Katie Drummond | The Verge The Verge is about technology and how it makes us feel. Founded in 2011, we offer our audience everything from breaking news to reviews to award-winning features and investigations, on our site, in video, and in podcasts. 2014-08-22T15:34:33+00:00 https://www.theverge.com/authors/katie-drummond/rss https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/01/verge-rss-large_80b47e.png?w=150&h=150&crop=1 Katie Drummond Carl Franzen <![CDATA[These are the 23 most viral cats of all time]]> https://www.theverge.com/2014/8/22/6053477/cats-timeline 2014-08-22T11:34:33-04:00 2014-08-22T11:34:33-04:00
A cashcat from the popular Tumblr Cashcats.biz, which did not make the list because it features an assortment of cats | Cashcats.biz
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Welcome to the first annual Verge Hack Week. We’re totally blowing up our site: we’ve given our reporters and editors the entire week to play with new tools and experiment with new storytelling ideas, while members of our amazing product team have gathered in New York to help build all sorts of interesting new things. Learn more.

Katie Drummond: cat lover since 1986, human cat companion since 1992.

Carl Franzen: cat lover since 1987, human cat companion since 2012 (it would have been sooner, but his dad was “allergic”).

Trust us. We know cats.

We know the soft touch of whiskers on a cheek in the wee morning hours. The faint patter of four feet hastening to the kitchen for a scattering of treats. The musky aroma of a litter box, overflown. As longtime cat companions and parents, these are but three of our favorite attributes of the feline persuasion. And so it should come as no surprise that, when Carl and I have a moment to spare from our non-stop workdays (we’re journalists), we spend that time exploring the expansive world where cats reign supreme. “I love cats,” Carl said earlier today as he nibbled a tortilla chip. “Love them.”

And what better way to celebrate our love than with a timeline tribute to some of the world’s most wonderful cats. Without further ado, we present: Katie and Carl’s favorite viral cats through history.

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]]> Michael Zelenko Katie Drummond <![CDATA[The zodiac is the key to unlocking tech’s greatest feuds]]> https://www.theverge.com/2014/8/20/6045623/tech-industry-feuds-astrology-analysis 2014-08-20T11:20:16-04:00 2014-08-20T11:20:16-04:00
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Welcome to the first annual Verge Hack Week. We’re totally blowing up our site: we’ve given our reporters and editors the entire week to play with new tools and experiment with new storytelling ideas, while members of our amazing product team have gathered in New York to help build all sorts of interesting new things. Learn more.

Thomas Edison was an Aquarius, born in the Week of Acceptance; Nikola Tesla was a Cancer, born in the Week of the Unconventional — no wonder the two godfathers of electricity never vibed on the same wavelength. They were working with shockingly different astrological energies — the stars had pre-wired the sires of sparks for a faulty relationship.

During a recent party at a friend’s home, I ran across a book that shook me as if I were a Magic Eight Ball: Gary Goldschneider and Joost Eiffers’ epic tome, The Secret Language of Relationships. A follow-up to the duo’s astounding The Secret Language of Birthdays, the book assigns every birthday a unique astrological “week” (for some divine reason, there are only 48 categories) and creates a matrix of relationships, revealing the fault lines between romantic, creative, familial, and business rapports.

Unmasking my friends’ relationships made for a fun, if very tense party game, but it also got me wondering. Tech is an industry plagued by disharmony. Could astrology help us understand tech’s greatest feuds, and maybe even help the feuders better understand themselves? I turned to The Verge’s science editor, Katie Drummond, for counsel. “Definitely,” Drummond whispered, as if in a celestial trance. “Let’s make a Hackweek list.”If we seek harmony in an industry often marked by petty grievances and earthly trifles, we must look beyond the cloud — and look up towards the stars.

    Samsung (March 1) vs. Apple (April 1)

  1. The Feud

    The Feud

    These two just can’t get along. After Apple won a mega legal victory over Samsung in 2012, the two companies returned to court earlier this year to bicker over who copied who in the process of making some phones and affiliated gadgetry. Apple (mostly) came out on top, but the discord didn’t stop there: Samsung’s lead attorney later described Apple as a “jihadist” and the two companies continue to file various pieces of legal paperwork with intentions and allegations that are largely indecipherable to the average person.

