Idaho as a

It’s been a busy few days for the United Methodist Church — days that wouldn’t be possible without the help of some dogged and dedicated translators. The Protestant Christian denomination just wrapped its United Methodist General Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina, which took place between April 23-May 3. And like any organization with an international footprint, logistics proved the central challenge.

The beautiful thing about creative and intellectual pursuits is how they can build bridges where cultural, religious, ethnic, or political differences often destroy them. It’s a dynamic with countless historical examples, including an astrolabe showing evidence of an unexpected collaboration between historic faith communities. NPR that an astrolabe bearing both Arabic and Hebrew inscriptions was recently discovered.

Ah, the emoji — just a few artfully arranged pixels can communicate so much. From crushing disappointment to elation to true love, there’s an emoji for just about every human emotion and activity. But how do those emojis make it to your phone and work flawlessly despite the vast universe of devices, operating systems, and platforms that utilize them?