“For years, Jason Rohrer put out bizarre, beloved video games. Now, with Project Skydrop, he launches (yes, today) the real-world treasure hunt of his dreams.”
wired
The Cure for Disposable Plastic Crap Is Here—and It’s Loony
“Stretchy seaweed, reverse vending machines, QR-coded take-out boxes: They’re how we can break society’s absurd addiction to single-use plastics.”
How the ‘Slamming Door’ Sound Became Embedded in Hip-Hop History
“If you’ve listened to any rap or pop music made in the 21st century, you’ve heard John Lehmkuhl’s most famous creation, a thwacking metallic percussion sample named ‘Tribe.’”
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
This week we’re recommending stories by Moira Donegan, Danyel Smith, Dan Kois, Michael Aylwin, and Becky Ferreira.
Pooping on the Moon Is a Messy Business
“If humans are to return to the moon, space agencies and governments need to figure out the legal, ethical, and practical dimensions of extraterrestrial waste management.”
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
Featuring stories from Sophie Vershbow, Sharon Lerner, Geoffrey Gray, Christopher Solomon, and Abe Beame.
The West Coast’s Fanciest Stolen Bikes Are Getting Trafficked by One Mastermind in Jalisco, Mexico
“A digital sleuth named Bryan Hance has spent the past four years obsessively uncovering a bicycle-theft pipeline of astonishing scale.”
The Titan Submersible Disaster Shocked the World. The Exclusive Inside Story Is More Disturbing Than Anyone Imagined
“A year after OceanGate’s sub imploded, thousands of leaked documents and interviews with ex-employees reveal how the company’s CEO cut corners, ignored warnings, and lied in his fatal quest to reach the Titanic.”
I Went Undercover as a Secret OnlyFans Chatter. It Wasn’t Pretty
“Your online influencer girlfriend is actually a rotating cast of low-wage workers. I became one of them.”
Digital Havoc: A Reading List About Hacking
Behind the 1s and 0s, hackers are still people—and their motivations are more nuanced than you might think.
