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Celebrating bee week with a look back at a classic spelling bee post. (In a just world, Joe would be posting this link, since he first introduced me to it. And yet.)—JS

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The future of artificial intelligence: will the robots fetch our coffee and fix our robots, or will they chase Linda Hamilton through a factory?—JS

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"I think at some point my show is going to have to morph into a detective show. I think four weeks in, Andy Richter and I will be solving crimes. It's going to be 'Murder, She Wrote' for a younger demo."—JM

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There might come a time when I feel like I'm putting up too many links from Cracked.com. That time is not today.—JM

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Y2K, global warming, the Mayan calendar coming to an end in 2012... like they once said on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," I find myself needing to know the plural of "apocalypse."—JM

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As Sesame Street turns 40, it faces reduced episode counts, staff layoffs, and sagging ratings. My kids watch it, but I have to admit, it's not their favorite show. Still, I'm grateful to have a cultural touchstone we can share.—BK

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Terrific profile of Conan in the midst of his transition to The Tonight Show that also manages to work in a look at the changing landscape of late night comedy.—BK

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Action scribe Shane Black gives a short guide to what every action movie should have – which is, oddly, tied to the dopey Renny Harlin movie 12 Rounds.—JS

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Not since the Quizno's spongemonkeys have we heard an ad campaign described as "quirky genius." The Dos Equis guy (who sounds a lot like Bill Brasky) fits the bill.—JS

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Will I get tired of nerdy science types deconstructing the tropes of science fiction? Not until someone travels back in time to stop me.—JS

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For Memorial Day, your requisite dose of "freedom isn't free." True freedom, of course, involves even the freedom to take for granted the sacrifices of those who came before, and unfortunately that's a freedom of which I occasionally avail myself.—JM

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I'd heard about this before, and I think it's awesome.—BK

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I know it's not football season, and I know it's not 2008. Still, this is one of the greatest things I've ever seen. Also, the Major League Baseball draft is coming up, and I'm going to steal the living hell out of this idea.—JM

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This one won't really work if you want to print it out and take it with you, but I decided it was too good not to link to anyway.—JM

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Extolling the virtues of Pixar, which will no doubt thrill PoopReading contributor Jameson Simmons. (There are two mentions of the upcoming release Up that I would consider spoiler-free, but your standards may be stricter than mine.)—BK

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Just one of many jaw-dropping revelations in this short Q&A about teens and new technology. (Sadly, danah boyd is the "actual" spelling of her name.)—JS

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Networks clamor for "Buffy"-like material, but when they get it, they have no idea what to do with it. Some updates on the Buffyverse.—JS

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It's not who you think! (wait a minute... never mind. It's probably who you think)—JM

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The piece doesn't quite live up to the title, although to be fair, no piece could ever hope to live up to that title. But, apart from a few tiresome "fork" puns, it's a fun read.—JM

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A popular liberal president who has freely admitted his own youthful drug use could certainly help move this country's attitude toward marijuana legalization further in the right direction. If he had any balls whatsoever, that is.—JM

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With the help of science and technology, the author explores the many ways – psychologically, physically, chemically – that we experience love.—BK

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Even if you aren't a fan of Grodin (to which I say, really?), it's worth reading for his refreshing candor, including a section about his work in the 2006 film The Ex that features some of the most frank answers I've ever seen an actor give.—BK

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Twenty and thirtysomething singles are still relocating to Portland, Seattle, and Austin in droves, but the poor economy means there are fewer jobs waiting for them when they get there.—BK

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You mean there are guys out there like me, funnier than 90% of monologue jokes? And they're getting paid for it?—JS

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Alec Baldwin was on Letterman last week, which reminded me of this excellent profile from the days before Poop Reading. It's worth reading again, but at the very least it belongs in our archives.—JS

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Of course not. And it needs to die a quick, expensive death while there are still unconverted theatres to offer a 2D bailout option.—JS

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"Chuck" is coming back, as is "Dollhouse." If only they could see their way clear to bring "Life" back, as well... but I guess you can't have everything.—JM

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Coming on the heels of three straight soul-crushing walk-off losses to the Yankees, it's a little tough to find consolation in the fact that the Twins organization is filled with stand-up guys. I'd embrace a few douchebags if it meant more wins – particularly in the postseason.—BK

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It's pretty simple: if there's Big Lebowski material out there worth reading, we're going to link to it. I hope everybody's cool with that.—BK

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"Fringe," I saw a couple of times but don't really watch. "Dollhouse," I've flip-flopped on several times over the course of its short run; right now, I'm a fan.—JM

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It should go without saying that you should probably listen to doctors and scientists more. It should.—JM

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It's a fascinating story all around, but to answer the obvious question: yes, there was a girl involved.—JS

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You mean there's a guy out there like me, writing a vicious riposte whenever anyone belittles Pixar? And he's getting paid for it?—JS

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You're wondering if it's a coincidence I've linked to three Jonah Lehrer articles in less than a month, aren't you? Yes, it is. (But the real question is: how does he write them so fast?)—JS

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A deep and abiding love for dogs is a little like a deep and abiding certainty regarding one's religious faith; I don't quite have it, and I'm a little jealous of those who do.—JM

