The 48 species of "backyard birds" competing in the #WorldCupOfBirds You may be aware that there is a soccer tournament happening right now. In my Brooklyn neighbourhood, it's downright unavoidable. There are roving bands of fans in matching jerseys, every restaurant is festooned with flags, and the borough's official "fan city" is only a few blocks away from my apartment. You may not know that there is another tournament underway, one to determine the world's best "ordinary" bird. This...

Every three years, a strange bureaucratic ritual plays out in the U.S. Copyright Office. Organizations, law school clinics, trade associations, academics, companies, and individuals file mountains of documents to request (or oppose) limited exemptions to 17 U.S.C. § 1201(a)(1), a prohibition on circumventing the digital locks that control access to copyrighted works. The requests are mundane and quietly extraordinary. Permission to break a digital lock in order to repair your tractor....

When I was growing up, my mom would spend early March on the lookout for robins. They were, she told us, heralds of spring. Spotting the first robin out on the lawn was the first sure sign that winter was over. If you live in North America, it's probable that you learned something similar about these ubiquitous thrushes, with their persimmon bellies. This time of year I'll often be asked a question by park-goers who spot me with binoculars around my neck:"Have the robins arrived yet?" It was...