Flying Up Down East
by Deborah Fallows
You won’t be surprised to hear that we decided to make a precautionary landing in Portland, the closest big airport. Jim told the controller that we were “changing destination because of non-emergency equipment problems,” a phrase I hadn’t heard before. He also requested a change from “Visual Flight Rules,” under which we flew whatever course we chose, to an Instrument Flight Rules plan, in which ATC would guide us to the destination. The ATC responded without a breath’s delay. “November 435SR is cleared to the Portland airport via direct, maintain 3,000 feet. Let us know if you require assistance.” (Read it here.)
Eastport Road Map: Global Meets Local in a Very Small Town
Eastport Road Map: Global Meets Local in a Very Small Town 
by James Fallows
The consequences of a good kind of frustration. (Read it here.)
Eastport on Marketplace
Eastport on Marketplace
by James Fallows
Hearing voices you won’t forget, from a small group of inventive and determined people. (Read it here.)
Eastport, Maine: Population 1,300
Eastport, Maine: Population 1,300
by James Fallows
On a per capita basis, one of the grittiest and most inventive places in America. (Read it here.)
Notes, Cheering and Otherwise, from an American Frontier
Notes, Cheering and Otherwise, from an American Frontier
by James Fallows
Where the country first sees the sunlight each day. (Read it here.)
What Would an Ideal College Look Like? A Lot Like This
What Would an Ideal College Look Like? A Lot Like This
by John Tierney
While you’re busy designing your version of the ideal, I can take a nap or go fishing, because somebody has already built mine: Champlain College. (Read it here.)
Now, for More Good News About America: Avidyne to the Rescue!port
Now, for More Good News About America: Avidyne to the Rescue!
by James Fallows
When you have the opportunity to give a deserved compliment, don’t let it pass. (Read it here.)
EATNN TTUNA SNWCH – hold (at) MAYYO: More on the Secret Language of the Skies
EATNN TTUNA SNWCH – hold (at) MAYYO: More on the Secret Language of the Skies
by James Fallows
“The approach fixes, in order, are TRAMP, FLOZY, SILKY, and JAKOR. I’m sensing a pattern here but would love to know the back story.” (Read it here.)
ITAWT ITAWA PUDYE TTATT: The Secret Language of the Skies
ITAWT ITAWA PUDYE TTATT: The Secret Language of the Skies
by Deborah Fallows
Aviation has a lot of special language, like sailing or gymnastics. Its brief, even curt efficiency and orderly templates keep planes on course and out of each other’s way. Short. To the point. Unambiguous. No small talk to clog up the frequency. But there is one special set of aviation jargon, more alien than the concocted vocabulary of Esperanto and more bizarre than patterned wordplay of Pig Latin or Id. This is the lexicon of waypoints, which are the road markers in the sky for directing planes on a course. (Read it here.)
How Did a ‘Public Ivy’ Take Root in Vermont?
How Did a ‘Public Ivy’ Take Root in Vermont?
by John Tierney
There are lots of familiar American “college towns” – places where a single university dominates the social and economic life of the city. Think Boulder, Ann Arbor, Madison, Berkeley, Princeton, Charlottesville. None of those college towns has quite the feel of Burlington, Vermont. (Read it here.)
American Futures 