Time Magazine Cover – February 23, 2026

TIME MAGAZINE: The latest issue features ‘After The Ayatollah’,,,

Iran on the Edge

After the Islamic Republic regime unleashed lethal force to quell nationwide protests against its rule, five leading Iranian writers reflect on how the country arrived at this pivotal moment—and where it might go from here.

The Islamic Republic’s Founding Myth

he Islamic Republic’s already lengthy catalogue of fears has ballooned of late: alongside the possibility of being overthrown by its own citizens, it is haunted by the prospect of a full accounting of the massacres it has carried out; by the tenuous loyalty of its army, and its empty coffers; and by the shadow of Israeli spies and Islamic State militants. What terrifies Iran’s theocrats the most, the fear that eclipses all their fears, is the ability of the people at large to clearly see the essential realities of the present regime.

Iranian Progress Cannot Be Stopped

Today, the Islamic Republic of Iran resembles a half-lifeless body collapsed on the ground, yet still possessing powerful arms. With the support of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other military forces, it has attacked the people of Iran and, through widespread killings, has delivered a brutal blow to the popular uprising. Yet this is only a temporary success. The republic is already dead morally, economically, and socially.

THE NEW YORK REVIEW OF BOOKS – FEBRUARY 26, 2026

THE NEW YORK REVIEW OF BOOKS: The latest issue features Fintan O’Toole on the murders in Minneapolis, Trevor Jackson on the problem with central banks, Ingrid D. Rowland on Fra Angelico, Namwali Serpell on Toni Morrison’s sense of humor, Julian Gewirtz on the new microchip race, Vivian Gornick on Arundhati Roy, Joy Neumeyer on Poland’s far right, Ian Tattersall on all creatures great and small, Maurice Samuels on escaping the Nazis in Vichy France, Ben Rhodes on Robert McNamara’s sins, poems by Mary Jo Salter and James Arthur, and much more.

The Crime of Witness

Fintan O’Toole

Renee Good and Alex Pretti were murdered for daring to interfere with the Trump administration’s efforts to normalize abductions and state violence.


The Struggle for the Fed

Trevor Jackson

The Fed is under attack. Can it be both protected and held accountable?

Our Money: Monetary Policy As If Democracy Matters by Leah Downey

Private Finance, Public Power: A History of Bank Supervision in America by Peter Conti-Brown and Sean H. Vanatta

Our Dollar, Your Problem: An Insider’s View of Seven Turbulent Decades of Global Finance, and the Road Ahead by Kenneth Rogoff

When the Chips Are Down

President Trump’s reversal of a ban on sales of advanced semiconductors to China undercut the strategic logic behind years of American policy that was meant to keep the US ahead in the race to develop AI systems.

The Gilded Cage: Technology, Development, and State Capitalism in China by Ya-Wen Lei

The Thinking Machine: Jensen Huang, Nvidia, and the World’s Most Coveted Microchip by Stephen Witt

The Nvidia Way: Jensen Huang and the Making of a Tech Giant by Tae Kim

THE NEW YORK TIMES – THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2026

Surge in Immigration Cases in Minnesota Pushes Prosecutors and Judges to the Brink

A prosecutor’s outburst revealed how courts in the state were buckling under the weight of a deluge of cases arising from the Trump administration’s campaign.

Nuclear Arms Control Era Comes to End Amid Global Rush for New Weapons

Beijing, Moscow and shaken American allies are seeking new warheads as President Trump ends more than a half century of nuclear arms control with Russia.

China’s Xi Presses Trump on Taiwan in Phone Call

Both leaders gave versions of what they discussed, but Xi Jinping’s take made clear the issue of the island was front and center.

Venezuela Is Said to Detain Maduro Allies Targeted by the U.S.

The questioning of the businessmen, Raúl Gorrín and Alex Saab, who have ties to Nicolás Maduro, signaled deepening cooperation between the two nations.

NATURE MAGAZINE – FEBRUARY 5, 2026

Volume 650 Issue 8100

NATURE MAGAZINE: The latest issue features ‘Clear Waters’ – Index offers transparent framework for assessing ocean equity…

Genetically engineered ‘stinkweed’ comes up roses for making seed oil

Field pennycress could become a valuable winter crop, with benefits for both carbon storage and farm profitability.

Light-powered bacteria become living chemical factories

Engineered Escherichia coli could open the door to more sustainable routes to new drugs and other chemicals.

Largest galaxy survey yet confirms that the Universe is not clumpy enough

The six-year results from the Dark Energy Survey highlight unresolved tensions in standard cosmological theory.

PHILOSOPHY NOW MAGAZINE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2026

PHILOSOPHY NOW MAGAZINE: The latest issue features ‘Roman Philosophy’….

What Have the Romans Ever Done For Us?

by Rick Lewis

News: February/March 2026

Texas Prof Banned from Teaching Plato • Chatbots Have Favourite Philosophers • Singer Fears AI Doesn’t ‘Get’ Animal Rights — News reports by Anja Steinbauer

ROMAN PHILOSOPHY

Machiavelli’s Roman Empire

Sam Spound explains why the author of The Prince thought about Rome so much.

Cicero & the Ideal of Virtue

Abdullah Shaikh explores Cicero’s ideas about the core Roman principle of virtus.

The Educational Philosophy of Quintilian

Philip Vassallo learns from a classic of Classical education.

Ancient Synergy

Yolanda De Iuliis looks at how Roman Mithraism incorporated Stoic philosophy.

