Showcasing stories from Jelani Cobb, Taylor Lorenz, Jack Shafer, and Max Tani; Nylah Iqbal Muhammad; Irina Dumitrescu; Leo Robson; and Caitlin Moran.
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The Mysterious, Deep-Dwelling Microbes That Sculpt Our Planet
“Earth’s crust teems with subterranean life that we are only now beginning to understand.”
Imagine Your Last Day of Work Ever. Here’s Theirs.
“How a range of new retirees marked the end of their working days.”
How Cheerleading Became So Acrobatic, Dangerous and Popular
“For decades, the sport has been shaped in large part by one company — and one man.”
America’s Monster
“Uncovering the brutal career of a crucial American ally. And the hidden truths of the war in Afghanistan.”
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
This week we have stories from Patrick Fealey, S.C. Cornell, Sterry Butcher, Robin Wall Kimmerer and Jenny Odell, and Francisco Garcia.
A Colorado City Has Been Battling for Decades to Use Its Own Water
“Lawsuits, protests and fierce disputes over who controls water in the parched American West have held up a crucial pipeline.”
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Showcasing stories from Fatima Syed, Jack Crosbie, Charlotte Higgins, Sonya Bennett-Brandt, and Camille Bromley.
The For-Profit City That Might Come Crashing Down
“The dream of PrĂłspera, founded by a U.S. corporation off the coast of Honduras, was to escape government control. The Honduran government wants it gone.”
Why Did This Guy Put a Song About Me on Spotify?
“The answer involves a remarkable — and lucrative, and ridiculous — scheme to game the way we find music today.”

