Pocket-Worthy Reads

Stories to fuel your mind

Aeon

My Mom

I love her and it’s a secret. I love her so much it kills me, and you bet I’d sooner die than tell her.

Greater Good Magazine

How to Become a Scientist of Your Own Emotions

A Q&A with researcher Marc Brackett about how to cultivate emotional intelligence in ourselves and our kids.

Country Living

Pro Tips For Your Car Camping Adventure

Explore America like you haven’t before.

Glamour

This Easy Trick Will Give You Heavenly, Fluffy Pancakes in Minutes

You can making perfect brunch pancakes with this recipe, even if your cooking skills usually rely on a microwave.

The Marginalian (formerly Brain Pickings)

The Good Luck of Your Bad Luck

Marcus Aurelius on the Stoic strategy for weathering life’s waves and turning suffering into strength.

Knowable Magazine

How the Placebo Effect Went Mainstream

Back when it was published in 1955, Henry Beecher’s paper paved the way for sounder drug trials and pushed scientists to better understand how we process pain.

Nautilus

How to Understand Extreme Numbers

Some numbers are so large they are difficult to grasp, yet still necessary.

Allure

How to Lucid Dream (and Enjoy It), According to Experts

Contrary to what TikTok says, it doesn't have to be scary.

Smithsonian Magazine

An Evolutionary Timeline of Homo Sapiens

Scientists share the findings that helped them pinpoint key moments in the rise of our species.

Stylist

How to Identify the 4 Subtle Steps a Narcissist Takes Before Invading Your Life

How to recognize even the most subtle and covert phases of narcissistic control, according to a psychologist.

BBC Future

Why Some People Can Deal With The Cold

A gene mutation that allowed our ancestors to venture north might also give some of us a competitive sporting advantage.

The Atlantic

26 Brilliant Movies That Critics Were Wrong About

A group of films, ranging from art-house gems to big blockbusters, that deserve a fresh look.

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

Monday, July 28

The Guardian

How Video Games Are Keeping Romance Alive – One Level at a Time

Some are using Final Fantasy and GTA Online as dating sites and long-time lovers are finding comfort and connection through Resident Evil. Could video games be the ultimate relationship tool?

The Guardian

The Rise and Fall of the British Cult That Hid in Plain Sight

Philippa Barnes was a child when her family joined the Jesus Fellowship. As an adult, she helped expose the shocking scale of abuse it had perpetrated.

Vanity Fair

How Goop Culture Helped Create MAHA

The California-based gynecologist and Gwyneth biography source, Dr. Jen Gunter, on everything from how she views Gwyneth Paltrow’s legacy to the most difficult aspects of fighting pseudoscience claims.

NPR

The Best Games of 2025 So Far, Picked by NPR’s Staff

From indies like ’Blue Prince’ to big console exclusives like ’Donkey Kong Bananza’, NPR staff and contributors round up their favorite games of the year so far.

The New Yorker

Mary Had Schizophrenia—Then Suddenly She Didn’t

Some psychiatric patients may actually have treatable autoimmune conditions. But what happens to the newly sane?

Esquire

What I Didn’t Understand About My Autistic Son, and What I’m Learning Now That He’s an Adult

I have opened my heart and my mind to Sam, and he’s brought both of us to the place we so desperately need to be.

The Guardian

Why Are Thailand and Cambodia Engaged in a Border Conflict?

Territory mapped during France’s colonial rule is behind clash that has exposed tensions between the countries.

Vox

Why Your Energy Bill Is Suddenly So Much More Expensive

And why it’s not getting cheaper any time soon.

Recommended Reads

Curated by Pocket

Smithsonian Magazine

More Than 90 Percent of the World’s Fungal ‘Hotspots’ Are Not Protected, New Study Suggests

Mycorrhizal fungi play an essential role in climate regulation and ecosystem health, and researchers have used A.I. to predict the locations that host a high diversity of these underground organisms

Gizmodo

The Greek Small-Town Doctor Who Knows AI’s Secrets

On vacation far from any tech hub, I stumbled upon a physician on the cutting edge of technology. He uses a simple trick to stop AI “hallucinations” and believes robots will soon perform surgery, revealing the promise and peril of our automated future.

Nature

Controversial ‘Arsenic Life’ Paper Retracted After 15 Years — but Authors Fight Back

The journal Science retracts a headline-grabbing study, but the authors vigorously defend their data and say the retraction is unwarranted.

