Notable stories on chasing manhood, naming Gaza’s dead, searching the stacks for a rare book, leaving music behind, and opting out.
The New Yorker
The Camps Promising to Turn You—or Your Son—Into an Alpha Male
“At the Men of War Crucible, you bear-crawl through rivers. At Warrior Week, you dig your own grave. At the Squire Program, your teen-ager can take part, too.”
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
This week’s stories include techno, New Zealand, relationships, background music and doodles.
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
In this edition: Lost soul, copy that, missing beats, muzzled watchdogs, and a ramblin’ man.
The Zombie Regulator
“As the cost of living continues to spiral upward, the Trump Administration is gutting the government agency built to protect Americans from financial ruin.”
Buckle Up for Bumpier Skies
“With climate change, the skies are becoming more turbulent. Can today’s planes still keep us safe?”
The Man Who Broke Into Jail
“In Nashville, a criminal-justice activist commits a baffling crime.”
When Do We Become Adults, Really?
“Scientists define the stages of life in biological, societal, and chronological terms—but none of them quite capture what it’s like to grow up.”
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
In this week’s Top 5 we have lessons from apartheid, clever Claude, feeling bodies anew, the power of wax, and free mining.
What Is Claude? Anthropic Doesn’t Know, Either
“Researchers at the company are trying to understand their A.I. system’s mind—examining its neurons, running it through psychology experiments, and putting it on the therapy couch.”
