Pocket Future

Pocket-Worthy Reads

Stories to fuel your mind

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

17 Micro-Workouts That Will Change Your Life – Even if You’re Stuck in the Office

No time for a run or a trip to the gym? Exercise ‘snacks’ are the answer. All you need is some stairs, a wall and 120 seconds away from your desk or sofa.

MIT Press Reader

Did HAL Commit Murder?

The HAL 9000 computer and the ethics of murder by and of machines.

Architectural Digest

12 Boutique Hotels Outside Major U.S. Cities That Make the Case for a Road Trip

There’s something restorative about spending a weekend at a historical mansion in a small town.

Mental Floss

7 Prehistoric Creatures That Aren’t Dinosaurs

These prehistoric beasts deserve just as much recognition as their dinosaur peers.

Harvard Business Review

What the Best Mentors Do

Mentorship comes in many flavors. It doesn’t always work unless leaders bear in mind a few common principles.

Greater Good Magazine

How to Become a Friend to Yourself

Kristin Neff and Chris Germer explain how self-compassion can transform the way you handle suffering.

The War Zone

The One Time North Vietnam’s MiGs Attacked U.S. Navy Warships

In 1972, the Vietnamese People’s Air Force launched a one-of-its-kind air raid against U.S. Navy warships in the Gulf of Tonkin.

The Washington Post

How to Make Sure Your White Sneakers Stay White

You probably don’t need a fancy kit to keep your kicks looking their best.

Afar

The Packing Hack That Will Solve All Your Suitcase Woes

There’s even a formula you can use to combat overpacking.

The Atlantic

The Case for Sleepovers

They are a chance for children to be silly and a touch subversive, and to get a glimpse of how other families live their lives.

Quartz

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

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

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 Conversation

Can Air Conditioning Really Make You Sick? A Microbiologist Explains.

If an air conditioning system malfunctions or isn’t properly maintained, it can become contaminated with infectious microbes.

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.

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.