquire’s editor in chief. He characterized the feature stories on which Esquire built its reputation—deeply reported, vibrantly written, wholly immersive—as “big acts of storytelling.” The phrase has stuck with me, and today I use it frequently when talking about Esquire articles, past and present, because big acts of storytelling have been part of the magazine since its inception. Our first issue, published in September 1933, opened with a page called “Backstage with Esquire,” our take on the contributors’ page. The column contained a note about big-act storyteller Ernest Hemingway’s contribution: “For those of you who have waistlines,…

Big Acts of Storytelling
The 8 Best Wireless Routers We’ve Tested

The 8 Best Wireless Routers We’ve Tested

With COVID-19 still keeping so many people working from home, Wi-Fi routers are doing a lot more than streaming movies and games. Not only are home Wi-Fi routers keeping millions of people working, but they’re also connecting an ever-growing range of smart home devices. That means picking one that does the best job for you and fits your budget is trickier than ever, especially now that we’re seeing more Wi-Fi 6 devices becoming available. When you’re shopping for a new router, start by considering the size of your coverage area and the number of clients you need to support as well as the types of devices that you’ll be connecting. Not everybody needs the kind of performance that you get with the latest and greatest models, and there’s no reason to…

Technology Is Killing Me (and Probably You, Too)

Most days, I dream of chucking my iPhone 7 off a cliff. I imagine this $750 slab hurtling through the air, skipping across the surface of a turbulent ocean, and sinking deep, deep down into the murky depths. When that doesn’t work, I picture dropping it out a window and watching the screen shatter against the sidewalk, a thousand hairline cracks zigzagging across its glossy surface like lightning. Hi. I’m a millennial, and I’m suffering from an acute case of technological exhaustion. Surprising, I know. Millennials are supposed to be insufferable, selfie-snapping social media addicts who cry every time the Wi-Fi goes down. You know the type. Our noses are practically glued to our screens. We’d rather text than have a face-to-face conversation. According to the vast majority of millennial think…

Technology Is Killing Me (and Probably You, Too)
Is Apple in Denial?

Is Apple in Denial?

It was the lack of ports that convinced me to stick with my four-year-old MacBook Air. At least the OS upgrades easily and seamlessly (not like Windows 10 on my Surface Pro). It was ludicrous to leave USB 3.0 out of the equation—hundreds of dollars in dongles would be useless. Plug in a dock? Ridiculous. Touch Bar instead of Touch Screen? Laughable. Maybe they will get it right in the future, but they seem to be stuck in a “form instead of function” mindset. —Firewallbill There are some things I like about macOS, such as apps that are single ZIP files without needing to install to registries or smear their files across the OS. I like the soft color palette they use. I think the underlining Unix OS renders graphics nicely. But…

short & sweet

recipe on page 94 recipe on page 94 recipe on page 94 recipe on page 94 recipe on page 95 recipe on page 95 Grilled Pineapple Pie pictured on page 88 4 hours 30 minutes l Makes one 8-inch pie Grilling fresh pineapple takes it from delicious to divine. Look for one with a bright golden color and a sweet, fruity aroma at the stem end. 2 cups rolled oats½ cup chopped walnuts1 Tbsp. flaxseed meal1 ½ tsp. ground cinnamon¼ tsp. sea salt½ cup date paste (tip, page 51)1 fresh pineapple, peeled and cored1 tsp. pure vanilla extract 1. Preheat oven to 350°F. In a food processor combine the first five ingredients (through salt). Pulse until crumbly. Add date paste. Pulse until evenly mixed and mixture binds together when pinched. Reserve ⅔ cup mixture. 2. Pour the remaining oats mixture into an…

short & sweet
A different approach to modeling the Santa Fe

A different approach to modeling the Santa Fe

When my wife, Jenny, and I decided in the fall of 2017 to sell our house of 47 years and move into a retirement community, that meant the Argentine Industrial District Ry. would be dismantled. At age 80, I had no plans to build another railroad. I decided to give away or sell everything. Some 700 freight cars, 25 locomotives, and numerous structures and all support materials were disposed of in about two months. We moved to the retirement community in January 2018. By then, I’d accepted the reality that I’d built my last railroad. But then something surprising occurred when in July, Jenny asked me whether I thought we could find a house in Prairie Village, as she missed living in our own home. We began looking, and to our…

More Yards Less Curve.

More Yards Less Curve.

