CURRENT ISSUE
June 2012
Features
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How the Chicken Conquered the World
The epic begins 10,000 years ago in an Asian jungle and ends today in kitchens all over the world
The Chicken and the Egg
A new poem from the Pulitzer-Prize-winning poet
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The Perfect Egg
Chefs and scientists try to solve the ultimate culinary puzzle
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The Unified Theory of Gumbo
He ate far and wide, but the author found only one true version of the New Orleans dish—Mom's
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Mrs. Elie's Creole Gumbo
Invite your friends and family over to dig into the Creole version of this classic Southern dish
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Salts of the Earth
Food critic Mimi Sheraton samples the different kinds of the world's most ancient and essential ingredient
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Sur La Table
Food writer Ruth Reichl looks at the impact of the famous chef's partnership with her husband Paul
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Those (Waxed Fruit) Times
The artist pays tribute to a family centerpiece that was both inedible and indelible
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Heaven on the Half Shell
When America's favorite storyteller lived in San Francisco, nothing struck his fancy like a heaping plate of this Pacific Northwest delicacy
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A Wine and a Prayer
In downtown Los Angeles, a 95-year-old winery weathered hard times by making wine for church services. Now connoisseurs are devoted to it
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Can Technology Save Breakfast?
Cereal companies, maligned for overprocessing, are now using the same techniques to put some nature back in the bowl
Departments
Contributors
Panama Exposed
Shelter
The renowned author of the memoir Infidel found refuge here from persecution abroad
The Multiverse of Love
One of the most gifted singer-songwriters of our time talks love, science and the deep space between men and women
When the Earth Moved
More than 100 years ago, a German scientist was ridiculed for advancing the shocking idea that the continents were adrift
Save the Whalebones
Paleontologist Nick Pyenson was in a race against a construction crew to salvage a bed of whale fossils, so he called upon 3-D technologists for help
East-West Ensemble
In Borderlands, the Chinese musician highlights the culture of the Uyghur people
To Orbit and Beyond
Spotlight
Saving Grace
A pioneering elephant rescuer looks back on the loves of her life and a collection of essays investigates the history of happiness