Pocket-Worthy Reads

Stories to fuel your mind

Popular Science

What ‘Gentle Parenting’ Can Teach Us About Care, Relationships, and Communication

Its focus on communication is being praised on social media—but what does the evidence say?

Dwell

Composting for Absolute Beginners

How to build (and tend) your very own pile of green gold.

Quartz

We’re Treating Friendships Like Transactions, and It’s Ruining Relationships

Friends should be more than people who we use to improve ourselves.

Outdoor Life

Camping Hacks: 51 Tips and Tricks for Your Next Camping Trip

These hacks and tips will make for an even more successful season outside.

The Guardian

I Want to Host More Parties, But I’m Worried Nobody Will Come

Throwing a party can be nerve-racking. How do we get over anxiety so we can get together?

Nautilus

The Girl Who Smelled Pink

A mother wonders if we are all born with synesthesia.

Darius Foroux

Get Rid Of Your High Expectations

Set difficult goals and strive for great accomplishments, but keep reality in mind or you’ll likely be disappointed.

The Conversation

Why Stretching Is (Still) Important for Weight Loss and Exercise

How to sort through the confusion of whether to stretch or not.

Inc.

A Little-Known Hack to Learn a New Skill in a Fraction of the Time

It’s called ‘deliberate practice’ and it’s a proven way for your staff to master a new skill in a fraction of the time.

The Kitchn

This Recipe for Homemade Snickers Bars Will Soothe Your Sweet Tooth

Cut down trips to the bodega with this easy recipe.

Quanta Magazine

The Architect of Modern Algorithms

Barbara Liskov pioneered the modern approach to writing code. She warns that the challenges facing computer science today can’t be overcome with good design alone.

Smithsonian Magazine

The Texas City Where Mermaids Inspire River Conservation

“Aquamaids” were once the stars at an amusement park in San Marcos. Now, they are making a comeback to help the environment.

Popular Collections

Curated guides to the best reads on the web

Pocket Collections

The Art of Navigating Thorny Office Politics

From bad bosses to gossipy colleagues and, of course, office refrigerator drama.

Today’s Pocket Hits

Friday, August 15

NPR

Why the Origin of the Word ‘Dog’ Remains a Mystery

They’re known as man’s best friends, fur babies, pooches. But the most widely used word for these beloved animals — “dog” — is also a great linguistic mystery.

The Guardian

Why Do I Feel So Much Worse After a Nap – and How Can I Avoid It?

Waking up from a nap feeling groggy, tired or ill? Experts say it’s common. Here’s what could be going wrong.

BBC

Why ‘Best Time to Visit’ No Longer Applies

Climate change is rewriting the rulebook for trip planning – and travellers need to adapt.

The Guardian

‘The Forest Had Gone’: The Storm That Moved a Mountain

On a small ledge in the Swiss mountains, 200 people were enjoying a summer football tournament. As night fell, they had no idea what was coming.

ESPN

The Predatory Web of Sextortion Increasingly Ensnares Young Athletes

A Michigan teen was goaded into sharing an intimate photo that scammers threatened to expose unless he paid up.

The New Yorker

Why Hasn’t Medical Science Cured Chronic Headaches?

More than 1.2 billion people worldwide suffer from migraine and other debilitating conditions that are under-studied and often not taken seriously.

BBC

A Dating App, a Niqab and a 9mm Gun: How a US Woman Was Hired to End a UK Family Feud

The investigation into the Wisconsin native revealed her to be “fairly unexceptional” with virtually no “criminal footprint”. And it remains unclear why she became a would-be contract killer.

NPR

Recommendation: New Books Published This Week

A portrait of the lucrative drug-treatment industry; a memoir of a female firefighter; debut fiction from an Emmy-winning TV writer; and a brand new Karin Slaughter thriller.

Recommended Reads

Curated by Pocket

MakeUseOf

I Turned My Phone’s Back Tap Into Productivity Gold and Now I Get More Done

This simple feature makes everyday iPhone tasks twice as fast.

The Hollywood Reporter

The 44 Most Powerful Players in Podcasting in 2025

Whether they’re behind the mic or behind the scenes, these trailblazers are steering the maturing medium through an increasingly crowded landscape and critical transitions to video and AI.