DUSTIN JOHNSON HAS BEEN among the PGA Tour’s elite since his first full season in 2008. A victory in every year of his career is testament to that. But closer inspection of his game reveals that D.J. has gotten better in recent years—a lot better—because of his ability to fade the ball, a consensus of experts say. “Dustin can make the ball do whatever he wants, but the reality is, he almost exclusively plays a fade,” says his coach, Claude Harmon III, citing Johnson’s perennial top-10 presence in the PGA Tour’s strokes gained/tee-to-green stat as evidence that shaping the ball left to right has helped him win majors and become the top player in the world. Adds Johnson, “I used to draw it all the time, but about six years ago, I…

Tech Disinformation: 16 Myths Debunked

Tech Disinformation: 16 Myths Debunked

Heard the one about how charging your phone overnight destroys its battery? How about this whopper: Macs can’t get viruses? There’s plenty of fake tech news floating around; each new generation of technology products and services begets even more false beliefs. A lot of those are pretty easy to discredit, but we found a few for this story that might make even our readers do a double-take! It’s possible you’re worried about something that isn’t true—or maybe something that used to be true but isn’t now, as new discoveries and updates cleared up the problem. Go through our list below and see if there’s something you thought was true but, well, isn’t. Then pass on the real deal to your friends, family, and social following, so they won’t fall prey to tech…

Southern Pacific’s Siskiyou Line in N scale

The origin of my N scale Southern Pacific Siskiyou Line layout dates to my childhood. I’m a native Oregonian who grew up on the SP’s Toledo branch. Since I was old enough to remember, I’ve seen SP’s long and heavy Toledo Hauler come into town. It was often pulled by solid sets huge six-axle engines like EMD SD9s and, for a time, SD45s. There was always a GP9 or SD9 stationed in Toledo to work the many lumber mills and the large paper mill, as well as some other industries. My father often took me down to the yard to look at the locomotives. This firmly established that the SP and its six-axle (C-C) locomotives became part of my childhood as I developed a sincere interest in both prototype railroads and…

Down-to-Earth Pools

Down-to-Earth Pools

An astonishing variety of things can be built from bags filled with earth, also known as “earthbags.” One of the most versatile forms of natural building, earthbags can be used in many applications that would be too wet for most conventional and natural building methods. Earthbag pools are a perfect demonstration of this. Before I describe two pool projects I’ve been involved in, let’s discuss some of the advantages of earthbag building. From the Ground Up Earthbag structures are strong, which is why they’ve traditionally been used for military fortifications and flood control projects. The “superadobe” technique produces structures from an unbroken spiraling polypropylene tube with barbed wire between the layers. Other builders prefer “hyperadobe,” or long polyester tubes made of open netting, which allows the fill to blend between the layers, thereby…

CALIFORNIA CHRONICLES SCRAPBOOK 1

In the 1950s, when black-and-white television reigned supreme, CBS aired a six-season Western called “Have Gun – Will Travel” and spawned countless similar sounding knock-offs. Richard Boone starred as a for-hire gunman, intent on righting the wrongs that apparently “the law” either got wrong, or failed to address. The gentleman gunman — known by the name Paladin — “resolved” issues throughout the Old West, circa the 1870s. He could be reached at the Carlton Hotel, in San Francisco. Just wire him. The 30-minute show aired on Tuesday nights at 9 p.m. Six seasons and 225 episodes ensued, the first episode being showcased in September 1957, running until April 1963. Those inclined to revisit the successful show can find reruns today on cable TV or on DVD. By the late 1940s, two native…

CALIFORNIA CHRONICLES SCRAPBOOK 1
If You Have a Uterus, Don’t Buy an Apple Watch

If You Have a Uterus, Don’t Buy an Apple Watch

With the Apple Watch Series 8 and the Apple Watch Ultra, Apple has introduced features designed to help women take charge of their reproductive health. Except in the United States, women are no longer in charge of their reproductive health, and there is a risk that those who now are could get hold of the data from an Apple Watch and use it against women who use these features. At the Apple Event in September, Apple introduced a feature that it said, “takes our commitment to women’s health even further.” The Apple Watch Series 8 and Apple Watch Ultra each have two temperature sensors, one on the back and one below the display. Data from these sensors is added to Apple’s existing Cycle Tracking app to indicate and track ovulation. Users…

