It caters to the business-savvy crowd that devours The Economist, its sister magazine, like soup. It itself is more like dessert: infrequent, inessential but hopelessly yearned for. The Economist explains what keeps us alive (and wealthy); Intelligent Life explores what we live (and work) for. This two-monthly publication is a British version of The New Yorker; it is easier to digest and more practical to read.

Intelligent Life explores culture. But it is relevant instead of artsy-fartsy. In the past few issues, the opening of the Ritskmuseum, Amsterdam, (which I despairingly missed) and a op-Ed on les miserables (which I just read) made appearances. Pages are lined with short articles on food, music, fashion, museums - all the trimmings of haute-couture but it manages not to be stuffy. Then, longer 5000-7500 word feature articles explore pointless but reassuring articles. Precisely, they reassure us that there is more to life than work.

For the shrewd businessman (and businessmen-to-be, I.e. you), this publication is a fast-acting culture pill that is easy to swallow. Furthermore, the writing exceptional. The editor's note is not some contrived attempt at uniformity and self-promotion. It actually explains who wrote the articles and why they were chosen; avid followers of The Economist will be surprised that real names are used rather than those of famous thinkers or conquerers. And every article flows in prose and will delight any sesquidilianist. While the economist focuses on clarity of expression, Intelligent Life focuses on delivery.

I have said many times that The Economist should be required reading before interviews and dates. I was joking about half that statement, though that was before I found out about Intelligent Life.