Photos from inside Cheve, the deepest cave in North America

Just released in paperback: James M. Tabor's best-seller "Blind Descent: The Quest to Discover the Deepest Place on Earth." (Special thanks to Mr. Tabor for providing Failure with the photos included here.) For more on the book and the race to discover the Mount Everest of caves, read To the Supercave (Failure magazine, July 2010).

Above: Bart Hogan, 3,000 feet deep in Cheve’s vast Low Rider Parkway. Though impressive, the Parkway is not especially huge by Cheve standards. Photo © 2010 by Kenneth Davis.

Bill Stone, leader of the expeditions into Cheve cave. Photo © 2010 by Bill Stone.

Marcus Preissner rappels a section of Angel Falls, at a depth of 1,100 feet in Cheve Cave. Redirectionals pull the rope away from plunging water. Photo copyright © 2010 by Kenneth Davis.

Photos from inside Krubera cave

Krubera (KRU-bera) cave is located within the Arabika Massif in the western Caucasus Mountains, in a region of Abkhazia in southeastern Republic of Georgia.

The above photo shows Gennady Samokhin (in red) returning from an abortive dive into Krubera’s Siphon 2, August 2004.

To read about Alexander Klimchouk and the race to discover the Mount Everest of caves, see To the Supercave (Failure magazine, July 2010).

Above: Denis Kurta dropping into Krubera’s 500-foot deep Grand Cascade. Photo ©2010 Alexander Klimchouk and the Call of the Abyss Project.

Today: 30th anniversary of the near assassination of Ronald Reagan

Today -- March 30, 2011 -- marks the 30th anniversary of John Hinckley Jr.’s attempt on Ronald Reagan’s life, which, as it turns out, set the stage for a politically successful presidency. In the new book "Rawhide Down," Washington Post reporter Del Quentin Wilber delivers a minute-by-minute account of the events of that memorable day. Failure has just posted a Q&A with Wilber.

The Longevity Project

“The Longevity Project” answers the question of who lives longest — and why. And make no mistake, after you’re through reading the book, you’ll no doubt recognize the “pathways” to a longer, healthier life, even if you’re not on one of those paths.

James S. Robbins on 'This Time We Win: Revisiting the Tet Offensive

James S. Robbins explains why the legacy of the Tet Offensive makes it difficult for the United States to defeat unconventional enemies, and how U.S. leadership can avoid acting in ways our enemies want and expect.

Charlie Sheen always good for a quote at DreamMasheen

Charlie Sheen: In his own words at DreamMasheen.

50 Jobs in 50 States

Failure interviews USC grad Daniel Seddiqui (author of the forthcoming book "50 Jobs in 50 States"), on how he turned a failed job search into opportunity.

Caltech basketball team beats Occidental, breaks 310-game losing streak

Read about the game on the Failure site (with video of the celebration).

Or check out Failure magazine's feature on the history of Caltech's basketball program.

Remote Area Medical in Nashville

This past weekend, Remote Area Medical (a non-profit that offers free medical care at clinics in the Third World and the United States) came to Nashville, Tennessee. Truth be told, the event was a sad commentary on what we value (and don't value) here in the U.S. The school where the clinic was held (McGavock High School in east Nashville) is kinda run-down, and the cinderblock walls give its halls a prison-like feel. (Did I mention that the Nashville Metro Police Department has an office in the school?)

Of course, education isn't the only thing that we fail to make a priority here in the U.S. We don't do enough to make sure our populace has access to affordable health care, hence the desperate need for an organization like Remote Area Medical.

Below are a handful of photographs that Failure magazine took during the Nashville clinic. Pictured above is Stan Brock, founder of RAM. Or read Failure's feature about RAM.

Fire on the Horizon

Curious about the little-understood culture of offshore oil drilling? Read Failure magazine's interview of John Konrad, founder of gCaptain and author of the forthcoming book Fire on the Horizon: The Untold Story of the Gulf Oil Disaster.

Mao's Great Famine - reviewed

The story of the Great Leap Forward, one of the most deadly mass killings in human history, in which an estimated 45 million people perished between 1958 and 1962.

The Abacus and the Cross

The popular perception of the Dark Ages is wrong. Nancy Marie Brown, author of The Abacus and the Cross, explains why in the latest Failure Interview.

Can the lost art of whistling make a comeback?

Failure magazine's latest feature (Whistling Past the Graveyard) explores this subject, and includes interviews with many of the world's most accomplished whistlers.

December 30: Anniversary of the Iroquois Theatre Fire

Billed as “absolutely fireproof,” Chicago's Iroquois Theatre went up in flames less than six weeks after opening. Upwards of 600 people perished in the blaze, and today it remains on the records of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) as the deadliest single-building disaster in U.S. history.

I Love Charleroi, Belgium?

Tour group offers sightseeing tours through Charleroi, Belgium, which has been called "the ugliest city in the world." The so-called “adventure city safari” includes stops at a vandalized, never-used metro station, a giant pile of coal waste, and the former home of a serial killer. Sound like fun?

Beware of the Urkel

Saggy pants are no longer an issue at one Memphis middle school, not since Principal Bobby White started The Urkel Initiative.

Scroogenomics

Failure magazine wishes you a happy -- and efficient -- holiday season!

The Dead Sea is drying up

Every year the shoreline of the Dead Sea retreats a little more. With the region's tourism industry suffering, Israel, Jordan, and the Palestinians are teaming up to try to save it. But will their efforts accelerate the destruction?

Fruitlands

In 1843 a small group of eccentric men and women founded a utopian community in east-central Massachusetts. By January 1844 the community had dissolved. What went wrong?

Disaster Deferred?

