Pocket-Worthy Reads

Stories to fuel your mind

Greater Good Magazine

36 Questions That Can Help Kids Make Friends

A question-and-answer exercise may help middle schoolers build friendships, including with kids of different ethnicities.

Bicycling

Meet the Tech-Savvy Sleuths Who Will Hunt Down Your Stolen Bike

If they can’t find it in two weeks, they’ll give you a new one—guaranteed.

Esquire

‘How Can You Still Be a Christian?’ He Asked. It’s...Complicated.

A colleague asked me, a queer man who grew up being told my sexuality was a sin, how I could still be Christian. Here’s my answer.

MEL Magazine

An Oral History of LimeWire: The Little App That Changed the Music Industry Forever

And the untold story of a Spotify killer that never saw the light of day.

Inverse

How to Shut off Your Brain: 4 Science-Backed Tips to Stop Thinking and Relax

“One of the reasons why chatter feels so bad is it's all-consuming, and you feel trapped.”

BBC Worklife

The Harmful Ableist Language You Unknowingly Use

Some of our most common, ingrained expressions have damaging effects on millions of people – and many of us don’t know we’re hurting others when we speak.

Bustle

TikTok’s “Cognitive Shuffling” Hack Can Help You Fall Asleep In Minutes

For when your brain decides to run through your to-do list at 11 p.m.

The Conversation

Five Tips to Help You Get Your Children Reading for Pleasure

...with five books chosen by children.

Outside

How to Plan a Successful Road Trip

Whether you’re going for a weekend, a week, or a month, there are some general rules to live by.

Smithsonian Magazine

The Inventor of Ibuprofen Tested the Drug on His Own Hangover

Stewart Adams’ headache subsided—and his over-the-counter pain reliever became one of the world’s most popular medications.

Atlas Obscura

The Forgotten History of New York’s Bagel Famines

Remembering Local 338 and the world’s toughest bagel bakers.

WIRED

How to Responsibly Dispose of Your Electronics

Get rid of old, broken, and unused devices—even Lightning cables—without adding to the e-waste problem.

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, July 11

Texas Monthly

At 40, She Discovered She Was One of America’s Best Free Divers

Sara Burnett went from an introductory course to a world championship in just over a year.

The New Yorker

How to Save a Dog

For nearly a year, a motley crew scoured New Orleans for a shaggy white mutt named Scrim.

ABC

Finding Robert Bogucki, the Man Who Disappeared on Purpose

In 1999 a young American dumped his bicycle and walked out into the Great Sandy Desert. Why was he willing to risk his life, and why do some people need to get lost in order to feel found?

WIRED

AI Is a Lousy Chef

I asked an AI-powered recipe generator to make some menus. It didn’t tell me to put glue in my guacamole, but the results didn’t come close to besting recipes written by professionals.

The New York Times

How a Single Overdose Unraveled an Empire of Heroin

A man’s death after using “Flow” in a small Vermont city exposed a drug operation that spanned continents and sent a New York prosecutor on a heartbreaking journey.

Slate

The Menagerie Lurking in Rural America

Many people still own exotic animals like they’re any other pet. But they’re not.

Substack

The Death of Partying in the U.S.A.—and Why It Matters

Young Americans today spend 70 percent less time attending or hosting parties than they did at the beginning of the 21st century. Why?

Elle

How a ‘Breakup Moon’ Trip Helped Us Say Goodbye

My boyfriend and I knew our relationship was over. We decided to go to New Zealand anyway.

Recommended Reads

Curated by Pocket

The Ringer

The Last Grand Slam Stand of Novak Djokovic

Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have won the last six men’s Grand Slams and surpassed Djokovic in the rankings. But this weekend could be Djokovic’s last, best chance to add to his tally—and win at the place where his tennis dreams began.

Popular Mechanics

Scientists Found a Place Where the Earth’s Layers Are Upside Down

Normally, younger rocks are deposited above older ones, forming predictable geologic layers. In the North Sea, this process is a bit more complicated.

Yahoo

NBA Draft: Why 18-Year-Old Cooper Flagg Is Ready to Lead the Dallas Mavericks

There’s a burden associated with being anointed basketball’s next rising star. At just 18 years old, Flagg is ready to embrace it.

