Smart escape

The Guardian (Long Read) · 2026-09-10

‘This is Dangerous’: Slime Moulds and the Bitter Debate Over the Nature of Intelligence

by Samanth Subramanian

If a single cell can solve a maze, does a mind really need a brain?

Defector · 2026-09-10

There’s Still Tennis at the U.S. Open

by Owen Lewis

When a tennis player faces match point, does all the money in the stadium still matter?

Aeon · 2026-09-09

Our Eloquent Hands

by Alison Bashford

When doctors check the lines on a newborn's palm, what are they actually reading?

New Yorker Shouts & Murmurs · 2026-09-09

Instructions for Watching My Girlfriend While I’m Out of Town

by Blythe Roberson

If you wrote care instructions for a grown adult, would they read like a pet-sitting guide?

Smithsonian Magazine · 2026-09-08

Kermit the Frog Was Just Trying to Put on a Variety Show. Fifty Years Later, the Muppets Are Some of the Biggest Stars in Television History

How did a chaotic variety show give its audience permission to be weird?

Scroll.in · 2026-09-07

Greek-Roman Philosopher Plutarch’s Ancient Advice for How to Be Happier Online

by Matthew Sharpe, The Conversation

Can an ancient philosopher's advice on ignoring street graffiti help break a modern scrolling habit?

The Atlantic · 2026-09-07

Why Wendell Berry Didn’t Worry About the Future

by Joe Fassler

The Atlantic · 2026-09-07

How the Early Dreams of the Internet Changed

by Jake Lundberg

If the internet was supposed to set people free, why is everyone living in little boxes?

Noema · 2026-09-05

Your Perception of Time is, in Fact, Warped

by Mike Mariani

If time is measured in memories, what happens to a day spent staring at a screen?

STAT News · 2026-09-05

Opinion: I Was a Doula Before I Was an OB-GYN. I Wish the Two Professions Understood Each Other More

by Debra Eluobaju

How can a doctor and a doula stand in the same delivery room and see two different births?

The Atlantic · 2026-09-05

The Terrible Movie That Chinese Audiences Can’t Stop Watching

by Shirley Li

What makes a clumsy, homemade cartoon better than anything a machine could make?

American Scholar · 2026-09-05

Who is the Samurai, and Who is the Prisoner?

by Jessa Crispin

What makes a samurai abandon his castle, his people, and his place in history?

The Conversation · 2026-09-04

Worms Navigate Narrow Paths Faster Than Wide Ones – These Findings Could Inform Robot Design

by K. R. Prathyusha, Research Associate, BioFrontiers Institute, University of Colorado Boulder

Vox · 2026-09-04

Inside a Quest to Learn About the Ocean’s Mysterious “deep Reefs”

by Byrd Pinkerton

Defector · 2026-09-04

Claire Stapleton Helped Write the Myth of Google, but Now She’s Trying to Tell the Truth

by Grace Byron

How do you lead a strike against a tech giant after spending years making it sound human?

Defector · 2026-09-04

Is It Possible to Teach My Kid How to Manage Risk?

by Drew Magary

If your job is to keep a child safe, when do you hand them a sharp knife?

American Scholar · 2026-09-03

Adding Wimsey to My Life

by Paula Marantz Cohen

How does a monocled detective from the 1930s become the perfect standard for a modern marriage?

Aeon · 2026-09-03

More Nothing Now

by Justin Neuman

When there is no way to win, do you still know how to play?

The Bulwark · 2026-09-02

‘Terminator 2: Judgment Day’ at 35

by Sonny Bunch

Does a movie belong to the director who keeps changing it, or the audience who remembers it?

Smithsonian Magazine · 2026-09-02

This American Commando Parachuted Behind Enemy Lines in Both the European and Pacific Theaters of World War II

What happens to a goodbye letter when the man who wrote it actually comes home?

Scroll.in · 2026-09-01

How a Victorian Philosopher Found Common Ground Between Hindu Philosophy and Socialism

by Ajay Kamalakaran

Vox · 2026-09-01

How to Deal with Other People’s Kids

by Allie Volpe

How do you say no to a child when their parents are standing right there?

The Atlantic · 2026-09-01

The Most Beautiful Woman

by Annie Joy Williams

How did a singer who never changed her accent become the only person America still agrees on?

Scroll.in · 2026-08-31

Amrita Pritam’s Two Delhis: the City She Lived in and the City She Wrote

by Kanupriya Dhingra

Where do you find a writer after the city she lived in erases her address?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-31

The One Town That Wants a Data Center

by Ethan Brooks

Why would a former mill town fight for a data center everyone else wants to ban?

