Pocket-Worthy Reads

Stories to fuel your mind

The Conversation

Why Mourning a Pet Can Be Harder Than Grieving for a Person

Disenfranchised grief refers to losses that society doesn’t fully appreciate or ignores. This makes it harder to mourn, at least in public.

Homes & Gardens

I Found Decluttering Exhausting – Then I Tried the ‘One Touch’ Tidying Rule

The ‘one touch’ rule could be the solution if keeping your home tidy feels like a never ending challenge.

Inverse

The Universal Remote Is Streaming’s Most Tragic Casualty

Universal remotes promised to simplify controlling TV entertainment centers. Then streaming happened.

Smithsonian Magazine

Eight of Literature’s Most Powerful Inventions—and the Neuroscience Behind How They Work

These reoccuring story elements have proven effects on our imagination, our emotions and other parts of our psyche.

Popular Science

One Notebook Could Replace All the Productivity Apps That Have Failed You

A nerd’s guide to bullet journaling.

BBC Future

How Cities Will Fossilize

The grand metropolises of 21st Century civilization will leave a geological legacy that will last for millennia, but some things will endure far longer than others.

Mental Floss

The Right Way to Hold Your Cat, According to a Vet

All the cuddles, none of the struggle.

Outside

Jessica Nabongo's Lessons from Visiting Every Country

Nabongo is the first documented black woman and first Ugandan to travel to every sovereign nation. Here’s what she learned along the way.

The Hustle

The Millionaire Who Lost It All and Became a Castaway

When David Glasheen lost his fortune in the 1980s stock crash, he packed a small suitcase and moved to a remote island.

Greater Good Magazine

Does Venting Your Feelings Actually Help?

While letting your negative emotions out may feel good in the moment, science suggests it might make matters worse in the long run.

Scientific American

For Alzheimer’s Sufferers, Brain Inflammation Ignites a Neuron-Killing “Forest Fire”

And it could also be the kindling sparking Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative maladies.

Aeon

On the Benefits of a Blue Period

Painful times can confer benefits that make us happier over the long term.

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 1

PBS

In the Gray World of GLP-1 Supplements Online, Health Experts Urge Caution

TikTok beauty influencer Kaycee Ogle is regularly contacted by brands who want her to promote their products. But one email she received in June was different, and made her curious.

Mother Jones

The Surgery That Reveals Everything That’s Wrong With Women’s Health Care

From "wandering wombs" to modern biases, the troubling politics of hysterectomies

The American Scholar

Hundreds and Thousands

I didn’t know how you could inventory memories. I might search for a particular one, bring it up, dust it off. But how to count five days’ worth?

The Independent

Meet the Childfree Communities Planning for a Future Without Kids

As increasing numbers of us can’t or won’t have children, Helen Coffey talks to those who are planning their lives without a nuclear family, and investigates why government policy has yet to catch up with this rapidly growing demographic.

The Hustle

The Only State Without a Walgreens Pharmacy

Many independent pharmacies are in turmoil throughout the US. But a unique law has made North Dakota a haven for mom-and-pop operators.

The Baffler

Winging It

For those trying to overcome their fears of flying, it’s been . . . a challenging time to say the least.

The Cut

What If a Child Was Terrified of Food?

The rise of ARFID, a new eating disorder driven not by body image but by fear.

Punch

Are Kava and Kratom Drinks Addictive?

In detox centers and online support communities, it’s called “the little blue devil.” But its real name is less insidious: “Feel Free” is a drink sold in tiny blue bottles in gas stations, liquor stores and smoke shops to people 21 years or older.

Recommended Reads

Curated by Pocket

Dazed

So You Want to Quit Your Smartphone?

Thinking of getting rid of your iPhone for good? Here’s everything you need to know

Vox

The Spin Master in Charge of Feeding Gaza

Johnnie Moore, executive chair of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, is a PR professional without much experience in aid.

Vanity Fair

Inside the Fiery Backlash Against Paramount’s Late Show Cancellation

The furor we’ve seen on late night and ‘South Park’ is just the beginning: TV writers plan to make the cultural cost of capitulating to Trump as high as possible.

