August 7, 2017
Driverless buses debut in Estonia. No major incidents reported yet, though one bus blew a red light. / BBC News
North Korea vows “thousand-fold” revenge for new UN sanctions expected to slash the regime’s export revenue. / The Guardian
Fodder for your Monday morning quarterbacking: Capes in Game of Thrones are actually IKEA rugs. / Quartz
Analysis of 1,000 fortune cookies finds that their “lucky numbers” are legitimately good at winning Powerball. / FiveThirtyEight
Another Fox News host is accused of sexual harassment, in this case sending dick pics to multiple coworkers. / Huffpost
Pop quiz (not really): Which countries are surrounded only by bad relations? / Marginal Revolution
“There is compelling evidence that the devices we’ve placed in young people’s hands are having profound effects on their lives—and making them seriously unhappy.” An expert in generational differences says post-millennials face a smartphone-induced mental health crisis. “The more time teens spend looking at screens, the more likely they are to report symptoms of depression.” / The Atlantic
A fashion model for the Chinese e-commerce retailer Taobao demonstrates how to “hit” 15 poses in 30 seconds. Chinadaily says that some Taobao models make more than 700 poses a day. / chinadaily.com.cn
An oldie but a goodie: Portraits of people who guard art. / TMN
Your Monday white paper: Terror groups sometimes pay “brideprice”—or even provide brides—to recruit new members. / International Security
An analysis of YouTube data shows which ZIP codes are listening to whose music the most. / The New York Times
Chicago sues Trump over new policies that threaten funding for “sanctuary cities.” / CBS News
“Avoid emotions and concentrate on the economics. Invest for the long term and don’t trade. The ups and downs of the markets are unpredictable and foolish in the short term.” The latest Freakonomics podcast episode, “Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Money (But Were Afraid to Ask),” is a pretty excellent example of service journalism for financial advice. / Freakonomics
“Now it’s a Seinfeld convention with a baseball game in the background.” Seinfeld Night with the Brooklyn Cyclones. / The Huffington Post
In the 1950s, “The Mad Bomber” planted 33 bombs around New York City, 22 of which exploded. / Damn Interesting
Last week, some 4chan users cooked up a plan to declare Aug. 11 “Dreamer Day,” inviting undocumented people to stop by a Starbucks to get 40 percent off a Frappuccino—at which point one of the 4chan members would notify ICE to raid the store. However, once they started spreading the word about “Dreamer Day,” people questioned whether it was real and Starbucks confirmed it wasn’t. At least for now, this particular hoax appears to have ended before it began. / BuzzFeed, Twitter
Subtle beauty found in Google Street View by an agoraphobic Londoner who spends endless hours searching. / WIRED
Following the journey of a banana, from Ecuador to your corner bodega. / The New York Times
From Puritans to People, Americans are fascinated by first names as a reflection of something more. / The New Yorker
For your reference files: a four-season index of every song used for the closing credits of Silicon Valley. / theinternet.io
Military exercises are using spy planes over US cities, and your homes and phones are now part of war gaming. / BuzzFeed
Apparently in the hell that is retirement, The Wire’s Police Commissioner Ervin Burrell wanders small town America greeting friends and playing pool, whatever it takes to promote The War on Drugs. / thewire.wikia.com, guitarworld.com