Two global superstars were vying to be on the cover of this issue. On the one hand: Santa Claus. On the other: Taylor Swift. Both household names with vast legions of fans. Both with articles in this very magazine investigating the statistics behind their globetrotting feats. Both had their advocates—among them, our usually punctilious copyeditor, whose request spelled the word “please” with 14 Ls and 18 Es. Such was the strength of feeling.
But in the end, the data showed there was an obvious winner. Taylor might have visited 51 cities on her 149-date Eras Tour from March 2023 to December 2024, but Santa makes an estimated 386 million stops in one 24-hour marathon (although further research is needed) every single year. Her fanbase is in the hundreds of millions; his is believed to be in the billions. Also, he only gets one chance to make a big media splash annually, unlike the ubiquitous pop legend who graces covers and front pages all year round. Santa, it had to be you.
Taylor certainly wins when it comes to costume changes, though. She wore more than 60 unique outfits throughout her record-breaking tour. What’s more, fans theorize they were correlated with song choices.
Other Highlights
- LLM “metalinguistic” capabilities
An overview of the latest AI talking point - Mass shootings
Exploring the impact of mental health and gun ownership on the frequency of deadly events - Medicine labeling
How efficacy descriptions could be improved
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