ProPublica

The Texas Flash Flood Is a Preview of the Chaos to Come

Climate change is making disasters more common, more deadly and far more costly, even as the federal government is running away from the policies that might begin to protect the nation.

ProPublica

Texas Overhauls Anti-Abortion Program That Spent Tens of Millions of Taxpayer Dollars With Little Oversight

After a ProPublica and CBS News investigation revealed that Texas’ funding pipeline for anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers is riddled with waste, nonprofits in the program must now provide a detailed accounting of their expenses.

The Hollywood Reporter

Meet the Trump-Loving Union Boss Who Thinks He Can Save Hollywood

Sean O’Brien, the colorful and combative leader of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, is providing an unexpected line to the White House. But does Hollywood want him as its diplomat?

Time

How Theater Helps Us Remember the Scopes Monkey Trial 100 Years Later

‘Inherit the Wind’ changed how people understand, and remember, the legendary Scopes trial.

Discover

Earth’s Inner Core Is Solid — Not Liquid — Even Though It’s Blistering Hot

Is Earth’s inner core solid or liquid? While the inner core is extremely hot, experts have known that it is solid for many years.

Eating Well

7 Sneaky Signs You Could Have Cognitive Decline, According to Experts

Experts share some common signs that may go unnoticed, plus what to do if you think you’re experiencing cognitive decline.

Capital B

In the Mississippi Delta, Black Farmers Are Rebuilding the Legacy of Land Ownership

They are reviving the mission of an association of Black churches that fed and educated Black families after the Civil War.

CNET

Im Never Splitting AirPods With My Wife Again Thanks to This iPhone Trick

As long as we each have our own set of AirPods, we can watch videos and movies together on an iPhone or iPad.

The 19th

The Child Tax Credit Is Changing. Here’s What It Means for Your Family.

The credit rises to $2,200, but its new requirements will shut out an estimated 2.7 million American children.

Life Hacks

Tips for better living

Psyche

What to Do When Someone Goes on the Defensive

Our natural impulses often make matters worse. Here’s an approach that works, grounded in conflict resolution and psychology.

NBC News

Job Scams Are on the Rise and More People Are Falling for Them

As job-seekers look for work in a challenging environment, an increasing number are falling victim to job scams that promise good pay for completing easy online tasks, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

USA TODAY

Increase Your Social Security Income in Retirement With Three Powerful Moves

There's a reason people are commonly advised not to retire on Social Security alone. The average monthly benefit won't go very far in helping seniors cover their costs.

Harvard Business Review

New Research on Why Teams Overwork—and What Leaders Can Do About It

Why do so many high-performing professionals keep working at a punishing pace, even when it damages their health, relationships, and personal well-being?

Vox

For Years, Women Complained That This Medical Procedure Was Painful. Doctors Are Finally Listening.

How a common birth control method became the center of a reckoning.

CNBC

‘Revenge Savings’ Can Boost Your Bottom Line, Experts Say — Here’s How to Get Started

Saving more money is a perennial resolution, but emotions shouldn't drive that habit, financial experts say. Instead, be intentional. Here's how to get started.

The New York Times

Measles Cases Hit Record High, 25 Years After U.S. Eliminated the Disease

Experts worry that if vaccination rates do not improve, deadly outbreaks will become the new normal.

Gizmodo

This Cough Syrup Ingredient Might Actually Slow Dementia

Several larger trials of ambroxol for Parkinson's are already underway.

Harvard Business Review

How to Identify the Perfect Cofounder

One of the first and most important decisions entrepreneurs make is whether to go it alone or bring on cofounders.

Harvard Business Review

When It’s Time to Leave a Career You’re Passionate About

People worry that others will see them as immoral and incompetent for quitting their passion. These fears are often misplaced.

The Washington Post

I’m a Gastroenterologist. Here’s Why I Tell My Patients to Eat This One Fruit.

Kiwis can boost your gut health. They may also lower triglycerides and cancer risk.

The Atlantic

I Fought Plastic. Plastic Won

My futile quest to avoid the material that my entire world is made out of.