Food & Wine

7 Ways to Make Your Morning Toast More Delicious, According to Chefs

From good butter to unexpected combinations like peanut butter and pickled vegetables, here’s how chefs upgrade a slice of toasted bread.

Popular Mechanics

Earth Has Tilted 31.5 Inches. That Shouldn’t Happen.

Can we fix it back?

The Hollywood Reporter

Prize Fight: Inside an Oscar Family Feud

When ‘In the Heat of the Night’ star Rod Steiger died, he left behind a glittering array of major awards. Now his daughter is fighting her step-sister in a bitter battle to reclaim them.

The Atlantic

Science Is Winning the Tour De France

Why today’s competitors far surpass the cheating champions of yesteryear.

CBS News

New Exhibit Explores the Impact and Legacy of the Hollywood Blacklist

In the late 1940s, the work of the House Un-American Activities Committee eventually led to a Hollywood blacklist, now the focus of an exhibit at the New York Historical Society.

History Extra

How a Forgotten Law Helped Women’s Football Conquer the World – but Only by Accident

A landmark US law passed more than 50 years ago helped build the world’s most successful national women’s football team. Historian Jean Williams explains how Title IX changed the game, and why the rest of the world is still playing catch-up

KFF Health News

Tribal Health Officials Work to Fill Vaccination Gaps As Measles Outbreak Spreads

Native American tribes and health organizations are hosting clinics and calling patients to counteract low measles vaccination rates and limited access to health care as the disease spreads across the country.

Reuters

Trump Signs Order Aimed at Curbing Big-Money College Sports Payouts

President Donald Trump waded into a debate over the influence of big-money payouts in college sports on Thursday, signing an executive order adding federal government scrutiny to the practice.

SELF

5 High-Protein Vegan and Vegetarian Breakfasts to Power Your Morning

Eating plant-based may be good for the environment (not to mention you!), but it can make it tougher to get enough of certain nutrients from food alone, including one key macro: protein.

Life Hacks

Tips for better living

NPR

Dear Life Kit: My Friend Says Ugly Things About Her Body and It Makes Me Anxious

Body-acceptance advocate Katie Sturino and Ronald Young Jr., host of the podcast Weight for It, answer listener questions about body image, weight loss drugs and bullying.

The Atlantic

The Problem With Rewards Credit Cards

Their fees are getting higher—and their benefits are sometimes wildly complicated to redeem.

Parents

A Parent Let Their Son Choose What to Do With Money They Found–Here’s What He Decided

Doing real-time experiments like this in the wild can teach us a lot about our kids and ourselves as parents.

Harvard Business Review

The Right Way to Prepare for a High-Stakes Conversation

Before commercial pilots push back from the gate, they complete a comprehensive preflight check to verify that every system functions correctly during the journey ahead.

Kiplinger

Are You an Auto Theft Target? Discover the Clues

Thieves seized over 850,000 cars last year. See which models, states and behaviors draw the eyes of opportunists.

NPR

Home Sales Are Down. So Why Are Prices at an All-Time High?

Those with equity in a home can trade up more easily, while many first-time homebuyers are still stuck on the sidelines.

Fast Company

How to Go From Quiet to Commanding

An executive coach offers introverts five tips for sounding more confident. You’re smart, capable, and consistently deliver results. But in meetings, your voice disappears.

The Guardian

‘Old People Are Capable of More’: Meet the Female Weightlifters in Their 70s and 80s

Forget the stereotype of the frail old woman who needs help carrying groceries – fitness mavens like Joan MacDonald show you can strength train at any age.

Time

What to Say to Someone With Cancer 

Some well-meaning phrases don’t always go over well.

USA TODAY

Young People Always Worry About Social Security. Older People Are Joining Them.

Americans are worrying more about Social Security, and the Trump administration may be partly to blame.  In an AARP survey released July 22, only 36% of Americans voiced confidence in the future of the retirement trust fund, down from 43% in 2020.

NPR

Doctors Urge FDA to Remove Black Box Warning on Hormone Therapy for Menopause

The FDA may remove the warning labels on hormone replacement therapies used to treat the symptoms of menopause. Doctors say the warning is scaring people who could benefit from these treatments.

USA TODAY

Estate Sales Are Booming. Thank Gen Z

Environmentally-conscious young people are heading to estate sales for low cost, well-made products.