Tuna Sandwich w/ Lettuce & American

Green Building: Are cities the best place to live?  Are suburbs OK?  A fight grows in urban planning, with Harvard at the center 

by Leon Neyfakh in the Boston Globe


As much as I dislike Harvard-worship, this is a good local piece on warring planning philosophies.

Pressed Ham Sandwich on Rye w/ Swiss

Ancient Tools May Mark Earlier Path Out of Africa 

by Brian Switek in Wired

Vegetable Borscht w/ 2 Dinner Rolls

Real Evidence for Diets That Are Just Imaginary 

by John Tierney in The New York Times


Oops, late post.

Shrimp Alfredo w/ Thin Spaghetti, Peas, and Green Beans (part 2)

Mapping Science

by Iris Monica Vargas in Seed Magazine

Shrimp Alfredo w/ Thin Spaghetti, Peas, and Green Beans

Transcript: State of the Union Address 

As Released by the White House


Maybe you watched last night, maybe you didn't.  If you did, don't worry: today's going to be a double post.

Peanut Butter & Nutella Sandwich w/ Chips and an Apple

Jorge Otero-Pailos and the Ethics of Preservation 

by Laura Raskin in Design Observer: Places

Greek Salad w/ Chicken

Three Mile Island, the Challenger Shuttle, and... Lehman Bros.?

by Tim Harford in Slate


Let me know if we're getting over-financed.

Falafel Sandwich w/ Yogurt, Scallions, Tomato, and Parsley

The Revenge of Comic Sans 

by Dave Munger in Seed Magazine

Basil Minestrone Soup w/ a Dinner Roll

Sanctions Risk Backfiring in Cote D'Ivoire

by Max Fisher in The Atlantic


I feel like anyone who's taken an International Relations class wrestles with this paradox.

Fluffernutter on Honey Wheat Bread with Goldfish and an Apple

Homeland Security Hasn't Made Us Safer
by Anne Applebaum in Foreign Policy

Pepperoni Pizza and Blueberry Yogurt

What the Science of Human Nature Can Teach Us

by David Brooks in The New Yorker


I honestly haven't finished it yet, but it's a great read so far.

Chicken Finger Sub w/ Lettuce, Mayo, and American

Unconventional Wisdom: Actually the Retirement Age Is Too High

by James K Galbraith in Foreign Policy


This is from an interesting series in Foreign Policy on specious conventional wisdom, and I'll probably wind up posting more of these because some of them are excellent.

Now I'm not saying I agree with all of this.  I'm very much in favor of raising the retirement age.  Social Security was never intended to support an individual for 20-25 years of comfortable retirement.  It was a safety net for a worker's last few years on god's green earth, when a person couldn't work anymore.  The original retirement age in the system was 65.  At that time, the average working-age American could expect to live to about 70 or 72; now that figure is at around 82.

That being said, Galbraith does raise a good point in that there are surely people who are at that can't work stage a lot earlier than others.  That's worth considering.

Salami & Provolone on Potato Dill Bread (Again)

Do We Have Ahmadinejad All Wrong?

by Reza Aslan in The Atlantic


And I guess it is more appropriate to have a food-related background.

Broccoli & Leek Soup with 2 Dinner Rolls

Awesome London Map Analyzes Soccer Fandom

by Erik Malinowski in Wired

I don't understand how that many people can root for Chelsea.  Or Tottenham for that matter.  Why isn't the entire north bank pulling for Arsenal, really?

Pad Thai w/ Chicken

Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior

by Amy Chua in The Wall Street Journal


Maja pointed me to this one, and it's a doozy.

Leftover Massaman Curry w/ Beef

The Bank Job

by Bethany McLean in Vanity Fair

All right, so this one is a little longer, I admit; and it talks a lot about fairly complex financial instruments; but seriously, it's an insightful and fascinating look at one of the most powerful groups of people in the world.

And thanks to Jack for posting the first comment and donating the leftover Thai food.

Greek Salad w/ Chicken

On Early Warning Signs: Rapid shifts are the hallmark of climate change, epileptic seizures, financial crises, and fishery collapses. Deep mathematical principles tie these events together.

by George Sugihara in Seed Magazine

Salami & Provolone on Potato Dill Bread

This is the article I posted in my Gchat status on Friday, but I think it's worth reposting if only to get things started and establish some continuity.


Getting Darnell Off the Corners: Why America Should Ride the Anti-Drug-War Wave

by John McWhorter in The New Republic

Inauguration

I've gotten some positive feedback on this past week's lunchtime readings and other interesting articles and essays I've put in my Gchat status before, so I thought I should make it a more organized thing.

In that vein, I'd like to introduce lunchbreakfix.  As much as we all love our jobs, there comes a time in every workday when you need to step back and think about something else.  Think of lunchbreakfix as a way to mentally recharge and learn something, or procrastinate and hear a new perspective.

Read it on your lunch break or read it when you don't want to do something else.  Leave feedback.  Give me new sources.  Yell at each other.  Yell at me.  Just make it interesting, because that's what I'm aiming for with lunchbreakfix.

Every weekday I'll post a new article between 12 and 2pm.  I might comment on it briefly, or if I get bored or really into a topic I might post something that night when I get home from work.  But for the most part I'll just let someone else do the talking.