  2. The Astrology

    The Astrology

    Samsung was founded the “Week of Spirit” while Apple started bearing fruit on the “Week of the Child.” As such, their relationship “will revolve around an imaginative world that emphasizes physical grace, vivid fantasy and gentle idealism.” But there are also “conflicting energies that must be addressed” at play here. A marital merger is not recommended, but a friendship is written in the stars. “Dreams can become realities,” but the two companies should also stay on their own sides of the bed.

    3. Peter Thiel (Oct. 11) vs. Eric Schmidt (April 27)

  3. The Feud

    The Feud

    Peter Thiel is the Bart Simpson to Eric Schmidt’s Superintendent Chalmers: the former a pluckish, combative techno-Libertarian and the latter a digital dictator presiding over a pervasive techno-dystopian institution. Thiel, co-founder of PayPal, is seriously dismissive of Schmidt, the executive chairman of Google, and his rose-tinted vision of societal progress through programming. The two butted heads at Fortune’s Brainstorm Tech conference in Aspen, Colorado, two years ago. “You do a fine job as Google’s administrator of propaganda,” Thiel said. “Let’s just say that everything you just said is not actually true,” Schmidt shot back.

  4. The Astrology

    By TechCrunch via Wikimedia Commons

    The Astrology

    No wonder Thiel and Schmidt can’t kiss and make up: “The Secret Language” labels their astrological relationship as “take no prisoners,” symbolized by a disgruntled praying mantis. “The challenge of this relationship will be to preserve a balance of power. Both partners consider themselves authorities on a variety of subjects, and may be extremely intolerant of other points of view,” Goldschneider and Eiffers write. The dynamic is marked by rivalry, depression, and challenges. The text also offers sage advice for the unlikely couple: “lighten up and have fun,” and remember that “acting silly isn’t shameful.” Other “take no prisoners” couples? Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman. Fiery, but ultimately unmanageable.

    5. Reed Hastings (Oct. 8) vs. Jeff Bezos (Jan. 12)

  5. The Feud

    The Feud

    Nothing is as ugly as the fight over the Roku remote when Reed Hastings, CEO of Netflix, sits down for movie night with Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon. This past spring, Amazon announced it had signed a massive agreement that secured Amazon Prime Instant Video as the stomping grounds for some of HBO’s most popular scripted shows, and managed to steal Fox’s 24 away from Netflix. Meanwhile, Netflix continues to outshine its competitor with original programming like House of Cards and Orange is the New Black, while Amazon stumbles along with the likes of Alpha House.

  6. The Astrology

    The Astrology

    Hastings was born during “the Week of Society,” and Bezos during “the Week of Dominance” — a primetime recipe for disaster. Characterized as “subversive,” “clashing,” “evasive,” and “antagonistic,” this relationship is “imbued with contrasts — its energy can shift from the known to the unknown, from the potential to the kinetic and, often, from the acceptable to the questionable.” The book suggests that this dynamic might be compatible for marriage, but for the time being Hastings and Bezos’ relationship is stuck in arrested development.

    7. Lyft (May 31) vs. Uber (Aug. 30)

  7. The Feud

    The Feud

    Lyft and Uber are both playing a game of one-upsmanship when it comes to customer service: Charge your phone? A bottle of water? A stick of gum? I got you, bro. But between the two companies boils a devilish cauldron of ill will, fueling a road rage unlike any other. The car ride rivals are poaching each other’s drivers with the ruthlessness of endangered rhino hunters — in May, Lyft tried to entice drivers away from Uber with offers of free tacos and $500. Uber meanwhile, has been accused of jamming Lyft’s systems by encouraging drivers to open the Lyft app, call for a ride, and quickly cancel.

  8. The Astrology

    The Astrology

    Lyft and Uber need to downshift and take a leisurely, top-down cruise along the Avenue of the Stars. Both companies were born under fortuitous signs — Lyft in “the Week of Freedom,” and Uber in the “Week of System Builders” — but their relationship is defined by a “Need for Change.” It’s likely that Uber will “usually feel more secure in an ordered situation that is only altered when a change will increase efficiency” while Lyft will probably “prefer something looser, often changing things just because they enjoy it, and tire of stasis.” At best the relationship can be “thoughtful”; at worst, it can be “manipulative,” “anxious,” and “fearful.”