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A few years ago, Bill Simmons and Malcolm Gladwell had an epic email exchange that covered mostly basketball, but also covered anything and everything else. Yesterday, they did it again. This is Part One...—JM

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Here's Part Two...—JM

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...and here's Part Three.—JM

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Posnanski makes a compelling argument against knee-jerk hatred of egomaniacal baseball agent Scott Boras. I'm still going to hate Boras, but I'll try to mull it over for a minute before I do it.—BK

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A terrific feature on Woody Allen and Larry David and their collaboration on Allen's Whatever Works. (It's also a review of the film, so while there's nothing specifically spoiler-y, it does include the typical discussion of the plot and characters.)—BK

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Dozens of baseball professionals, including ex-A's manager Art Howe, have signed on to play themselves. Even if you don't care about Moneyball, you have to admit this is one of the most fascinating projects out there.—BK

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God, yes – movie audiences are ruining moviegoing. But is fleeing for the home theatre the answer? Even as I flee, I wish for a better solution.—JS

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Interesting – if generous – perspective. I could've handled a lot of the other stuff if Topher had been more like Xander and less like an obnoxious ass.—JS

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If nothing else, Star Trek gives us a nice angle to discuss the science of outer space. (Yep, the old "spaceship explosions should be silent" gripe again.)—JS

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The Onion AV Club talks to one of the greats.—JM

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"Excessive use of exclamation marks in expository prose is a sure sign of an unpractised writer or of one who wants to add a spurious dash of sensation to something unsensational." That's what an English usage guide cited in this piece says, and that's what I'll assert 'til the day I'm deep in the cold, cold ground.—JM

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How 30 Rock's storylines have a tendency to embrace a conservative worldview. It's a really interesting observation, even if the writer – understandably – isn't quite sure what to make of it.—BK

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On the heels of Manny Ramirez's suspension, Esquire reruns their offseason interview with Jonathan Papelbon, in which the Red Sox closer refers to his ex-teammate as a "cancer."—BK

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This trippy, indie space story with Sam Rockwell is shaping up to be one of the year's most interesting films. (Then again, we've seen how often that can go horribly awry...)—JS

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Basically a rehash of the brilliant South Park episode, but still entertaining in a furious-blogger sort of way.—JS

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I suspect that Bill Simmons wrote this column a few years ago and just held onto it until the time came to run it, like newspapers do with obituaries for really old celebrities.—JM

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ESPN.com's "The Sports Guy" is dead serious about wanting to be the general manager of the Minnesota Timberwolves. There's not a chance in hell it could happen, of course, and that's quite a shame.—JM

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Nothing groundbreaking here. Still, it's always nice to hear from Judd Apatow.—JM

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No. At least, the numbers don't suggest that they do.—JM

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I'll not go so far as to suggest that this sort of thing will be coming to America any time soon; nor will I go so far as to suggest that such a thing would be unimaginable.—JM

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Even Sean Hannity will open up the Times to read Doug Glanville!—MW

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Judging by the rest of this piece, which looks at NBC's plans for the fall schedule (including, ugh, Jay Leno five nights a week), the answer is no. But I'll admit I have a soft spot for Chase, and I'd love to see him make a comeback with his new show Community.—BK

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Gladwell's back! Gladwell's back! And he's got a nice little (or actually, not so little) piece about how underdogs win by exploiting conventional thinking – for example, by making liberal use of the full-court press in basketball.—BK

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A review of two new parenting memoirs by Ayelet Waldman and PoopReading.com favorite Michael Lewis turns into a look at the changing landscape of modern parenting.—BK

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If you know Penn & Teller, you know Teller never speaks. If you really know them, you know it's always fascinating when he does.—JS

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If I ever meet Michael Ian Black, I'm giving him a big hug for all the times he's bailed me out of a slow link day. (And a big sloppy kiss for everything else.)—JS

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A lot of interesting stuff about outgoing Supreme Court Justice David Souter. (But I'll admit I was destined to link to this article as soon as I saw the name Kermit Roosevelt.)—JS

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ESPN's Tuesday Morning Quarterback has nice things to say about the late Jack Kemp, with whom he was (slightly) personally acquainted.—JM

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You don't become a lying, deceiving egomaniac overnight, so one must assume Brett Favre has always been like that. Of course, if he comes to my beloved Vikings, he'll instantly become my favorite football player of all time.—JM

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As in which entertainers can't fall out of your good graces, even when they deliver a clunker or two. The Coen Brothers, Steve Martin, Albert Brooks, and U2 come to mind for me, and all have tested that status at one point or another.—BK

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A talk with Jeff Dowd, the real-life inspiration for The Dude character in The Big Lebowski. If you're not interested in his experiences being a part of the Seattle Seven in the 70s, you can find the Lebowski stuff about halfway down the page.—BK

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Implies that the Internet age has made us all into illiterate, solipsistic assholes. (Which, if you've seen the Internet, clearly isn't true.)—JS

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Avert your eyes, Matt and Joe's mom.—JS

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Lengthy, scathing rant about the Postal Service (not the band, though that would be great, too). Kramer was right – who needs it?—JS