A Disastrous Summer in the Arctic

Plus: the search for King David’s lost empire, Trump’s problem with senior voters, and which activities are relatively safe as the coronavirus continues to spread. View in browser | Update your preferences Annals of a Warming Planet A Disastrous Summer in the Arctic Record heat is hastening the dissolution of Siberian permafrost, perennially frozen ground that, when thawed, unleashes greenhouse gases and dramatically destabilizes the land. By Carolyn Kormann Letter from Israel In Search of King David’s Lost Empire The Biblical ruler’s story has been told for millennia. Archeologists are still fighting over whether it’s true. By Ruth Margalit Our Columnists The Supreme Court’s L.G.B.T.-Rights Decision and Affirmative Action The landmark decision may have laid the groundwork for a conservative case against race-conscious school-admissions policies. By Jeannie Suk Gersen Our Columnists Donald Trump’s Big Problem with Senior Voters Retaining the support of seniors is central to Trump’s reëlection chances. But a number of recent polls show that he has slipped badly in this key demographic. By John Cassidy Q. & A. What Activities Are Safe as COVID-19 Spreads? A professor of epidemiology at Harvard on why contract tracing may be less effective than some had hoped, what states should be doing to contain the virus, and the relative safety of time outdoors. By Isaac Chotiner Fiction “The Rescue Will Begin in Its Own Time” “Did he suppose I could fix in a couple of hours what two people had done wrong over the course of their entire lives?” By Franz Kafka Newsletters Sign Up for John Cassidy’s Newsletter Get the latest on politics and the economy. Culture The Front Row What to Stream: “The Killing Floor” Bill Duke’s first feature, a historical drama about the labor movement and its racial conflicts, brings a story about a meat-packing union movingly, passionately to life. By Richard Brody Humor and More Daily Shouts Things I Did for the First Time at Age Thirty It might be time to finally break down and buy an A.C. By Yinfan Huang Crossword The Crossword Hall of nineties TV with a characteristic fist pump: seven letters. By Caitlin Reid This e-mail was sent to you by The New Yorker. To insure delivery, we recommend adding newyorker@newsletters.newyorker.com, to your contacts, while noting that it is a no-reply address. Please send all newsletter feedback to tnyinbox@newyorker.com. For more from The New Yorker, sign up for our newsletters, shop the store, and sign in to newyorker.com, where subscribers always have unlimited access. Contact us with questions. View our Privacy Policy Unsubscribe Copyright © Condé Nast 2020. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.