Two-hundred years ago a series of large earthquakes hit the Midwestern United States. But despite apocalyptic predictions, the New Madrid Seismic Zone isn’t likely to produce a devastating quake anytime soon, says Northwestern University geologist Seth Stein in a new Failure Interview.

The 35th anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald

Wednesday November 10 marks the 35th anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Failure magazine revisits the disaster - and examines the prevailing theories about why the Mighty Fitz sank - in its latest feature, The Sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald.

The Phone Book

An interview with Ammon Shea, author of The Phone Book: The curious history of the book that everyone uses but no one reads.

The Subaru 360

The worst car ever sold in America? Ed Parsil, cofounder of The Subaru 360 Club, begs to differ.

Awkward School Pictures

AwkwardSchoolPictures.com features bad haircuts, bad fashion choices, and more than its share of awkward situations. Read more about the site's launch.

The Five-Year Party

College faculty member and former education reporter Craig Brandon on why hundreds of American colleges and universities are fostering a party atmosphere in an effort to retain students and maximize profits.

People of WalMart: The Book

Failure magazine interviews Luke Wherry, co-founder of peopleofwalmart.com, about his new book Shop and Awe.

James Buchanan $1 Coins issued

Earlier this week, the United States Mint released the latest coin in the ongoing Presidential $1 Coin Program, this time featuring our “worst president,” James Buchanan (1857-61).

Read more: James Buchanan Dollar Coin

The Great Typo Hunt

Jeff Deck, Benjamin Herson, and the other members of the Typo Eradication Advancement League (TEAL) are out to change the world, one correction at a time. Read more about The Great Typo Hunt.

Golden Gate

Failure magazine reviews: Golden Gate - The Life and Times of America's Greatest Bridge, by Kevin Starr, Bloomsbury Press.

Sudan: Darfur, Islamism, and the World

“This book is about one of the greatest humanitarian and political disasters of our age,” writes Richard Cockett, Africa editor of The Economist, in the introduction to “Sudan.” Read Failure magazine's book review.

Today's Google doodle: The Wizard of Oz

Today's Google doodle celebrates the 71st anniversary of The Wizard of Oz.

Downstream: Death of the Mighty Colorado

Failure interviews photographer Brian L. Frank, who won the 2010 Global Vision Award for his photo essay Downstream: Death of the Mighty Colorado.

Success Made Simple

Only half of newly-opened American companies are still around after five years. But if the business is Amish, the success rate is ninety-five percent. What accounts for such a high success rate? Independent Amish expert Erik Wesner has the answer.

When Failure is Tolerable

My co-editor pointed out an interesting post yesterday in the blog section of Harvard Business Review titled When Failure is Intolerable. The gist of the post is that while there is value in “positive failure,” there are also times when failure should be considered unacceptable. In the midst of making his argument, though, Scott Anthony brings up an important point — that part of the reason organizations (and the individuals who work for them) fear failure is because “Too frequently people reward (or punish) outcomes when they should reward (or punish) behaviors.” There’s a lot of truth in that; workers tend to act conservatively because they fear being scolded (or fired) for bold initiatives that don’t work out as planned. As a result, there’s a lot less innovation than there should be — or could be. Organizations need to empower individuals to push the envelope, with the understanding that things will not always unfold as planned.

Contested Will: Who Wrote Shakespeare?

Entirely too much intellectual energy has been — and continues to be — devoted to the Shakespeare authorship controversy. Shakespeare scholar James Shapiro explains the arguments of Shakespeare doubters, and what’s at stake in a dispute that has been re-energized by the rise of the Internet.

The race to discover the Mount Everest of caves

Find out what it's like inside the world's deepest caves, and which cave holds the title as deepest in the world in Failure magazine's new feature To the Supercave.

The Rise and Fall of Baseball Cards

Dave Jamieson, author of the recent book “Mint Condition,” on the 1994 crash of the baseball card industry — and the outlook for a once-popular hobby.

Awkard Family Photos: The Book

If you think your family is awkward, compare your clan to the families on display in Awkward Family Photos, a LOL-funny book of pictures and stories culled from the pages of awkwardfamilyphotos.com.

New York City Museum of Complaint

The book New York City Museum of Complaint features 132 representative letters written to the Mayor of New York between 1751 and 1969, all urging the city’s leader to address one municipal problem or another.

Meet 'Be Grateful for Obama' guy

Lenny Kates, a retired social worker from the blue-collar town of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, got fed up with all the disrespect being shown to President Barack Obama by Tea Partiers and the right-wing media. So he decided to counter the negativity with a message of his own. Once a week he stands in the middle of a busy traffic circle in his hometown holding a sign that reads: “Be Grateful for President Obama.”

Notably, his message isn’t really addressed to right-wingers, who are mostly unreachable anyway. It’s addressed to those on the left and in the center, who may be taking Obama for granted or frustrated that he hasn’t been able to effect more change (somehow forgetting that Obama inherited a long list of complex problems from the previous administration, problems that will take years to fix).

Says Kates to Americans: “Join with the president and stand up for him. He’s doing a wonderful job in a very difficult time.” Read more about Lenny Kates here.

Richard Whittle interview

Today Failure published its interview with Richard Whittle, author of "The Dream Machine: The Untold History of the Notorious V-22 Osprey."

Obamasfailures.com: A miserable failure

The Tea Partier-in-Chief at obamasfailures.com discovers that equating a president with failure isn’t as easy as George W. Bush made it appear.

Other People's Rejection Letters

A book filled with rejection letters you'll be glad you didn't receive.

MRSA: Superbug

Failure magazine interviews "scary disease girl" Maryn McKenna, author of "Superbug: The Fatal Menace of MRSA" (Free Press).