    9. Mark Zuckerberg (May 14) vs. Winklevoss Twins (Aug. 21)

  9. The Feud

    The Feud

    A rivalry so profound, the eminent Aaron Sorkin sprinkled it with Hollywood dust and took it to the big screens. After filing several lawsuits alleging that Mark Zuckerberg stole their idea for an online social network, the Winklevoss brothers even considered taking their complaints to the Supreme Court. All three have now moved on — Zuckerberg to a quiet married life somewhere in California, and the Winklevoss to the stars, via recently purchased tickets aboard Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo.

  10. The Astrology

    Rory Cellan/Flickr

    The Astrology

    Suddenly, it all makes sense. The Winklevoss were born in “the Week of Exposure,” our guidebook notes, and can find relationships with Zuckerberg’s ilk — “the Week of the Natural” — to be “tyrannical or insensitive to them.” This perhaps explains why Tyler and Cameron sought retribution in the multi-millions: their astrological rapport with Zuckerberg led them to feel profoundly wronged by his ways. But might collaboration be in the future? Those born in the Week of Exposure have such dynamic personalities that they can “fascinate” those born under Zuckerberg’s celestial pattern, “waking them up to their own fantasies and desires.”

    11. Jack Dorsey (Nov. 19) vs. Evan Williams (March 31)

  11. The Feud

    The Feud

    If we are to trust Nick Bilton’s book Hatching Twitter, the feud between Dorsey and Williams started when the two both sought sole reign of Twitter for themselves. And when Williams demoted Dorsey and took over as CEO (which Dorsey told Vanity Fair was “like getting punched in the stomach”), Dorsey refused to go down without more of a fight — he publicly cast himself as the service’s inventor while privately working towards Williams’ professional demise.

  12. The Astrology

    Wikipedia

    The Astrology

    It’s a shame, because this one really could’ve worked. The rapport between Dorsey (born in “Week of Prophecy”) and Williams (intriguingly, born in “Week of the Child”) notes the potential for mutual attraction because the other “mirrors themselves.” But Dorsey’s astrological profile is marked by self-absorption and difficulty communicating with others, which Williams’ likely struggled with: he needs someone with a “positive outlook” to mitigate his own “dark side.”

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]]> Katie Drummond Michael Zelenko <![CDATA[A brief history of Gordon Ramsay’s epicurean empire]]> https://www.theverge.com/2014/8/18/6031481/gordon-ramsay-career-timeline 2014-08-18T15:39:06-04:00 2014-08-18T15:39:06-04:00
Hack Week Badge

Welcome to the first annual Verge Hack Week. We’re totally blowing up our site: we’ve given our reporters and editors the entire week to play with new tools and experiment with new storytelling ideas, while members of our amazing product team have gathered in New York to help build all sorts of interesting new things. Learn more.

By Katie Drummond and Michael Zelenko

Simmer down, Gordon.

When The Verge features editor Michael Zelenko logged onto Hulu this weekend over dinner, eager to gorge himself on both an entire rack of ribs and programs hosted by celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay — Zelenko’s celebrity chef du jour — he found himself lost in Ramsay’s all-you-can-eat menu of programming. “It’s unbelievable,” says Zelenko, a 29-year-old self-identified “foodie” and cooking reality television enthusiast. “Seriously, how many shows can one man have?” he asked me at work this morning through a mouthful of morning glory muffin. “When does the man sleep?” the surprisingly svelte editor exclaimed.

Three years ago, at the tenderized age of 25, I met Ramsay when he shot a commercial for a company I was affiliated with at the time. The man radiated raw, unrelenting energy — to the extent that I wondered whether he had a problematic relationship with cocaine (he would later tell me that he was training for an Ironman triathlon and I concluded that his vitality was of a biological, rather than narcotic, nature). “But how does he do it?” I wondered.

A little bit of research indicates that, indeed, Ramsay burns so hot that you could flambé an Anjou pear on his chiseled chest. From television programs to books to restaurants, Gordon Ramsay produces more content than a line cook at Olive Garden on the breadstick beat. In honor of Gordon Ramsay — a culinary god as attractive as his offerings are abundant — Zelenko and I are poached with pleasure to present a timeline showcasing a sample platter from Ramsay’s buffet of accomplishments.

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Did you know IBM’s supercomputer Watson is learning to cook?

