Pocket Future

Pocket-Worthy Reads

Stories to fuel your mind

Inverse

How a Simple Mario Spinoff Perfected the Party Game Formula

Better with friends.

The Guardian

The Lost Girls: ‘Chaotic and Curious, Women With ADHD All Have Missed Red Flags That Haunt Us’

After multiple burnouts, in my early 30s I finally knew why life sometimes felt harder for me. It made perfect sense, so why had no one noticed before?

Narratively

How Conquering the Disney Cosplay Universe Helped Me Finally Love My Body

As a kid, I thought I was too fat to dress up as my favorite cartoon characters. As an adult, I discovered a subculture that became one of the greatest joys of my life.

The Guardian

How Woodworking Is Helping People Carve Out Inner Peace

The craft is gaining popularity among those in search of a way to slow down, switch off and improve mental health.

The Atlantic

A Sneaky Theory of Where Language Came From

It might have hijacked our early ancestors’ brains.

MIT Press Reader

What Irony Is Not

A handy guide to distinguishing the notoriously slippery concept from its distant cousins coincidence, satire, parody, and paradox.

Quanta Magazine

Machines Beat Humans on a Reading Test. But Do They Understand?

A tool known as BERT can now beat humans on advanced reading-comprehension tests. But it's also revealed how far AI has to go.

Elle

Why Won’t People Just Let Me Not Be a Mom?

No, I’m not a “fur mama,” a “plant mommy,” and I did not “birth” my book.

Literary Hub

The Real Dracula Is a Detective Story

Forget what you think you know about the ur-vampire story. Bram Stoker’s masterpiece was a sprawling, radical detective novel.

Scott Young

You Fail to Reach Your Goals Because You Designed Them Badly

No one is preconditioned to fail. If you’re struggling with a project, perhaps it’s time for a different approach.

Fast Company

What to Do When You Feel Like You Don’t Fit In at Work

Culture fit isn’t just a fluffy goal. Having friends at work is important for your productivity and happiness.

BBC Culture

Why Being Messy Is Good for You

From “non-aesthetic” homes to Frazzled English Woman and Marie Kondo, there’s a new wave of realism about what our lives are like. Holly Williams explores the life-changing magic of mess.

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

Saturday, August 9

Saveur

That Chewy, Bouncy Texture You Love Has a Name

Whether in boba tea, cuttlefish, rice noodles, or cassava dough, the texture of QQ connects people across cultures and generations.

The New Yorker

The Internet Wants to Check Your I.D.

New safety rules require users to verify their identities before gaining access to sites. This spells the end of the relative anonymity that we’ve come to expect online.

Food52

Our 10 Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes of All Time

From crispy to chewy, we’ve collected the best of the best.

The Guardian

Knife Throwing and Cheeseburger Spinning: The Agony and Ecstasy of Being a Viral Trickshot Video Star

Think you could throw a basketball off a 540ft dam, into a hoop – while blindfolded? Meet the talented and ludicrously patient people putting hours into the internet’s most joyful (and pointless) clips.

Lifehacker

Are ‘Ultra-Processed’ Foods Really That Bad for You?

They’ve been linked to heart disease and other health conditions.

BBC

How ’Keep Calm and Carry On’ Became a Divisive 21st-Century Phenomenon

After a forgotten WW2 propaganda poster was discovered in 2000, it found an astounding new resonance in 21st-Century Britain – becoming an endlessly memeable template that is both cherished and mocked.

The Associated Press

The World Nearly Beat Polio. But Fake Records, an Imperfect Vaccine and Missteps Aided Its Comeback.

The World Health Organization has closed in on its bold goal of eradicating polio several times, but the paralytic virus is entrenched in parts of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Condé Nast Traveler

16 Golden Rules That Business Travelers Swear By

People who constantly hit the road for work share what they wish they’d known from the jump.

Does Sleeping on a Problem Really Work?

Your brain does more than dream at night. It also analyzes, organizes, and solves problems.

Smithsonian Magazine

How One Chihuahua Proved to Be a Link to the Ancient Dogs That Moved to Latin America With the Spread of Agriculture

New research shows that ancient dogs did not join Indigenous people in Central and South America until farming became popular—especially of maize

Texas Monthly

Why Fire Ants Are Even More Evil Than You Thought

Why the insect is even more evil than you thought.

BBC

What Are Semiconductors and Why Is Trump Threatening 100% Tariffs?

The President said he plans to introduce 100% tariffs on foreign-made chips, but the largest producers may avoid the levy.

Backpacker

5 Dangerous Animals Hikers Should Watch Out for (and How to Handle an Encounter)

Yes, there are hazardous creatures out there in the woods. But that doesn’t mean you need to fear them. From rattlesnakes to alligators, here’s what you need to know about some of the wild’s most infamous creatures and what to do if you see them.