RQ Vol. 3 // Issue 2 // TRUTH & CONSEQUENCES
RQ Vol. 3 // Issue 2 // TRUTH & CONSEQUENCES
TRUTH & CONSEQUENCES
Environmental gridlock. An uneasy reaping of museums, bars, restaurants, and other businesses. How has the pandemic changed everything we experience, including giving birth, and everything that follows? We look at the truth of our underlying biology and how it affects how we think and make decisions in novel environments. We question whether we can trust the mainstream media about basic facts anymore, and give advice for how to navigate the information war.
TRUTH & CONSEQUENCES
Opening Salvo /// ‘Citizen Sensemaking’ /// Heather Shayne Blakeslee ///
The Ghost of Tom Paine
STREETVIEW
Destination /// Special Places /// As service industry jobs go unfilled, Doris Zheku asks if it might be that they aren’t worth having.
Recommendation /// The Good Goods /// Let’s just admit the truth: Fungi are strange, beautiful, and more important than we think. An intriguing documentary shines a light on these mysterious creatures.
Constellations /// Guiding Lights /// There’s no way around it: Pets are family. One boutique pet store in Philadelphia gives insight into a multi-billion-dollar industry that grew stronger in the pandemic, but not without its woes. By Diana Lu.
ART & IDEAS
Analysis /// ‘We Can’t Handle the Truth’ /// Our environmental crisis is partially due to the inability of masses of humans to understand the consequences of our consumer culture. What will it take to wake us up? Paired with an artist spotlight on painter Sam Nejati. By Jerry Silberman.
Art /// ‘The Timeless Eternal’ /// Philadelphia’s 20/20 Photo Festival is back live this year. We look at Yasuomi Hashimura’s Future Déjà Vu exhibit at Unique Photo.
Book Excerpt & Interview /// A Hunter-Gatherer’s Guide to the 21st Century ///
Evolutionary biologists and podcasters Heather Heying & Bret Weinstein share insight into how our deep biological past may help us navigate the uncertain future. By Heather Shayne Blakeslee & Walter Foley.
Poetry /// ‘My Iron Friend’ /// Death walks with us in poems by Jorge Luis Borges and Christian Wiman. Essay by Poetry Editor Joshua Mehigan.
Analysis /// ‘Marching Orders”’ /// Librarian Sarah Hartman-Caverly urges us to not become unwitting combatants in the current “infodemic,” or in other disordered information spaces.
SWITCHBACKS
Essay /// ‘Motherhood Is an Evolving Truth’ /// Contributing Editor Ginger Rudolph shares her story about the darker side of motherhood in a harrowing tale of birth during the pandemic—and the difficult aftermath. Paired with spotlights on mother artists Kirstin Brug and Cheyenne Gil.
On the Cover: “Refuge of Memory” by Sam Nejati, 2021
Acrylic on canvas, 60 x 48 in (154.4 x 121.21 cm)