SO YOU WANT TO BUILD A SUPERCAR

SO YOU WANT TO BUILD A SUPERCAR

ON HIS 18TH birthday, Gordon Murray’s parents gifted him a set of Wild Heerbrugg Swiss drawing instruments. From those simple tools—a pen for lines, one for curves, a compass, some odds and ends—Murray’s future unfurled like a red carpet. “And then I was away, you know,” Murray says. “Once I had a drawing board at home and the instruments, I thought I was absolutely away.” The set of chromium-plated tools was built to offer a lifetime of dutiful service. And it did. Murray used them to design his first car, the T.1 (aka IGM-Ford). The burnt-orange Ford-powered imp looks like a Lotus Seven, but is lighter and stiffer. Murray cut his teeth on the car, rebuilding and refining, always looking to a future in motorsport. As a kid in South Africa, Murray grew…

PRO VS SCHMO

MY BRAIN HIT A WALL. No matter what I tried, no matter what I did, I just couldn’t go faster. My lap times at Mid-Ohio were consistent. But while I thought that I was pushing the 2011 ex-IMSA BMW E92 M3 GT, it was clear I wasn’t improving. The point was driven home once Bill Auberlen got in the car and thoroughly embarrassed my lap time. Auberlen has been racing for a long time. He ran his first 24 Hours of Daytona in 1987, the year I was born. He’s BMW’s longest-tenured factory driver, with more than 500 races to his credit, and he hasn’t slowed down a bit over his career. He’s also impossibly cool, California in human form. Now 52, Auberlen is still at the top level of sportscar racing,…

PRO VS SCHMO
CHILD’S PLAY

CHILD’S PLAY

KART RACING IS an outrageously physically demanding activity. The steering is, of course, unassisted. Your body is the suspension system. Bumps, curbs, and taps from competitors route directly through your corpus. And karting’s demands become more acutely felt as your body ages. I started racing karts when I was 12, running weekly at a local track through the warmer months as well as traveling around the country. It was a blast. Karting was hard, even then. And I remember having days when I was sore. But I don’t remember it incapacitating me. After this, my first run in nearly 20 years, I was a broken husk of a man. In one day, I aged 30 years. I suspected I’d cracked at least one rib. It’s not hard to see why. In a…

PORSCHE’S GREATEST HITS, VOL. 2

PORSCHE’S GREATEST HITS, VOL. 2

I REMEMBER STUMBLING upon the original Porsche 911 Sport Classic on a near-deserted stand at the stifling 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show. I shrugged at it as I shuffled past, jet-lagged, hungover, and sweating a worrying amount. My judgment, in that moment, might not have been entirely sound. But even after resting, hydrating, and returning to a country with functioning air-conditioning, I still didn’t really get the Sport Classic. It wore a ducktail spoiler on its engine lid and black Fuchs-style wheels at each corner. I assumed that the show car must be some sort of rolling advertisement for a line of retro-tinged accessories that the company would begin selling. Wrong. Porsche planned to build 250 examples of this tarted-up 997-generation Carrera S and price each at $225,000 (in today’s dollars). I…

THE SHARE

THAT’S A WRAP! Here’s another way to feel good about giving: Use sustainable gift wrap. Traditional wrapping paper often can’t be recycled because of dyes, laminates, or embellishments. Make your own with a vibrant scarf you don’t mind upcycling, or repurpose old gift bags and newspapers you have around (top with natural decorations like dried leaves or pine sprigs to make them festive). You can also shop one of these small, woman-owned businesses: Wrappily, which prints colorful patterns and graphics onto recycled newsprint; and Wrappr, which sells fabric wraps in three sizes with beautiful floral designs and geometric shapes. And speaking of presents, don’t forget to check out Health’s gift guide, starting on page 71. FOOD SMARTS Small Changes, Big Results You know that eating more plants and less processed food improves your health…

THE SHARE

LET’S TALK IT OUT!

I have a crush on a colleague. I haven’t acted on it and don’t plan to. I’ve been happily married for 15 years. But I feel so guilty. What should I do? It’s really common for people in committed relationships to be attracted to someone other than their partner. And it’s especially common for these crushes to develop in the workplace. Still, the guilt can hit hard because your feelings may be very intense. Taking some time to reflect might help you get clarity and find peace with the situation. Workplace infatuations often occur because the dynamics between colleagues are different than the dynamics we experience at home. Looking closer may help you determine what’s stirring up your intrigue and how to handle it. Ask yourself how you feel when you are…

LET’S TALK IT OUT!
PREPARING FOR HIS FAREWELL TOUR KURT BROWNING THE SKATING LEGEND AND NEWLYWED INVITES HELLO! INTO HIS HOME AS HE AND WIFE ALISSA SHARE THEIR LOVE STORY