]]> Katie Drummond <![CDATA[The Verge Playlist: Phil Collins]]> https://www.theverge.com/2014/6/21/5828534/the-verge-playlist-phil-collins 2014-06-21T21:30:04-04:00 2014-06-21T21:30:04-04:00

I inherited a lot from my mom: writing skills sufficient to merit employment, a profound appreciation of red wine, and absolutely terrible taste in music. She used to listen to this local radio station, Lite 96 FM, that played a consistent rotation of adult contemporary hits — Elton John, Celine Dion, Jon Secada, Eric Clapton, Mariah Carey. She loved all of it, and so I loved it too. There was nobody we loved more than Phil Collins — prolific hit-maker, master of the overwrought love song lyric, and (in our opinion) handsome-as-fuck bald dude.

As I got older and tried to get hipper, my musical inclinations eventually branched out to incorporate some (but not much) cool person music. But to this day, for every indie jam on my playlists (indie is cool, right?) there’s at least one Phil song to balance out the mix. I love Phil Collins because his melodies are catchy as hell. I love him because his lyrics are often unintentionally hilarious and he just owns them anyways. I love him because that 3:40 drum crash on “In The Air Tonight” gets me every damn time.

Mock me all you want. After all, this isn’t a salute to the prowess of Deadmau5 or Pharrell or some other musical act you won’t be ruthlessly derided for appreciating. But guess what? Phil Collins makes catchy tunes, catchy tunes are fun to listen to, and you’re probably not as cool as you think you are anyways. So pour a glass of wine, close all the curtains, and get ready…to dance into the light.*

*Some of these are slow jams, so a dance partner is strongly encouraged.

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  1. In The Air Tonight
  2. You Can’t Hurry Love
  3. I Don’t Care Anymore
  4. Against All Odds
  5. Sussudio
  6. Don’t Lose My Number
  7. Take Me Home
  8. Another Day In Paradise
  9. A Groovy Kind Of Love
  10. Both Sides of the Story
  11. Everyday
  12. Can’t Stop Loving You
]]> Katie Drummond <![CDATA[The story behind the ‘First Kiss’ viral video sensation]]> https://www.theverge.com/2014/3/15/5511796/story-behind-first-kiss-viral-video 2014-03-15T11:40:25-04:00 2014-03-15T11:40:25-04:00

If you had an Internet connection this week, you probably came across “First Kiss” — a video compilation of various strangers fumbling through a few awkward, adorable moments of intimacy. But the video, which has amassed more than 52 million YouTube views, elicited a backlash from more than just cold-hearted cynics. Because it featured models, musicians, and actors promoting a clothing line, some decried “First Kiss” as, at best, slick advertising. At worst, it was derided as a total fake.

But according to The New York Times, the truth is much more nuanced. “First Kiss” was commissioned by Melissa Coker, founder of the clothing company Wren. According to Coker, the company operates on a shoestring budget and devised the video as a way to promote Wren attire without breaking the bank. It may not have been the work of viral masterminds, but the approach seems to have worked: Wren has enjoyed a “significant bump” in sales this week. Click over to the Times for the full story on the making of “First Kiss.”

]]> Katie Drummond <![CDATA[Malaysia Airlines flight may have been deliberately diverted]]> https://www.theverge.com/2014/3/15/5511522/malaysia-airlines-flight-deliberately-diverted 2014-03-15T10:25:50-04:00 2014-03-15T10:25:50-04:00

The disappearance of a Malaysia Airlines flight last Friday appears to be the result of deliberate action. That’s according to Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, speaking to reporters earlier today. Najib stopped short of using the word “hijacking,” but instead stated that “evidence is consistent with someone acting deliberately from inside the plane,” CNN reported.

That statement follows days of speculation and troubling details about the flight’s trajectory after it vanished from air controller screens shortly following take-off. An earlier report from The Wall Street Journal revealed that the flight’s satellite communications system continued to send pings for around four hours after the loss of radar contact, raising the possibility that the plane had been intentionally ferried away to a distant location. Subsequent findings honed in on the plane’s trajectory, suggesting that it was intentionally flown northwest towards the Indian Andaman Islands — and followed a course that would be well-known to someone with aviation training.

“Acting deliberately from inside the plane.”

Now, according to Najib and other officials, a growing collection of information has shifted the investigation to focus on a scenario where the plane’s disappearance was intentional. According to the Associated Press, it now appears that the plane’s last known satellite ping came about seven and a half hours after takeoff, and that the craft deviated significantly from its original trajectory, turning back and crossing over peninsular Malaysia after its transponder was switched off. Sources familiar with the investigation now speculate that one or more individuals with flying experience took control of the aircraft, switching off communication devices and strategically re-routing the plane to avoid radar detection. It’s still unclear, however, exactly where the plane was flown following that final point of contact.

