What Paris has done right is to make it awful to get around by car and awfully easy to get around by public transportation or by bike. Serge Schmemann awfulbikecar Change image and share on social
Recorded engine sounds, however, are a deliberate deception. They're like going to a concert and listening to a recording. On the other hand, I wouldn't mind buying a BMW recording and installing it in my '96 Jeep Cherokee. Serge Schmemann bmwbuycherokee share on social
Definitely read a quality daily paper regularly, and use the Internet to check out the press around the world as often as you can. Serge Schmemann checkdailyinternet Change image and share on social
Buyers of powerful cars place a high premium on the exhaust note, and manufacturers spend a lot of money getting it right. At the same time, high-end cars are expected to filter out the sounds of the mundane world. Serge Schmemann buyercarend share on social
There are many roads to journalism. My feeling is that your best bet in college is to study the subjects you will want to write about, whether politics, the environment or the law. Serge Schmemann betcollegeenvironment Change image and share on social
Every time some spoiled European soccer millionaire complains about the blaring vuvuzelas, I want them to blare louder. Serge Schmemann blarecomplaineuropean Change image and share on social
Our daily life is filled with electronic pianos, ring tones, the disembodied voice giving you your bank balance over the telephone. Even silence can be electronic, courtesy of sound-canceling headphones. Serge Schmemann balancebankcanceling share on social
Back when George W. Bush was identifying his Axis of Evil, it struck me that a longer and more instructive list could be compiled of the Axis of the Humiliated (or Insulted and Injured, to borrow from Dostoevsky). Serge Schmemann axisbackborrow share on social
We all know that much of what we hear in life is not really so. Canned laughter and 'sweetened' applause have been TV staples for decades, and all the slamming doors, breaking glass and squealing tires you hear in movies are sound effects. Serge Schmemann applausebreakcanned share on social
Parisians overwhelmingly buy small cars. And it's not because people are petite, but because fuel is drop-dead expensive. Gasoline costs more than twice as much in Paris as in New York. Serge Schmemann buycarcost Change image and share on social