The Independent · 2026-08-31

Don’t Let the Fitness Industry Fool You – Here’s How to Spot Bad Advice Online, According to Experts

by Harry Bullmore

If getting in shape is actually simple, why does the fitness industry make it seem so complicated?

Defector · 2026-08-30

What Do I Do About My Fragile Kid?

by Albert Burneko

When a kid falls apart over a setback, are they fragile, or do they just feel safe?

Smithsonian Magazine · 2026-08-30

Once the Solar System's Ninth Planet, Pluto Was Reclassified 20 Years Ago. Here's Why Planetary Scientists and the Public Alike Love the Small Icy Body

Why did losing its title make a tiny, frozen world so much easier to love?

Defector · 2026-08-30

A Day in the Chaos of Cycling’s Most Legendary Arena

by Patrick Redford

Why do half a million people camp on a mountain for ten seconds of a bike race?

Scroll.in · 2026-08-29

Some Speed‑reading Apps Make Big Claims. But How Fast Can We Actually Read?

by Erik D Reichle, The Conversation

At what speed does reading a book turn into just looking at words on a page?

Vox · 2026-08-29

“It’s the Fitness Space’s Eras Tour”: How Hyrox Became the Exercise Cult of the Moment

by Alex Abad-Santos

Why are people flying across the world to see who is best at going to the gym?

Psyche · 2026-08-28

Why You Should Talk to Your Dead Ancestors

by Mariam Vahradyan

Why keep a conversation going with someone who can never answer back?

Smithsonian Magazine · 2026-08-28

An 11-Year-Old Boy in a Small Midwestern Town Just Became the Guinness World Record Holder for Being the Youngest Museum Curator

How does an eleven-year-old go from hunting fossils in his driveway to running a museum?

The Guardian (Long Read) · 2026-08-27

The Flat-pack Skyscraper: How Wood Can Shape the Cities of the Future

by James Crawford

Could an eighteen-story skyscraper be grown in a forest instead of built from concrete?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-27

Logging in Was Never Supposed to Be This Complicated

by Will Oremus

The Independent · 2026-08-27

For Everything From Troubled Hearts to Lost Keys, Greeks Bake Cakes for a Wish-granting Saint

by Theodora Tongas and Derek Gatopoulos

How does a homemade orange cake become a prayer for the things you have lost?

Defector · 2026-08-27

Finding Friends, Legacy, and Leather Sluts at New Jersey’s Finest Holiday Inn

by Sophie Abromowitz

How do you build a lasting history in a hotel that resets the moment you leave?

Smithsonian Magazine · 2026-08-26

The Global Web of Subsea Cables That Connects the World Can Now Detect Whales—Even When They're Silent

The Atlantic · 2026-08-26

The Newest Way to Go Analog

by Nancy Walecki

Why does a clunky old iPod feel more freeing than a phone that does everything?

The Conversation · 2026-08-26

From Ancient Texts to Modern Practices, Daoism Provides a Profound Framework for Understanding the World Not as Broken but as Naturally Seeking Balance

by Michael Naparstek, Associate Teaching Professor Religious Studies, University of Tennessee

What kind of religion begins with the idea that the world doesn't need saving?

Vox · 2026-08-26

Pumpkin Spice Lattes — and the Backlash, and the Backlash to the Backlash — Explained

by Rebecca Jennings

When people complain about a sweet seasonal coffee, what are they actually angry about?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-25

The Home Slopping Network

by Charlie Warzel

If a machine can generate endless hours of passable television, who is actually supposed to watch it?

The Bulwark · 2026-08-25

‘Tony’ Review

by Sonny Bunch

How does a lying college student find grace in the back of a restaurant kitchen?

Works in Progress · 2026-08-24

The Upper Limits of Biology

by Works in Progress

After 4,000 years of breeding horses for speed, what happens when they simply can't get any faster?

Scroll.in · 2026-08-24

Cats Were Domesticated Thousands of Years Ago. Are They Finally Getting Tamer?

by Grace Carroll, The Conversation

Are cats actually getting tamer, or did people just start treating them like family?

The Conversation · 2026-08-24

Radio Telescopes Help Scientists Map Molecules in Space and Uncover Where and How Stars Form

by Olivia Harper Wilkins, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, Dickinson College

How do you map the chemistry of a star that hasn't even been born yet?

Vox · 2026-08-23

Meta Glasses Are Killing the Vibe

by Alex Abad-Santos

What happens to a room when someone walks in wearing a camera on their face?