Officials are now continuing their investigation with a renewed focus on the plane’s passengers and crew — including a reported search of one pilot’s home. They’re also looking to additional radar and satellite data from several countries in the region where the plane may have been flown, in an effort to zero in on its trajectory and last known location. At the same time, they’re also adamant that while evidence “is consistent” with deliberate action, investigators will consider “all major possibilities on what caused MH370 to deviate,” Najib said. And a US official involved in the investigation told CNN that as they learn more about the flight, it becomes “more difficult to write off” the prospect of human intervention.

]]> Katie Drummond <![CDATA[Neil deGrasse Tyson is here to recruit you]]> https://www.theverge.com/2014/3/13/5493270/neil-degrasse-tyson 2014-03-13T11:00:02-04:00 2014-03-13T11:00:02-04:00

It was the television event that science geeks worldwide had been waiting for. On Sunday night, the much-hyped Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey premiered with an inspiring episode that offered viewers a sweeping tour of the solar system and humanity’s (decidedly wee) place in the universe. It also introduced them to their guide through the series’ planned 13-episode run: Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson, a renowned astrophysicist and vocal science advocate, who will fill the shoes of Cosmos’ original host, the late Carl Sagan.

But while the reboot of Sagan’s 1980 classic will readily attract science aficionados, that’s not exactly the audience Tyson is gunning for. Chatting over a glass of wine to celebrate the show’s premiere (a glass the connoisseur noted “could use another eight years in the bottle”), Tyson was emphatic that “everyone is the audience.”




“Science is not the purview of the demographic, it’s the purview of us all,” he says. “Cosmos, at its best, not only shares with you the moving frontier of science, but shows you why knowing that matters.”

To that effect, the show’s distribution is going big: it premiered with an unprecedented simulcast on 10 US networks, and will air weekly on both Fox and National Geographic channels in more than 180 countries around the world.

“An exploration nation, as a culture, can influence how people think about their future.”

The import of that wide reach isn’t something Tyson takes lightly. Indeed, it’s yet the latest iteration of his ongoing efforts to convey the urgent importance of research into science and technology — a realm where he’s seen the US fall woefully short in recent decades. “As an American, I grew up in an era where we led the world in everything. Everything!” he says of groundbreaking innovations like computers, television, and radio. “So much [American invention] shaped the 20th century, and I don’t want to be on the sidelines for the 21st century. I want to be there.”

Invigorating viewers who wouldn’t otherwise care about the world of science is, to Tyson, one small part of addressing that problem. Not to mention that a splashy television program, airing on major networks and bolstered by impressive special effects and a mammoth publicity drive, is bound to make science seem just a little bit hipper — especially to younger generations. “Maybe you say, ‘I don’t want to go to space, I want to be an attorney.’ Well, you can be an attorney that manages the mineral rights of the next asteroid. That’d be really cool,” he says. “An exploration nation, as a culture, can influence how people think about their future — and that only comes about through science and technology.”

For now, Tyson is happy to act as the very public face of the scientific cause — he’s recently been profiled in the New Yorker, posed for a selfie with President Obama, and was a keynote speaker at SXSW. But when Cosmos comes to an end this season, he’s intent on making a shift back into the more private life of a scientist, husband, and father. “Next time I’d rather just stay home, I’d rather let someone else do it,” says Tyson, who lives with his wife and two kids in Manhattan and remains director of the Hayden Planetarium and a research associate at the American Museum of Natural History. But his role as an advocate for scientific exploration won’t change — and the research Tyson plans to undertake next might even make that advocacy stronger. “As a scientist, [my research] is what fuels my energy to even communicate in the first place,” he says. “[So] I’ll go back to the lab. I’m ready. After I go to the Bahamas, then I’m going to the lab.”



Photography by Michael Shane

]]> Katie Drummond <![CDATA[The world’s oldest cheese has been found buried with Chinese mummies]]> https://www.theverge.com/2014/2/27/5453826/worlds-oldest-cheese-buried-with-mummies-in-china 2014-02-27T14:29:54-05:00 2014-02-27T14:29:54-05:00
Mummy

In a finding that puts even the most well-aged cheese to shame, researchers say they’ve discovered the world’s oldest variety — dating way back to 1615 BC — buried with ancient mummies in China.