Pew Research Center

How Americans View the Trump Administration’s Approach to the Russia-Ukraine War

59% of Americans say they are not confident that Trump can make wise decisions about the Russia-Ukraine war.

Defector

A Playlist of Pop That Sounds Like My Gamer Youth

When I listen to new music, one of the biggest influences I hear—both in the sound and the choices of samples—is video games. Specifically, the games and sounds I remember hearing constantly while I was growing up.

MIT Press Reader

Flat Earthers on a Cruise

How evolution wired us to act against our own best interests.

Defector

The Worst Songs We Love So Much

I’ve always struggled with the idea of a “guilty pleasure.”

Canary Media

Forcing Dirty Power Plants to Stay Open Would Cost Americans Billions

The Trump admin’s scheme to keep old fossil-fuel plants running could saddle utility customers with nearly $6 billion a year in unnecessary costs, a report finds.

Time

Here’s Exactly What to Eat for All-Day Energy

Step one: Eat a strong breakfast.

Smithsonian Magazine

What Is a Black Moon? The Unusual Sky Phenomenon Will Occur Later This Month, but Don’t Expect to See It

A seasonal black moon, to appear on August 22 or 23, is the third of four new moons within an astronomical season

Nautilus

They Came for Climate Science. Then the Storms Came.

The administration’s cuts to climate research are destroying decades of science—and life-saving forecasts.

The Guardian

Premier League: 10 Things to Look Out for on the Opening Weekend

Another new era at Tottenham, De Cuyper can shine for Brighton and Aston Villa remind us this is a business.

Knowable Magazine

How a Mysterious Particle Could Explain the Universe’s Missing Antimatter

The Big Bang should have produced equal amounts of matter and antimatter, which would have annihilated each other in a spectacular burst of pure energy. But it didn’t. New experiments focused on understanding the enigmatic neutrino may offer insights.

Life Hacks

Tips for better living

NPR

Counting Steps for Health? Here’s How Many You Really Need

Counting steps is easy using a phone, a wearable or fitness tracker. And scientists have lots of data to figure out how many daily steps you need to improve health. Here’s what they’ve found.

The Walrus

How to Trick Your Brain into Making Life Feel Longer and Richer

Forget anti-aging creams. The secret is living like you’re not in a hurry.

CNN

Mortgage Rates Fall to Lowest Level in 10 Months

Would-be home buyers and homeowners looking to refinance their mortgages got a rare break this week after months of stubbornly high borrowing costs.

The Marginalian

Wonder, Play, and How to Be More Alive

We build our lives around structures of certainty — houses to live in, marriages to love in, ideologies to think in — and yet some primal part of us knows that none abides, knows that we pay for these comforting illusions with our very aliveness.

USA TODAY

‘The Tooth Fairy Sticks to a Budget:’ Kids Are Finding Less Under Their Pillows for Lost Teeth

Times are tough, even for kids.

The Atlantic

The Logic of the ‘9 to 5’ Is Creeping Into the Rest of the Day

How free time gets conscripted into the service of work.

CBS News

AT&T Customers Could Get up to $7,500 in a $177 Million Settlement. Here’s How to File a Claim.

AT&T customers whose data was compromised in either of two data breaches, or both, are eligible to file a claim that could provide up to $7,500.

The Guardian

Ozempic Didn’t Work for Me. I Was Furious – and Ashamed

Everyone taking the ‘skinny shot’ was losing weight, but my scales didn’t change. My inner dialogue became toxic.

GQ

Buying Stuff Online Is About to Get a Lot More Expensive. Here’s Why.

The answer has to do with tariffs, synthetic opioids, and something called the de minimis exemption.

The Hustle

How Private Equity May Affect Your 401(k)

A new executive order allows employer retirement funds to be invested in private equity. Here’s what that could mean for your investments.

Yahoo Finance

4 Ways to Increase Cash Flow and Pay Off Debt Faster

Improving cash flow is key to aggressively paying down debt.

The Cut

Are You Rude With Money?

Our readers share annoying financial scenarios to avoid when splitting the bill.