Generally speaking—and especially when anything thumb-related is called for—you’ll find that natural selection has been pretty good to humans. But as you might expect from a mind-bogglingly complex procession of randomly mutated crap being thrown against the wall to see what sticks across thousands of generations, it...
In 2009, L.A.-based family therapist and licensed social worker Christopher Mulligan noticed a startling trend among the children and teens he was treating: An increasing number of them were developing pathological relationships with technology, so much so that Mulligan reconfigured his practice to focus on “cyber addiction.”...
With Thanksgiving travel and Black Friday shopping on the horizon—and all the waiting in line that brings—we’re all going to need a little patience. Unfortunately, patience is something many of us have absolutely none of. But we don’t have to be a foot-tapping mess when things don’t...
The maid of honor had a tough gig. One hundred fifty people chattered throughout the venue, and she needed a captive audience fast. Fearlessly, she took the mic. “Please settle down so we can toast the happy couple. But first, enjoy this dance to Jock Jams.” Her...
Men: They’ve always eaten food. But over the years, what they’ve eaten — and what’s been marketed to them to eat — has changed. That’s why MEL enlisted Meg Favreau, a weird history writer and person who eats food, to start Feed the Beast, an occasional series about the most interesting...
In the middle of September, an intriguing new service appeared on the internet: Man Tears. Its goal: Make men cry more. Users can create a profile and set “crying goals” for the month — from 20–120 minutes. Then Man Tears helps people meet the goal by offering a range...
Does the forest smell like a woman or a man? How about a summer rainstorm? Or a vanilla Frappuccino? Despite an endless array of grooming products that would seem to indicate otherwise (e.g., cotton candy girly-girl cologne spray, ol’ cowboy leather beard oil and lavender night-time cleaning...
No one is more masculine at work than Tristan Bridges. An assistant professor of sociology at SUNY Brockport, Bridges focuses on the ways men resist, reproduce and ignore changes in gender relations. Toward this end, he has studied male bodybuilders, men who are feminists, fathers’ rights activists...
In case you’re just checking in for the first time this week, we’ve rounded up our picks of the best stories from the last few days for you to peruse. We know, we know, we’re amazing. Make the Pain Go Away: Post-Manscape Prickle For dudes that prefer...
Clumsy folk rejoice: It’s not really your fault you’re a klutz, it’s just the way you’re programmed. And while that may not exactly sound like a positive thing, the good news is that, with a scientific understanding of why you’re uncoordinated, you can reprogram yourself to have...
Brian Foster needed a manly name for his new line of masculine grooming products. Without one, he was worried that men would be less likely to buy the small-batch pomades he had developed with his wife. Luckily, the thunderbolt struck with macho force — it would be undeniable that...
In 2014, a New York Times Magazine cover story titled “Does a More Equal Marriage Mean Less Sex?” sent the internet into a frenzy. Citing a study in The American Sociological Review suggesting that heterosexual couples who left the cooking and cleaning to the women had more...
