Manholes on West Houston Street near Sullivan have exploded, creating a smoky, chaotic scene. Windows are blown out and civilians are panicking. Firefighters, police, Con Ed and other rescue workers are everywhere. more ›

After hearing last week that Harold Pinter won the Nobel Prize in literature, we immediately wondered how long it would be before one of his plays was on a New York stage again. Thanks to a quick visit to nytheatre.com, which looks ahead farther and more nimbly than we can, we’re able to inform you that the Atlantic Theater Company will be staging not one Pinter play but two, and in a very interesting combination: his first (The Celebration) and most recent (The Room; we won’t say it’s his last because even though he’s indicated that he doesn’t expect to write more for the theater, you just never know, and we don’t want to jinx anyone). The shows begin Nov. 16; this scheduling strikes Gothamist as pretty lucky for the Atlantic, which couldn’t have known when it was drawing up the season bill that Pinter would get the Nobel. Now there’s sure to be vastly more interest in the production than there might have been, especially since it provides an opportunity to see the way Pinter’s changed (or not) in style and ideas over the years. more ›

Humidity can actually cause your Lasik surgery to be performed inaccurately according to a new study done by Dr. Keith A. Walter, an assistant professor of ophthalmology at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C. The New York Times reports that the study found that under corrections were most likely after 2 weeks of high humidity while over corrections were more prevalent in overly dry weather. Great. As if we didn't have reason enough to be nervous letting someone slice a sliver of our eyeball off, now we have to make sure to check the forecast too. The theory is that your cornea might absorb more water during extended periods of humidity, thus throwing the laser calculation off. Hmmm... Gothamist might absorb more alcohol during extended periods at The Room which throws off our calculations too... more ›