Kiplinger

From Dream Apartment to Nightmare: When Your Landlord Evicts You Through No Fault of Your Own

This is what I suggested a tenant do to get out of her lease after her landlord’s inexperience and lack of action made her rental situation unsafe. It’s a legal situation called ‘constructive eviction.’

NBC News

As NBA Teams Chase Youth in the Quest for a Title, This Team Is Trying the Opposite Approach

The Los Angeles Clippers have assembled perhaps the oldest roster in NBA history. Will that experience be a strength or a liability?

Nautilus

These “Junk” Proteins May Fuel Adaptation

And they could help some creatures adjust to changing climates

Parents

Your Teen Was Unproductive This Summer—What Now?

Gen Z teens experience more pressure than ever to be productive and active during their time off. Here’s what to know if your teen spent most of their time on the couch during the summer.

ProPublica

Idaho Schools Consistently Break Disability Laws. Parents Say They’re Not Doing Enough to Fix the Problem.

Idaho students with disabilities have worse outcomes than many of their peers in other states, according to federal data. Parents say it can take months to evaluate students, and in some cases schools have refused to provide needed services.

Time

Police and Courts Are Turning to AI. Is the System Ready for It?

How AI is reshaping the criminal justice system—for better or worse.

Fast Company

Watch Out, Starbucks: Taco Bell Just Introduced Its Own ‘Secret Menu’ Feature

Weeks after Starbucks turned its ‘secret menu’ into an official feature, Taco Bell tests out a similar strategy, now available in its app.

Axios

Trump’s Billion-Dollar Settlement Spree

A potential $500 million settlement with Harvard would be the largest scalp to date.

Nature

AI Models Are Neglecting African Languages — Scientists Want to Change That

Scientists record 9,000 hours of languages spoken in Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa as free-access training data for AI models.

Life Hacks

Tips for better living

CNN

‘Ozempic Face’ May Be Driving a Cosmetic Surgery Boom

“You can only refill a deflated balloon so much, and often surgical intervention is necessary.”

CNBC

While the Fed Kept Its Benchmark Unchanged, Here’s What Happened to Consumer Borrowing Rates

When it meets this week, the Federal Reserve is widely expected to keep its key short-term interest rate at its current target range — where it has stayed for all of 2025.

CNBC

Back-to-School Shopping Is More Expensive This Year — Here’s the Breakdown

This year, parents will pay more for back-to-school essentials such as pens, pencils and backpacks.

Maclean’s

Confessions of the Working Poor

I work hard, buy quality clothes and know how to fake my way through dinner-party conversations. But behind the scenes, I’m part of a fast-growing Canadian underclass.

The New York Times

Study May Undercut Idea That Cash Payments to Poor Families Help Child Development

Rigorous new research appears to show that monthly checks intended to help disadvantaged children did little for their well-being, adding a new element to a dispute over expanded government aid.

CNBC

Even Many High-Earning Americans Don’t Feel Wealthy. Here’s Why

Many high earners in the U.S. still feel broke. Between lifestyle creep, debt and social pressure, even $200,000 per year doesn’t always buy peace of mind.

The Associated Press

If You Don’t Have Diabetes, Do You Really Need a Continuous Glucose Monitor?

A quarter-size device that tracks the rise and fall of sugar in your blood is the latest source of hope — and hype — in the growing buzz around wearable health technology.

NPR

The Manhattan Gunman Believed He Had CTE. What Does That Mean?

The gunman accused of killing four people in New York City suspected he had chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE — a degenerative brain disease often associated with football players.

CNBC

Animal Shelters Are Crowded as High Costs Squeeze Pet Owners

Millions of animals are stuck in increasingly cramped shelters because their owners are struggling to pay rising vet bills and other expenses.

The Guardian

‘It Would Destroy Me’: Fear of Student Loan Default Haunts US Borrowers

The Trump administration has ended the pandemic-era pause on repayments, leaving many facing colossal debts.

Vox

How to Make the Hardest Choices of Your Life

From picking a career to picking a spouse, one radical philosophical idea will guide you.

NPR

In a First, the Senate Confirms a New CDC Director

Susan Monarez is the first director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to require Senate confirmation. She’s also the first director without a medical degree in more than 70 years.