Monday, December 1, 2008

Magazines

Reading Meghana's post about memory reminded me of an article I read last year that discussed memory. The article asked why nobody can remember what happened to them as a baby. Its explanation was that, in order to store long-term memories, you need to have learned to talk. So long-term memory begins at the same time that speech does.
The article was in
Muse, a magazine published by Cricket that covers a very wide range of subjects. The dozens of articles I've read since I first subscribed to Muse have included lightning strikes, political cartoons, chess, catapults, and the Brooklyn Bridge. The magazine also includes columns about surprising uses of math and science--from the knots that form in cords and loose string to the design of a paper bag.
I've been reading
Muse for a few years now, and while I've lost interest in a few of the other magazines I used to read, I still enjoy reading Muse because the articles--whatever their subject--are consistently interesting and thought-provoking. I have learned things from the magazine that I never would have found anywhere else. Every issue has something new and surprising, and I always look forward to the next Muse.
What about everybody else? What are the best magazines that you have read? What makes these magazines so great? Would you recommend them to other people in the Academy?

21 comments:

Graicey said...

i read muse once, at my cousin's house.

i read 17 (which is hardly intellectual, I know)
and also the last page of sports illustrated.
sounds strange, yes, but they used to have this really funny guy who would write a comedic one page article about whatever was happeneing in the sports world. I could care less about sports, but this guy was HILARIOUS! then he retired. so now that section sucks. but i read it anyway just to check if they ever have anything as funny as him.

Meghana said...

never read muse, but it sounds interesting.
i read vogue (mostly for the pictures, but hey, some of the articles are pretty interesting, too!)
and of course, obligatory as i am a teenage girl, i read seventeen.
i also occasionally read rolling stone and inked magazines. i like to read the absolutely random interviews with people.
i also read whatever my dad subscribes to when i'm bored.

MK said...

I read all the really stupid celebrity magazines. I read Us weekely, people, OK! magazine, teen vogue, and 17. Magazines are somewhat meant to be an easy read, so that's what makes them interesting, as well as the colors in the pictures that pop out.

But...like graicey, I ALWAYS see the last page of the New Yorker because they have the really funny cartoons that people send in captions for!

Fatima H said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Fatima H said...

I'm not really a magazine person. I usually manage to get one on my hands when I go to the salon or someone else's houses. The only magazines we have in the house for my mom, like Reader's Digest or something like that.
Once I went to my friend's house and she had bunch of these Disney channel magazines with the latest gossip on stuff. That's kind of the stuff I like to easy read. :)
I remember when I was in 3rd grade, we use to read the TIME magazines every week. I use to be very intrigued and use to collect them all the time. By the end of the year, I had collected 50 magazines. It was cool!!
I like Connor's idea of getting an easy, but intellectual read like Muse. It seems quite interesting. :)

Chen said...

I read Time and the back page of Discover because it's always this section with twenty weird facts about a random thing/topic.

Alex D said...

I read Seventeen, Cosmo Girl, Reader's Digest, Time, and Newsweek.

I like to keep a balance between my Academy side and my girly side. =)

chelly. said...

Okay, so I was digging through my magazine pile and all I found were soccer and volleyball magazines!! Haha, they're the best! Let's see: VolleyballUSA, WorldSoccer, and my all time favortie: Chelsea. It's about the English football (soccer) club Chelsea FC. I don't like them just because the club's name is Chelsea (even though thats pretty cool), but because they're simply amazing soccer players. (Chelsea is a city in London, FC stands for football club.)I know Pat has, but has anyone else heard of them?...I also have a couple of Teen Vogues...haha :D

Nirali D said...

I read Seventeen, which my brother made fun of me for since I was probably around 13 or 14 when I started reading it. We used to get Time so I liked the political cartoons and articles, but we don't get it anymore. We get Business Weekly or something like that which was useful for my elective (Intro to Business Fundamentals)but I don't know if we get it anymore. My subscription ended for Teen Vogue. But I love the girly magazines!

Kathryn said...

I read Seventeen as soon as i get it on a phone conversation with my friend from wisconsin (it's kind of a tradition.)
i also read some of time in the mornings when i glance over the new york times, balancing, like alex said.

also, this is really little-kiddish, but ive been getting cricket since like kindergarten. and i love it. its an easy read and it has lots of fantasy. :)

Kathryn said...

oh, and volleyball magazines, of course!

Sam said...

I read Reader's Digest from time to time, it has some really funny jokes and interesting articles about random things. It really just informs you about things going on around the world in a small 5 by 5 magazine. I also read a bunch of girly magazines but none really worth mentioning :)

Mackenzie Rech said...

I also read seventeen!
but other than that, not too much.
i never can find time to read other magazines!

chelly. said...

i've never really liked science, but my seventh grade teacher used to always bring in the new scienceworld magazines whenever there was a new issue and we would read through the articles and discuss them..they are actually really fascinating, and my favorite part is the "Gross Out" at the back of every issue; it explains something really disgusting and shows a picture!

Anna said...

i read seventeen and people sometimes, but i occasionally find articles in time and parade that interest me. also, highlights (the kid's magazine) is what i read in the dentist's waiting room :D

Lauren T said...

I used to get Muse, but I stopped a long time ago. I haven't subscribed to a magazine in ages, but I've recently been looking around for some that are educational and interesting (and not outrageously expensive). I haven't really been devoting too much time to my quest, so nothing has caught my eye yet but if anyone has any ideas I'd be glad to hear them!

Pat said...

Chelsea... I never knew you were a (Chelsea) FC fan.


Yeah, they have been my favorite team for years, and they are the reason that my main email address involves fcblue...

Anyways,

I read World Soccer, Modern Drummer, Sports Illustrated, Time. Maybe some other random ones.

victoria said...

i get 17, teen vogue, real simple, and upfront. like meghana i just like looking through the pictures in teen vogue. :)

Bill A. said...

I don't really read magazines anymore. It's kind of sad, but as a kid, I used to be obsessed with National Geographic Kids. I never read any of the articles too seriously and like to do the activities on the last few pages.

Unknown said...

As you probably know I love sports. So of course I am always reading the sports illustrated from cover to cover. That is probably the only magazine I ever read and will ever read, otherwise I will occasionally read the paper. I love the section that takes the opinions of professional sport players about a sports related question. For Example they will ask major league baseball players "What is the best/worst uniforms and they section will list the percent for each answer. If you were curious, the Yankees received the largest percentage for the best uniform and the devil rays received the largest percentage for the worst. Also, thanks for answering my question about why I only remember one thing from my young childhood. It is very interesting.

Anonymous said...

Just for completeness: I read The Atlantic, The New Yorker, Wired, The Economist, and skim National Geographic.