Defector · 2026-08-23

Two Scrabble Superstars Explain Their Unbelievable Championship Match

by Stefan Fatsis

How does a championship match come down to a word that doesn't exist?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-23

<em>Toy Story </em>Confronts a Nightmare of Modern Parenting

by David Sims

What is actually lost when a child chooses a screen over a stuffed animal?

The Paris Review Daily · 2026-08-23

If You Build It, Will They Come? On the Sperm Racing World Cup

by Paul McAdory

Could a race between microscopic human cells ever actually work as a live spectator sport?

Vox · 2026-08-21

The Moral Case for Being Less Online

by Shayla Love

If you stop posting about the world, do you lose your stake in the future?

Defector · 2026-08-21

How Do You Get Over the Greatest Sports Story of All Time?

by Dave McKenna

What does a 75-year sports curse sound like the moment it finally breaks?

Vox · 2026-08-20

The Early-2000s Money Trend That’s Still Relevant Today

by Anna North

Defector · 2026-08-20

I Taught a Scorekeeping Class and Everybody Came

by Kelsey McKinney

How does keeping score on paper make a baseball game belong to you?

Smithsonian Magazine · 2026-08-20

Yellowstone is Among the World's Best Places to See Wild Wolves. Here's the Story of the Animal Called Both 'Public Enemy' and Cultural Icon

Why is it so hard to look at a wild wolf and just see an animal?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-20

Olivia Rodrigo Has No Chill

by Spencer Kornhaber

What does a heartbreak album sound like when everyone else just wants to tune out?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-19

Spidey’s Sense for Success

by David Sims

If people are tired of superheroes, why does a teenager in a spider suit keep breaking records?

The Independent · 2026-08-18

This School Teaches Senegal's Brightest Girls to Push Back Against Patriarchal Norms

by Monika Pronczuk

Defector · 2026-08-18

‘The Cruelest Game’ Examines Tennis as Torture

by Owen Lewis

If you give your childhood to a game, who are you when you put down the racket?

Scroll.in · 2026-08-18

In a New Book, Journalist Samanth Subramanian Probes the Real Estate Business in and Around Delhi

by Samanth Subramanian

If an apartment is never actually built, who ends up making the money?

The Conversation · 2026-08-17

How to Be Grateful to Someone – Even When You Really Don’t Want To

by Mark Schroeder, Professor of Philosophy, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

When someone does you a favor, does it matter if they are also helping themselves?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-17

The Strange, Explicable Appeal of Train Dog

by Megan Garber

Why does an obviously fake video of a panting train feel like a genuine relief?

Scroll.in · 2026-08-17

How Padel Has Disrupted the Traditional World of Lawn Tennis

by John William Devine, The Conversation

Why are the world's best tennis players so bothered by a game with an underarm serve?

The Hindu · 2026-08-16

The Day Hyderabad Celebrated Two Independence Days on August 15, 1947

What did the first Independence Day look like in a city that wasn't free?

The Guardian (Long Read) · 2026-08-16

‘I Can Sense Sinatra Enter My Body and Exit My Lungs’: Aboard the Celebrity Impersonators’ Cruise

by Mina Tavakoli

What happens to a celebrity impersonator when the face they borrow starts to age?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-16

Our Last Wi-Fi-Less Refuge is Gone

by Nancy Walecki

When an airplane gets high-speed internet, what happens to the luxury of being unreachable?

Smithsonian Magazine · 2026-08-16

This Unsung Black Developer Unlocked the Code to Turning a Video Game Console Into a Virtual Living Room Arcade

Who actually figured out how to put video games into cartridges you could swap at home?

Vox · 2026-08-15

We Think We Just Discovered Some New Species Living in New York City

by Benji Jones

American Scholar · 2026-08-15

Our Versatile, Durable Pickup

by Witold Rybczynski

How did a truck built to haul hay become a luxury family car and a weapon of war?

Rest of World · 2026-08-15

The Online Shopping Trend Where You Buy Nothing

by Itika Sharma Punit

If the thrill of shopping is filling the cart, does the package actually need to arrive?

Vox · 2026-08-15

Why You Grieve the End of Summer Before It’s Even Over

by Allie Volpe

Does bracing for the winter actually make the end of summer hurt any less?

Quanta Magazine · 2026-08-14

Why Are Rivers so Mathematical?

by Natalie Wolchover

If water just flows blindly downhill, why do all rivers follow the exact same math?

Psyche · 2026-08-14

Writing Letters is a Spiritual Practice for Our Age of Speed

by Amanda Leigh Lichtenstein

What happens when a conversation slows down to the speed of pen and paper?

