America and Syria.
Newt Gingrich and David Ben-Gurion.
Nazi Germany and Iran.
Iran and the Obama Administration.
An intense, months-long preparation to audition for “Dancing with the Stars.”
Recovery from neck surgery that fused two of his vertebrae.
His commitment to Oreo’s “Double Stuf Racing League.”
The prolonged effects of post-concussion syndrome.
The shooting death of two Indian fishermen they believed to be pirates.
Smuggling cultural artifacts out of India.
Tampering with Indian witnesses in the trial of the former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
The destruction of electronic financial records from the Borsa Italiana that are stored in Mumbai.
Creating the bitly URL shortening service.
Inventing the Spanx slimming undergarment.
Inventing the Chia Pet.
Developing the Red Bull energy drink.
Basic C.I.A. field training (“True Lies”).
The creation of a cybernetic organism (“Terminator”).
Entering outer space (“Aliens” and “Avatar”).
Diving to the depths of the ocean (“The Abyss”).
The businessman Gordon Gund.
Samuel (Joe the Plumber) Wurzelbacher.
The former Cleveland Browns quarterback Bernie Kosar.
Anthony (Krayzie Bone) Henderson of the hip-hop group Bone Thugs-n-Harmony.
St. Louis.
Pittsburgh.
Salt Lake City.
Portland.
New requests for unemployment benefits do not register until a month later.
The number of people looking for jobs has increased.
The unemployment rate is just a guess.
The unemployment rate is recalculated every other month.
Taylor Swift.
Rihanna.
John Mayer.
Lady Gaga.
The continued reliance on nuclear power.
Psychological trauma.
Environmental damage.
Dependence on foreign emergency aid.
A high-definition screen.
A faster wireless-Internet connection.
Voice-directed e-mail.
Siri.
Urban sunbathing.
Rooftop beekeeping.
Rooftop gardening.
Painting the roofs of cityscapes.