How Food Powers Your Body

Plus: “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance”; how Samuel Adams helped ferment a revolution; and reflections from a Stroller Dad. View in browser | Update your preferences Tuesday, October 25, 2022 In today’s newsletter, the magic of metabolism, and then: • How Samuel Adams helped ferment a revolution • Revisiting “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance” • Reflections from a Stroller Dad How Food Powers Your Body Metabolism, which unleashes the energy in what you eat, may be nature’s most electrifying invention. Illustration by Jordan Speer “It’s a shame that organic chemistry has such dread associations, when really there’s so much beauty in it,” James Somers writes, in a precise and illuminating piece explaining how metabolism works, and what research breakthroughs in the course of hundreds of years have taught us about “the very essence of life.” Somers reveals the magic and simplicity of the science behind how we convert food to energy, and seeks answers to some questions that we might not even think to ask: How are a potato and petroleum similar on a molecular level? Which animal has the fastest metabolism? And what exactly is the Krebs cycle? This is not your standard high-school chemistry lesson—it is one attuned to the miracles of life, death, and everything in between. —Jessie Li, newsletter editor Read the story Support The New Yorker’s award-winning journalism. Subscribe today » From the News Desk Daily Comment The G.O.P.’s Big-City Scare Tactics Nationwide, Republicans are portraying Democratics as soft on crime. It’s a well-worn strategy, but can a candidate for governor of Illinois win by calling Chicago a “hellhole”? By Peter Slevin Our Columnists Returning, Again, to Robert M. Pirsig All roads lead to “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.” By Jay Caspian Kang Politics and More Podcast The Vulnerabilities of Our Voting Machines, and How to Secure Them A leading expert on computerized voting machines explains how the Stop the Steal movement co-opted his research on their vulnerabilities—and why hand counting won’t fix the problems. Editor’s Pick Books How Samuel Adams Helped Ferment a Revolution A virtuoso of the eighteenth-century version of viral memes and fake news, Adams had a sense of political theatre that helped create a radical new reality. By Adam Gopnik Culture Dept. Page-Turner What Do Our Strollers Say About Us? A new work of memoiristic cultural criticism explores the author’s ambivalent relationship to the ubiquitous parenting tool. By Peter C. Baker The Art World Two Views of New York, from Edward Hopper and a Historic Black Gallery Museum shows capture the great realist painter’s vision of the city and, at Just Above Midtown, the work of artists of color from the seventies and eighties. By Hilton Als The Front Row “The Novelist’s Film,” Reviewed: A Drama of Artistic Crisis from a Wildly Prolific Director In Hong Sangsoo’s latest, a blocked writer tries to relaunch herself as a filmmaker. By Richard Brody Secret Mission Dept. Among the Undercover Inflation Trackers A trip to the store with one of the secretive bureaucrats who fan out across America recording how much the price of milk or doggy day care has risen. By Katia Savchuk From the Archive Culture Desk Leslie Jordan Was the Ideal Quarantine Companion The actor and comedian died yesterday, at the age of sixty-seven. From 2020: Jordan’s popular Instagram is free-form and marvellously batty, a mix of show-biz stories, personal reminiscences, and off-the-cuff diary. By Rachel Syme Fun & Games Dept. Name Drop Play Today’s Quiz Can you guess the notable person in six clues or fewer? By Will Nediger Daily Shouts Script of Every Movie Set in Boston At a bar, Matt Damon and one of the Afflecks (the one you like less) both order a Sam Adams, the only beer legally allowed to be served on tap in Massachusetts. By Carlos Greaves Crossword A Moderately Challenging Puzzle Got down: seven letters. By Erik Agard Daily Cartoon Tuesday, October 25th By Ali Solomon P.S. “I thought they’d bring in some cool, young, interesting new person. But they didn’t! They went for the formula that worked: old white lady.” That’s Prue Leith, one of the judges on “The Great British Bake Off,” reflecting on how she got the gig. Helen Rosner interviewed Leith recently about studying at the Sorbonne, the effects of Brexit, and, of course, the instantly infamous “Mexican Week” episode—which was filled with questionable jokes from the hosts and a closeup of one contestant’s unsettling avocado-peeling technique. Today’s newsletter was written by Jessie Li. Thanks for reading. Let us know your thoughts about today’s edition. Plus, browse more newsletters and invite a friend to sign up for The Daily. You’re receiving this e-mail because you signed up for The Daily from The New Yorker. Manage your preferences | View our Privacy Policy | Unsubscribe Copyright © Condé Nast 2022. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.