February 2020

by Thomas Meaney,

[Memoir]

The Cancer Chair

Is suffering meaningless?

by Christian Wiman,

[Letter from Lusk]

The Skinning Tree

America’s redface problem onstage

by Jennifer Percy,

Harper’s Magazine welcomes reader response.

Email us about articles in the magazine.

[Harper’s Index]

Number of pending patent applications for variations of the phrase “OK, Boomer” : 6

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of South Koreans who say they would support North Korea in a war with Japan : 1/2

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated number of drones that governments worldwide will purchase in the next decade for combat use : 1,800

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of nonmilitary drones for sale in the United States that were manufactured in China : 80

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of products that are available for purchase on Amazon : 500,000,000

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated percentage of New York City apartments that receive at least one package every day : 15

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of contractors employed by Google to evaluate the usefulness of search results : 10,000

[Harper’s Index]

Number of changes that Google made to its search algorithm and interface in 2018 : 3,234

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of U.S. voting precincts that rely on electronic voting machines that leave no paper trail : 1/10

[Harper’s Index]

Number of U.S. states that use a mobile voting app : 1

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of American men who say they would not feel “very comfortable” with a woman as president : 51

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated number of Americans who have lost a friend or family member since 2014 because health care was too costly : 34,000,000

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which this is more likely to be true of a Democrat than a Republican : 3

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which the amount a U.S. insurer pays for a flu shot can vary depending on where it is administered : 3

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which an American adult is more likely to go out of network for mental health care than for medical care : 5

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated percentage of Americans who have an autoimmune disease : 15

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of unemployed Americans receiving unemployment benefits in 2000 : 37

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated value of extra expenses that an average American household incurs as a result of oligopolies : $5,000

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of civil defendants in U.S. general-jurisdiction courts who had lawyers in 1992 : 95

[Harper’s Index]

Number of countries in which the annual number of tourists outnumbers residents : 41

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans aged 13 to 38 who would be willing to post sponsored content to their social-media accounts : 86

[Harper’s Index]

Who would become a social-media influencer if given the opportunity : 54

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which the number of social-media influencers using the word “anxiety” increased from 2016 to 2019 : 3

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of apps that promise to help people find friend : 22

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans with siblings who think their mother has a favorite child : 33

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of those Americans who believe they are the favorite : 30

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which men are more likely than women to believe they are the favorite : 2

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans aged 18 to 34 who say they have witnessed ageism in the workplace : 52

[Harper’s Index]

Number of pending patent applications for variations of the phrase “OK, Boomer” : 6

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of South Koreans who say they would support North Korea in a war with Japan : 1/2

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated number of drones that governments worldwide will purchase in the next decade for combat use : 1,800

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of nonmilitary drones for sale in the United States that were manufactured in China : 80

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of products that are available for purchase on Amazon : 500,000,000

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated percentage of New York City apartments that receive at least one package every day : 15

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of contractors employed by Google to evaluate the usefulness of search results : 10,000

[Harper’s Index]

Number of changes that Google made to its search algorithm and interface in 2018 : 3,234

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of U.S. voting precincts that rely on electronic voting machines that leave no paper trail : 1/10

[Harper’s Index]

Number of U.S. states that use a mobile voting app : 1

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of American men who say they would not feel “very comfortable” with a woman as president : 51

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated number of Americans who have lost a friend or family member since 2014 because health care was too costly : 34,000,000

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which this is more likely to be true of a Democrat than a Republican : 3

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which the amount a U.S. insurer pays for a flu shot can vary depending on where it is administered : 3

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which an American adult is more likely to go out of network for mental health care than for medical care : 5

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated percentage of Americans who have an autoimmune disease : 15

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of unemployed Americans receiving unemployment benefits in 2000 : 37

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated value of extra expenses that an average American household incurs as a result of oligopolies : $5,000

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of civil defendants in U.S. general-jurisdiction courts who had lawyers in 1992 : 95

[Harper’s Index]

Number of countries in which the annual number of tourists outnumbers residents : 41

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans aged 13 to 38 who would be willing to post sponsored content to their social-media accounts : 86

[Harper’s Index]

Who would become a social-media influencer if given the opportunity : 54

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which the number of social-media influencers using the word “anxiety” increased from 2016 to 2019 : 3

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of apps that promise to help people find friend : 22

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans with siblings who think their mother has a favorite child : 33

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of those Americans who believe they are the favorite : 30

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which men are more likely than women to believe they are the favorite : 2

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans aged 18 to 34 who say they have witnessed ageism in the workplace : 52

[Harper’s Index]

Number of pending patent applications for variations of the phrase “OK, Boomer” : 6

Readings

Download PDF

[Essay]

Search and Destroy

by Joanne McNeil,

[Revocations]

As You Wish

[Mishaps]

Baby Boomers

[Testimony]

Invisible Man

[Reflection]

Free Bird

by Sierra Crane Murdoch,

[Taxonomy]

Smote Like a Butterfly

[Diary]

Spit Take

by Ludvík Vaculík,

[Fiction]

Here and There

by Colum McCann,

[Survey]

Fear Factors

[Poem]

Farther Away

by Srikanth Reddy,

Stages of Life and Death within the Landscape and Still Life, a painting by Mimi Lauter, whose work will be on view in March at Blum & Poe, in New York City.

“Usine Alstom Belfort Photo No. 5 Halle Alternateurs,” a photograph by Stéphane Couturier, whose work was on view in January at Galerie Kornfeld, in Berlin.

Courtesy the artist and Christophe Guye Galerie, Zurich

Blue Isabelle and I Stop, I Look, mixed-media artworks by Sarah Amos, whose work will be on view in March at Heather Gaudio Fine Art, in New Canaan, Connecticut.

Courtesy the artist and Heather Gaudio Fine Art, New Canaan, Connecticut

“Thief of the Tree,” a photograph by Michael Lundgren, whose monograph Geomancy was published in September by Stanley/Barker.

Stages of Life and Death within the Landscape and Still Life, a painting by Mimi Lauter, whose work will be on view in March at Blum & Poe, in New York City.

“Usine Alstom Belfort Photo No. 5 Halle Alternateurs,” a photograph by Stéphane Couturier, whose work was on view in January at Galerie Kornfeld, in Berlin.

Courtesy the artist and Christophe Guye Galerie, Zurich

Blue Isabelle and I Stop, I Look, mixed-media artworks by Sarah Amos, whose work will be on view in March at Heather Gaudio Fine Art, in New Canaan, Connecticut.

Courtesy the artist and Heather Gaudio Fine Art, New Canaan, Connecticut

“Thief of the Tree,” a photograph by Michael Lundgren, whose monograph Geomancy was published in September by Stanley/Barker.

Stages of Life and Death within the Landscape and Still Life, a painting by Mimi Lauter, whose work will be on view in March at Blum & Poe, in New York City.