As USA Today reports, the cheese was found in clumps on the bodies of well-preserved mummies (including the one shown above) in China’s Small River Cemetery Number 5. The location is unique, because bodies interred in the region were essentially freeze-dried, meaning their features, clothing, and culinary accompaniments are still discernible even thousands of years later. In large part, that incredible preservation is due to a combination of dry air, salty earth, and tightly-sealed burial conditions.

The cheese itself, which was found over a series of archeological digs dating back to 2002, was identified using analysis of protein and fat content. Investigators speculate that the cheese was made using a kefir starter (bacteria and yeast) which is then combined with milk. The majority of today’s cheeses, in contrast, rely on rennet — an enzyme taken from an animal’s gut — to curdle milk and yield a final product. But the kefir strategy, researchers say, makes sense: it’s significantly easier because it doesn’t necessitate the slaughter of a young animal, and kefir-based cheese is lower in lactose, which aligns with the prevalent lactose intolerance among Asian populations. More details on the researchers’ methods and analyses will be laid out in a forthcoming issue of the Journal of Archaeological Science.

]]> Katie Drummond <![CDATA[Con artists allegedly raised $1.7 million for a fake Jean-Claude Van Damme movie]]> https://www.theverge.com/2014/2/21/5434618/fbi-bust-fake-jean-claude-van-damme-movie 2014-02-21T17:24:28-05:00 2014-02-21T17:24:28-05:00
Jean-Claude Van Damme

It’s a Hollywood heist outrageous enough to inspire a movie of its own. Federal authorities have indicted four men on 29 counts of fraud, and allege that the group conned dozens of people into funding a fake film starring a bevy of celebrities — including Jean-Claude Van Damme, John Cusack, and Gerard Butler.

The group members, who operated under the guise of a company called Mutual Entertainment, LLC, were indicted yesterday on federal fraud charges for running the scam. Three of the men are also being hit with a civil suit filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which alleges that they defrauded some 60 individuals. “Investors were falsely told that actors ranging from Donald Sutherland to Jean-Claude Van Damme would appear in the movie when in fact they were never even approached,” a statement from the SEC reads. “[But] the investor funds that remain aren’t enough to produce a public service announcement let alone a full-length motion picture capable of securing the theatrical release promised to investors.”

The group racked up $1.7 million

According to federal officials, the con was an elaborate process that dates back to 2010, when Mutual Entertainment spent $25,000 to acquire the rights to a story called Marcel, set in Paris during World War II. Team members cold-called individuals across the country, posing as a research firm doing surveys for movie companies. Anyone who expressed an interest in investing in films would then be mailed a package of information on the faux flick — including cast members and shooting locations — and its profit potential. Investors would then send Mutual a check, often for a five-figure sum, to help fund the movie. All in, officials say, the group racked up $1.7 million — and split most of it amongst themselves — before getting busted.

And unfortunately for wannabe film investors, this is only one of several similar ruses that date back decades. “This is a long-lasting scam that’s been going on for at least 10 years,” Ellyn M. Lindsay, an assistant US attorney, told The Daily Beast. “There are multiple boiler rooms in the Los Angeles area that are pulling this movie-investment scam, and we’re only able to go after some of them since it’s just so prevalent.”

]]> Katie Drummond <![CDATA[Meet the man who built the center of the world]]> https://www.theverge.com/2014/2/21/5433898/jacques-andre-istel-felicity-center-of-world 2014-02-21T13:52:42-05:00 2014-02-21T13:52:42-05:00
Felicity, California

In the heart of the California desert, in a town he founded and reigns over, Jacques-André Istel has created the center of the world. And the 21-foot-tall pyramid, designated the Official Center of Everything by a county board, is but one of several monuments and buildings that Istel and his wife — sole permanent inhabitants of their town of Felicity — have been building since the 1980s.

The incredibly unconventional town, and its eccentric founder, are now the subjects of a profile in The New York Times Magazine. Istel, who earned his fortune by creating a skydiving empire, is currently focused on an elaborate series of town monuments that map the history of human experience. “I do have a sense of responsibility,” he said of the project. “You’re talking to a fellow who has a great possibility of looking like an idiot for the next several thousand years.”

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