“The UN gave up trying to count the war’s death toll in 2016, when it had already reached nearly half a million. More than 10m Syrians are refugees.”
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Imperial Eras: A Taylor Swift Studies Reading List
How Taylor Swift reflects every possible version of ourselves.
A Hackers Reading List and Our Top 5
“Despite endless warnings highlighting the dangers of the digital world, there is a growing acceptance that, in return for the speed and convenience of the internet, we must relinquish a little of our privacy.” In the ’80s, “hacking” wasn’t a familiar concept to most moviegoers. Do you remember watching WarGames for the first time? The […]
Rediscovering Joy in Learning and Our Top 5 Longreads of the Week
“I am driving and someone I love trusts me enough to fall asleep in the passenger seat. I am older and I don’t have an answer to are we there yet. I am a father and I poke my child’s knee to keep them up with me. I am driving home. I’ve never done that, you […]
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Today we’re featuring stories about YouTube pranksters, marathon cheats, cephalopods, sleep and a massive collection of restaurant menus. 1. Vigilantes for Views: The YouTube Pranksters Harassing Suspected Scam Callers in India Andrew Deck and Raksha Kumar | Rest of World | January 10, 2023 | 5,737 words Justice can mean equality, and it can also mean retribution. In the case of Artsiom […]
Best of 2025: All Our Number Five Story Picks
Every story we selected for the number five slot in our weekly newsletter, in a handy digest.
‘Stay Away From Him. He’s Dangerous.’
“For years, a mysterious figure preyed on gay men in Atlanta. People on the streets called him the Handcuff Man—but the police knew his real name.”
Waterworld
Still or sparkling or artesian or glacier? Martin Riese, America’s first water sommelier, believes that the more we think about what we drink, the more we’ll care about the planet.
Sob Stories, Movie Memes, and the Week’s Top 5
“While crying has featured in some of my most life-defining moments, I can also be set off anywhere, anytime, by almost anything. In the last week alone, I’ve cried looking at a social media account of a husky puppy and older cat (who are best friends), watching a sports documentary about a basketball team I […]
What’s in a Name, and Our Top 5
“At home, I was Spanish. At school, American. When mom got angry at us, the ultimate insult would be spewed: ‘Ay! That is so American!’ But outside of the house, while in the presence of my peers, I wanted that to be true. Being so American would mean I would be allowed to wear shorts to school. I would […]