PREPARING FOR HIS FAREWELL TOUR KURT BROWNING THE SKATING LEGEND AND NEWLYWED INVITES HELLO! INTO HIS HOME AS HE AND WIFE ALISSA SHARE THEIR LOVE STORY

‘Skating was this incredible sandbox to play in, and I just never got tired of it’ I wanted to be a rodeo clown,” says Kurt Browning. And he’s not joking! “My cousins all ride Brahma bulls in the rodeo that my grandfather started,” he tells Hello! Canada during our exclusive photoshoot in his Toronto home. “I didn’t really think I wanted to ride the things that buck you off, but I thought, ‘I’d like to stand in front of them.’” Luckily for Canada, that was not his fate. Instead, the son of an outfitter and a hunting guide from Caroline, Alta., became one of the country’s most acclaimed athletes. After learning to skate on a makeshift backyard rink at age seven, Kurt never left the ice. “I would change from figure-skating garb…

DAC to black

DAC to black

There are many speakers and home cinema systems that boast THX Certification, but the company has now released its first home-grown hardware product in the form of the Onyx portable DAC. Like many converters designed for use with smartphones and tablets, the Onyx has a highly compact design that measures just 210mm long, so you can slip it into your pocket. It’s a little chunkier than some of its rivals, but that’s down to the use of both an ESS ES9281 Pro for the primary DAC chip along with THX’s own AAA – ‘achromatic audio amplifier’ – to provide what it describes as: “satisfyingly loud” sound. The Onyx has a standard 3.5mm headphone output and a USB-C port for computers and mobile devices, with a USB-A adaptor bundled. It works with Macs…

Think inside the box

Think inside the box

Audio terminology is a curious business. The ‘just add speakers’ style of all-in-one systems has become a dominant part of the market, but determining quite how dominant is made more complex by how manufacturers refer to their creations. The NAD C 700 is a perfect case in point. It could be a standard all-in-one, but as far NAD is concerned, it’s a ‘streaming amplifier’. Indeed it’s the most affordable of the Canadian company’s streaming amp family. At its core, the C 700 is a combination of NAD’s UcD Class D amplifier technology – which creates a switching amplifier from discrete analogue sections rather than a single chip amp – and the BluOS streaming front end that underpins many NAD and Bluesound components (as well as some of the C 700’s competition…

10 Common Career Tips That Might Be Wrong for You

10 Common Career Tips That Might Be Wrong for You

You’ll get plenty of sound career advice during your lifetime. Much of it will be valuable, but some of it will come at the wrong time or be the opposite of what you need to hear at that moment. Depending on your immediate needs and long-term desires, good career advice can turn out to be wrong for you. Curious to hear other people’s experiences, I asked around and collected ten pieces of career advice that don’t always hold up. 1. GO WHERE THE MONEY IS There are high-paying jobs, and then there are jobs that come with lower base pay but generous compensation packages that lead to more guaranteed money in the long term—and sometimes a happier life. The classic example: any job with a pension. If you collect a full pension for…

TECH SUPPORT

THE HI-TECH COT NAOMI SMART, SHOPPING DIRECTOR The Snoo Smart Sleeper Baby Cot, £1,145 at Happiestbaby.co.uk, is making waves for its ability to comfort your child at first stir, gently rocking and playing calming white noise, waving goodbye to semi-conscious, exhausted manual rocking. It also provides feedback on your baby’s sleep during the night, giving you full insight and, perhaps most importantly, more rest. A cot that rocks and soothes your baby to sleep? It sounded too good to be true until I actually used it throughout the first six months with my little girl, Penelope. Having the Snoo was like having our own night nurse, and allowed us all to have better sleep. The little swaddle suits that clip in to avoid rolling kept our minds at ease, and the wireless…

TECH SUPPORT
Fashion conscious

Fashion conscious

One glorious September afternoon, along the banks of the Seine, designer Gabriela Hearst held her first in-person show for Chloé. For it, she made the collection and presentation – spring/summer 2022 – as sustainable and inclusive as possible. How so? Guests were seated on cushions made of Chloé fabric remnants, atop benches of stacked bricks, constructed by Les Bâtisseuses, a network that trains women refugees. The clothes were conceived to be environmentally friendly, too. As Hearst believes “luxury fashion has become overly industrialised,” she introduced the Chloé Craft initiative: products handcrafted by independent artisans, such as the multicoloured sleeveless dress in recycled hand crocheted cashmere, or the white cashmere poncho with hand-painted blue stripes. Chloé’s staples, such as its signature tote bag, Nama sneakers and all of its denim, incorporated recycled…