Scroll.in · 2026-08-13

Poochmaxxing: the Pet Wellness Sector is Booming

by Jacqueline Boyd, The Conversation

If a dog just wants a good walk, what is the pet wellness industry actually selling?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-13

Hard-Luck Men in Hardscrabble Towns

by Mark Oppenheimer

When a factory town stops making things, what happens to the men who never leave?

Smithsonian Magazine · 2026-08-12

This Newly Discovered Spider Builds a Unique Web That Catapults Ants Through the Air

Why would a spider spend hours building a spring-loaded catapult to catch just one kind of ant?

Defector · 2026-08-12

The Sports Idiot is Dead, Long Live the Sports Idiot

by Annie Berke

Where does the sports-comedy man-child go when the world around him finally grows up?

The Conversation · 2026-08-11

What is Emotional Regulation? A Child Psychologist Explains

by Jessica Griffin, Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Peditrics, UMass Chan Medical School

Public Books · 2026-08-11

Every Novel is Boring—Until It Isn’t

by Imani Radney

What exactly happens in the moment a boring novel becomes impossible to put down?

Defector · 2026-08-11

Would You Eat This Cretaceous Turducken?

by Sabrina Imbler

How does an entire prehistoric food chain end up swallowed whole and turned to stone?

Scroll.in · 2026-08-10

Forgotten Histories: Awadh-born Mir Aulad Ali’s Impact on 19th Century Dublin

by Khalid Bin Umar

How did a Muslim scholar from northern India end up fighting to save the Irish language?

Defector · 2026-08-10

We Wouldn’t Be Here Without Poop

by Sabrina Imbler

How did sinking animal waste bring life to the bottom of the ocean?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-09

The Color Recession May Be Permanent

by Amogh Dimri

Defector · 2026-08-09

How Do I Direct My Kid to the Stuff They’ll Enjoy and Be Good At?

by Chris Thompson

How do you help a child find a hobby without turning it into a test of talent?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-08

Dulles Forever

by Adrienne LaFrance

How quickly does a monument to human flight become just another waiting room to complain about?

Smithsonian Magazine · 2026-08-07

Big Waves Meet Biodiversity: Why Surfing Paradises Could Offer a Key Opportunity for Marine Conservation

If a perfect wave is protected by law, what else survives in the water below?

The Conversation · 2026-08-07

Taxi Drivers Rarely Die of Alzheimer’s – How Complex Mental Maps and Spatial Reasoning Protect Your Brain

by Hatim Sharif, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The University of Texas at San Antonio

Aeon · 2026-08-07

Sasquatch Science

by Andrew Bartlett & Jamie Lewis

How do you build a science around an animal that never leaves a body behind?

Vox · 2026-08-07

Feel Like a Late Bloomer? You’re Not Alone.

by Allie Volpe

How do you keep clapping for your friends when your own life feels stuck in place?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-07

The New Parent Trap

by Russell Shaw

When summer camp becomes a daily photo feed, are the children ever truly away?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-06

The Horrible Rise of the Makeout Police

by Faith Hill

Defector · 2026-08-06

What Are You Banning When You Ban Influencers?

by Alex Sujong Laughlin

If everyone with a phone is broadcasting their life, who exactly counts as an influencer?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-06

Gen Z is Testing the Limits of How Weird Parties Can Get

by Victoria Feng

How does a PowerPoint presentation on bad decisions turn a room full of strangers into friends?

Scroll.in · 2026-08-05

Why You Keep Buying Books You Don’t Read – and Why It Feels so Good

by Michelle Spear, The Conversation

Smithsonian Magazine · 2026-08-05

A Brief History of Hold Music, From Early Patents to the Soundtrack of Customer-Service Purgatory

How did a teenager's dusty practice tape become the soundtrack for millions of hours of waiting?

Smithsonian Magazine · 2026-08-04

The History of the Beach Read, From 19th-Century 'Moral Debasement' to BookTok

The Guardian (Long Read) · 2026-08-04

‘The War Leaked Into Every Lesson’: Learning Ukrainian in a Country Under Siege

by Charlotte Higgins

How do you learn a new language when its everyday words include drones and bomb shelters?

Psyche · 2026-08-04

Why We Should Learn to Embrace the Middlebrow

by Aaron Meskin & Jonathan Weinberg

What happens when an artist tries to make a masterpiece without leaving the crowd behind?

The Atlantic · 2026-08-04

Which Screen is the ‘Good Screen’ Now?

by Kaitlyn Tiffany

What happens to the private act of scrolling when it moves to the living room television?

Defector · 2026-08-03

‘I Want Your Sex’ is a Raunchy Plea for Young People to Have More Fun

by Annie Geng