Why is the new judge on “Masterchef” so annoying? For anyone who doesn’t know, “Masterchef” is a reality TV show and amateur chef competition—billed as the quest to find America’s best home cook—that has aired on Fox since 2010. Each year, after an extensive battery of tests and challenges, a new Masterchef is crowned by…

Are you a man? Do you own more than one pair of jeans? If so, you’ve probably wondered at some point why some manufacturers use button flies instead of zippers. Here is the answer: these jeans companies hate you and want to make your life harder. For men, the fly on a pair of jeans…

“Lip Sync Battle”—the half-hour viral sensation that pits celebrities against one another in fake karaoke contests—is about to enter its “second season” (only a month and a half after the conclusion of its first) on Spike TV, which seems as good a time as any to ask: why does this show exist? Like Ellen DeGeneres’s…

As you may or may not remember, the sci-fi comedy “Back to the Future” was released in theaters on July 3, 1985. In celebration of its 30th anniversary, the film is currently touring North America and Europe in a series of high-definition screenings featuring live orchestral accompaniment—including a cast-attended showing at the 17,000-seat Hollywood Bowl,…

I’ve been a basketball fan of fluctuating devotedness all my life, and every year, I have managed to despise at least one of the two teams in the NBA Finals—until this year. In the 2015 NBA Finals, I actually wanted both teams to win. The Golden State Warriors are impossible to dislike. They’re young, fast,…

It must be the warmer weather and its resultant skimpier clothing: one of several issues about which the Internet’s think piece-industrial complex has been especially vocal lately is school dress codes. Here, as elsewhere, America seems to be liberalizing, and teenagers in public schools have begun fighting back against repressive school administrations and the creepy…

Stephen “Steph” Curry is the 27-year-old star point guard for the Golden State Warriors, who are currently facing the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals. Curry is the NBA’s reigning MVP and the all-time record-holder for three-pointers made in a single season. He is amazingly good at basketball: an expert ball-handler, an unrivaled sharpshooter, and…

We’re getting into the season of summer stock, theater festivals, and outdoor Shakespeare performances: from now until the end of August, someone between here and California will always be doing “Oklahoma!” or “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” I am, anachronously, a theater lover—whatever I see, I’m usually the youngest person in the audience by about 20…

Have you noticed that, in national news articles, reporters increasingly tend to quote statements that emerge from the Twitter pages—rather than the actual mouths—of public figures? I’m not writing to complain about this. Twitter is a popular medium for trivial and nontrivial communication alike. Most politicians and celebrities use it. Tweets can be important; they…

Like all serious literary artists, I exist within a near-constant state of writer’s block and often have to consult other people for ideas. When I ask my girlfriend Quinn what I should write about for my column, she always has the same answer: “Me.” I ask what I should write about her. She tells me…

Where does Tom Brady rank within the annals of sports cheaters? On May 6, the NFL’s 243-page “Wells Report” implicated Brady in January’s “Deflategate” scandal, wherein the Indianapolis Colts accused the New England Patriots of using underinflated footballs—in violation of the league’s p.s.i. requirements—during their AFC Championship victory. Now, the official word is that, yes,…

I took a field trip last week to the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston to see the famed Samuel Adams brewery. I was in the city anyway, and it felt like an important beer-lover’s pilgrimage that I ought to make once in my life, in order to pay tribute to New England craft brewing’s wellspring:…

Before you head to the multiplex to witness what many expect to be the summer’s biggest blockbuster—“Avengers: Age of Ultron,” which comes out on May 1—you may want to ask yourself one question: what, exactly, are Marvel’s “Avengers” avenging? The answer: nothing. They’re not avenging anything or anyone. Nothing about the Avengers’ formation or behavior…

What exactly is the state of sushi in American culture? Once the most cutting-edge, exotic style of foreign cuisine to reach American shores, it now sits humbly within mass-produced plastic trays at virtually every large supermarket in America. Today, “California Rolls” are about as edgy as “Pumpkin Spice Lattes,” but presumably there will forever be…

For more than a decade, the soap company Dove has sought to subvert unrealistic mainstream beauty standards by encouraging women of all shapes, sizes, and colors to love their bodies. The latest ad in the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty revolves around a “social experiment” filmed in San Francisco, Shanghai, Delhi, London and São Paulo,…