States Divided With Even Population

via pheedcontent.com I saw this map on James Fallows blog a few days ago but it keeps getting reposted elsewhere. It’s pretty interesting, really. The idea is to divide the US into 50 states, keeping population even between the states and trying to preserve boundaries where possible (Note that Missouri looks pretty much the same, and so does Washington). Matthew Yglesias noted while looking at the map that it would turn a lot of blue states red and a lot of red states blue. I think the idea of redrawing state borders is a fun thought-experiment. For example, what if Read more…

Ha! Trekkies on Vacation

“If you’re a travel journalist, does that mean you’ve come here to write about us?” “Yes, as a matter of fact I’ll be writing about everything that happens on this cruise.” A woman in the front row wrinkles her brow at me. “So that means you’re kind of like the Talosians from ‘The Menagerie,’” she says. “Talosians?” “Yes, the Talosians,” she says. She gazes at me for a beat. “You’ve come to observe our behavior like we were animals in a zoo.” I give the woman a neutral look; I’m not sure what she’s talking about.  “Season one, episode 11,” Read more…