An Investigation of Memes, Meaning, and Linguistic Competence Online and IRL This project combines two topics I’m pretty much always thinking about — the nuances of language/communication and how meme culture reflects evolving societal norms — and is the product of almost six months(!) of work. I am deeply indebted…

I’m finally ready to talk about Atlanta — It took me a while to find the words for this, but here it is. It was difficult to find something to say that hadn’t already been said, mostly because we keep saying the same things over and over. And that’s exactly the point. …

Lessons from The Good Place on Morality in a Pandemic On existential angst and the primal ache, or alternatively, a TL;DR of a bunch of philosophy books, articles, and treatises for you to drop into casual conversation. As this hellscape of a year comes to a close, I’m fascinated by…

The Cultural Significance of Overt Female Sexuality in American Music — Did I purchase an OnlyFans membership for a month for the express purpose of watching Cardi B’s behind-the-scenes content for this music video? Yes. Was it worth it? 100%. The latest in my series of Things No One Asked For (and a sequel to that TikTok deck) is an exploration…

Examining the stories of the people and places lost in time to uncover the legacy of slavery and colonialism in modern-day Manhattan — In honor of my third year as a New Yorker and in light of the ongoing demonstrations by the Black Lives Matter movement and discourse around the significance of historical monuments, I thought I’d write about New York’s stolen history — the hidden and lesser-known parts that are omitted from…

A guide for non-Black people on anti-racism and supporting the Black community right now — “What choice will we make? What world will we create? What will we be?” — Ibram X. Kendi Originally, this piece was going to be called “The Trap of “Authenticity” and the Rewards of Cultural Colonization,” inspired by the Alison Roman and Chrissy Teigen drama and unpacking the political and…

Nine things I learned as an old person on TikTok — TikTok is the hottest app of the moment now that everyone is in quarantine, but the teens have known about it for a while now. I started this deck six months ago as a Lunch & Learn about the role psychology plays in strategy, but it quickly turned into something…

Instagram has always existed as a form of wishful thinking but never so much as now, as we sit in our living rooms scrolling through places that we would rather be. My feed is full of wistfully-captioned snapshots of soft white beaches melting into wavy cerulean seas, hidden waterfalls in…

On International Women’s Day, a critical look at the cultural implications of art after #MeToo — Almost three years have passed following Gretchen Carlson’s lawsuit against Fox News and a tweet that ignited a firestorm of sexual abuse and sexual harassment accusations that culminated in the #MeToo movement. It exploded into a tidal wave of social protests all over the world, with ancillary movements not just…