The Gambler Who Cracked the Horse-Racing Code

Bill Benter did the impossible: He wrote an algorithm that couldn’t lose at the track. Close to a billion dollars later, he tells his story for the first time.

Published: May 3, 2018
Length: 25 minutes (6,447 words)

Syria, A Love Story

How a bid for freedom from government oppression in Syria ended in torture — both physical torture, and for one young mother, the anguish of not knowing whether her husband is dead or alive.

Source: Washington Post
Published: May 1, 2018
Length: 9 minutes (2,414 words)

Deana Lawson’s Kingdom of Restored Glory

Author Zadie Smith dives deep into the photography of Deana Lawson.

Source: The New Yorker
Published: May 7, 2018
Length: 18 minutes (4,647 words)

I Dream of Content-Trash

Now we can outsource imagination.

Author: Zach Webb
Source: The Baffler
Published: Apr 25, 2018
Length: 7 minutes (1,787 words)

How To Be a Plain Girl

Lolly Bowean writes that every black woman has a hair biography. Hers includes an aunt with “growing hands,” a cousin who straightened her hair against her mother’s wishes, and a disastrous teenage Jheri curl. Eventually, she comes to realize that for black women, finding the right hairstyle isn’t about looking like everyone else — it’s about looking like yourself.

Source: Longreads
Published: May 2, 2018
Length: 17 minutes (4,414 words)

Fake It Till You Make It: Meet the Wolves of Instagram

Using social medial, a new generation of young traders are selling an image of easy money and opulent living. All aspirants need to do is invest some money in something sketchy called binary options.

Source: The Guardian
Published: May 19, 2018
Length: 18 minutes (4,530 words)

Searching for a Future Beyond Facebook

If we want to liberate ourselves from the tech monopolies, we have to figure out what to do with our data.

Source: Longreads
Published: May 1, 2018
Length: 8 minutes (2,206 words)

Murder at the Alcatraz of the Rockies

How a rookie FBI agent spent a decade investigating the conspiracy surrounding the murder of Manuel (Tati) Torrez, a high-ranking member of the notorious Mexican Mafia gang, la Eme.

Source: The Atavist
Published: May 1, 2018
Length: 43 minutes (10,922 words)

The Great High School Impostor

What Artur Samarin pulled off at a school in small-town Pennsylvania is one of the boldest hoaxes of our time.

Source: GQ
Published: May 1, 2018
Length: 27 minutes (6,788 words)

The Doting Father Who Robbed Armored Cars

Federal authorities struggled to identify the team of violent criminals who were robbing armored cars in Houston, Texas. When they finally got their break, the news shocked some local people, and not everyone believes it.

Source: Texas Monthly
Published: Apr 1, 2018
Length: 29 minutes (7,475 words)