The Post Paralysis Peace Paradox

Cassandra Brandt offers the reflections of a sedentary Stoic.

THE NEW YORK TIMES – WEDNESDAY, FEB. 4, 2026

A Winter of Anguish for Minneapolis Children

“It’s like living in fear all the time,” a teenager said about the federal immigration raids that have shattered families.

Federal Crackdown Means Another Repair Job for the Minneapolis Police Chief

Brian O’Hara, who took over a troubled police force and has spent years rebuilding community trust, fears the long-term damage wrought by federal agents.

Trump Repeats Call to ‘Nationalize’ Elections, as White House Walks It Back

President Trump’s extraordinary comments were the latest iteration of his unsubstantiated claims that U.S. elections are rigged as Republicans face potentially big losses this fall.

For Peace, More Ukrainians Consider the Once-Unthinkable: Surrendering Land

Polls show a growing acceptance of territorial concessions among a war-weary public, if Ukraine receives adequate security guarantees.

THE GUARDIAN WEEKLY – FEBRUARY 6, 2026 PREVIEW

THE GUARDIAN WEEKLY: The latest issue features ‘USA-IRAN’ – Collision Course….

Have Donald Trump’s hard talk and the arrival of a strike-ready flotilla finally made Tehran blink? It certainly seemed so by Monday evening, when Iran said it was willing to talk. A week of trading threats turned to strong indications that Steve Witkoff, Trump’s envoy, and Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s minister for foreign affairs, were readying to meet in Istanbul on Friday. In this week’s big story, Ashifa Kassam and Andrew Roth chart how momentum to war slowed and fears of a wider regional conflict eased, albeit marginally.

The background to Trump’s war of words against Tehran was the huge protests that rocked Iran last month, until they were brutally repressed by the regime. Analysts suggest a fragile domestic security situation prompted the Iranian government’s softening towards US demands. Our diplomatic editor and longtime Iran watcher, Patrick Wintour, explains that while the streets are now quiet, a shift in the balance of power between the people and the government has emboldened domestic demands for a full investigation of the killing and imprisonment of protesters.

Spotlight | The Epstein files, part two
Daniel Boffey details the biggest bombshell among the 3m newly released documents: disgraced former minister Peter Mandelson’s deep and compromising relationship with the convicted paedophile

Environment | Nature runs wild in Fukushima
Free of human habitation after the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown, Fukushima is now teeming with wildlife. But this haven could vanish if people come back, finds Justin McCurry

Features | From hope to despair
The postwar new town of Newton Aycliffe with its boarded up shops is a symbol of the Britain’s economic gloom – and a warning for Labour as it battles the rise of Reform UK, reports Josh Halliday

Opinion | Art, groceries, Greenland – thieves are everywhere
Jonathan Liew reflects on how we all seem to live in a world defined by petty theft and no one, whether it’s the pickpocket or the big AI company, seems to get punished

Culture | Small acts of magic
Mackenzie Crook tells Zoe Williams how his approach to comedy has mellowed with age. Gone is the nervous, awkward energy of Gareth from The Office, to be replaced by the gentle curiosity that animates his new series Small Prophets

THE NEW YORK TIMES – TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2026

Trump, in an Escalation, Calls for Republicans to ‘Nationalize’ Elections

President Trump’s comments, made on a conservative podcast, follow a string of moves from his administration to try to exert more control over U.S. elections.

Trump Is Said to Have Dropped Demand for Cash From Harvard

On Eve of Peace Talks, Russia Hits Power Plants in Frigid Ukraine

Missiles targeted electrical facilities in Kyiv and other parts of the country, according to local officials, despite President Trump’s request for a pause.

China’s Generals Are Disappearing

For three years, Xi Jinping has been cleaning out his military elite, bringing high-level dismissals and disappearances to nearly every arm of the military.

LITERARY REVIEW —- FEBRUARY 2026

LITERARY REVIEW : The latest issue features Norma Clarke on Charlie Chaplin’s London; Richard Bourke on revolution; Lucasta Miller on George Sand; Peter Davidson on Constable; Philippe Marlière on far-right France; Munro Price on the Marquis de Morès; Piers Brendon on Trotsky’s demise; Mark Glancy on Hitchcock’s scores

High-Builded Clouds – Constable’s Year: An Artist in Changing Seasons By Susan Owens

Where Fry Met Laurie – The Cambridge Footlights: A Very British Comedy Institution By Robert Sellers

Partners in Suspense – Hitchcock and Herrmann: The Friendship and Film Scores That Changed Cinema By Steven C Smith

THE NEW YORKER MAGAZINE – FEBRUARY 9, 2026

A shooting target in the shape of the Statue of Liberty with ten bullet holes.

THE NEW YORKER MAGAZINE: The latest issue features Nathan Heller on Gavin Newsom, Joshua Yaffa on Russia’s single-use agents, Michael Schulman on A.I. in film, and more.

Gavin Newsom Is Playing the Long Game

California’s governor has been touted as the Democrats’ best shot in 2028. But first he’ll need to convince voters that he’s not just a slick establishment politician. By Nathan Heller

Why the D.H.S. Disaster in Minneapolis Was Predictable

For decades, ICE and Border Patrol have operated with fewer constraints than typical law-enforcement agencies. By Jonathan Blitzer

Inside Russia’s Secret Campaign of Sabotage in Europe

How Russian military intelligence is recruiting young people online to carry out espionage, arson, and other attacks across the Continent. By Joshua Yaffa

News, Views and Reviews For The Intellectually Curious