Editor's Note

Dearest Reader, The weather this week was fairly standard for February, we think. Cold. In 2008, Eben Alexander, a former associate professor at Harvard Medical School, entered a coma that would change his life forever. Unconscious for seven days, Alexander claims that he visited heaven, and in the years since, he has become a spiritualist author and speaker. For this week's cover story, JEI and REJC profile Alexander with empathy and nuance, exploring how he fits into the complicated space between religion and science. But that's not all: This week's issue has bikes, polls, potions, noses, beasts, and dim sum. What more could you want for a chilly weekend like this? Yours, AWDA + NHP