This Week in Culture: August 30, 2013

library-of-congress-flickr-set-gear-patrol-lead-full A stunning color photo from the Great Depression and WWII.

At the behest of our loyal readers and our own internal editorial auditors, we’re bringing back Briefings. Left to languish for the past several months, Briefings is fresh from “the shoe”: leaner, trimmer and ready for click-open-in-new-tab action. Oh, and it has a snazzy new name: This Week in Culture. From style to science, TWIC is still the best of what we’ve read, seen and heard in these here world wide webs. Weekly installments begin… now.

In Living Color Photo Above: The Library of Congress treasure trove unfurls a bit further with this beautiful gallery of rare, vivid color photos showcasing American life in the 1930s and 40s.

Happy Feet Turns out human feet are more flexible than we thought. Evolution or not, the foot is one remarkable appendage.

On Sports Coats The sartorially inclined gents at Valet break down a new, (nearly) indestructible blazer.

Now Boarding: Business Class A first class ticket takes up roughly 4x as much space as business class. Business class takes up roughly 4x as much space as Coach. The tickets? About the same. The science, and rationale of business class seating.

Now in Menswear A look at the menswear scene in Copenhagen. Further proof that the Scandinavians are doing it right.

Film: Gravity The movie we’ve most anticipated this year premiered at the Venice Film Festival. Variety’s Justin Chang has an early review and things are looking rather… buoyant.

IKEA RÅNT Q: Why does IKEA delivery’s service suck so much? A: Because they can.

GOP vs Silicon Valley The GOP has a plan to crush Silicon Valley. Alternately, a hypothesis on why the tech industry is ruining San Francisco.

Survival You don’t want to do it. No one does (unless you’re like that), but if you do ever find yourself in the type of situation where you need to stitch a wound, this is how you do it. Elsewhere, how to survive animal attacks.

How the G&T Saved Britain Churchill once declared, “The gin and tonic has saved more Englishmen’s lives, and minds, than all the doctors in the Empire.” Kal Raustiala, investigates. Also in spirits: this if you prefer bourbon, and this for oenophiles.

Breaking Bad A rare look inside the Breaking Bad writers’ room. Oh to be a fly on the wall…

Family First The immutable well-roundedness of Art of Manliness is further proven in this piece on the importance of creating a family culture.

This is a True Story Writer Joshua Davis pens a thrilling opus entitled “The Mercenary” for Epic. Available to read (gratis) on Medium.