Tuesday headlines: Pivotal to video
Please note: We'll be off the rest of the week and will return on Monday—see you then!
Following yesterday's Supreme Court decision, Manhattan prosecutors agreed to delay Trump's sentencing in the hush money trial. / Associated Press
"It's mind-blowing in terms of not just the results but what it means in the change in the French population." Why the French far right triumphed. / The New Yorker
As the far right continues its rise in Europe, authorities are increasingly confiscating party drugs embellished with Nazi symbols. / VICE
There was a time when corporations chose employees over stock prices, but that died with a 1916 court decision that ushered in today's Shareholder Supremacy. / Where's Your Ed At
Beyond "delve," a new analysis of AI-generated text uncovers more telltale "marker words," such as "comprehensive," "intricate," and "pivotal." / Ars Technica
Figma disables its new AI-fueled app design tool after a user demonstrates how asking it to design a weather app produced a ripoff of Apple's weather app. / 404 Media
The accuracy of US weather forecasts depends on the region—the Great Plains are the most volatile, while Florida predictions are good for at least a week. / The Washington Post [+]
As streaming companies turn to bundling—and become more like cable—now cable companies are turning to streaming. / Ars Technica
An inside look at the decade-long grind of producing the Game of Thrones content that publications depended on for their very survival. / The Verge
The era of famous influencers may be over—reasons why include engagement metrics, the continuing fracturing of the monoculture, and too many influencers. / Glamour
"The pinnacle of his pyramid is reached once a fridge contains foods that express collective virtue." The stages of affluence according to refrigerator contents. / WIRED
See also: Kitchen appliances are smarter, cheaper, and more efficient than ever—but as they become less mechanical, their lifespans shrink. / The Washington Post [+]
Paris's Olympic Village will use geothermal cooling instead of air conditioners—but some national teams are bringing their own ACs anyway. / The Week
Greco-Roman societies were enthusiastic about swimming; but by the Middle Ages, the practice was demonized and feared. / Literary Hub
To connect ancestral roots that span from Istanbul to North Carolina, a writer learns the dulcimer. / Longreads
Monday headlines: Touchless grass
After the far right came out ahead in yesterday's elections, France's other parties are withdrawing candidates to try and block Le Pen's party from reaching a majority. / France 24
A new lawsuit alleges Microsoft and two sex-toy retailers are tracking users' personal, private, sensitive information without consent. / 404 Media
"A friend in Los Angeles told me she had recently gone to a party, in a canyon she couldn't disclose, with Hollywood eminences whose names she redacted." NDAs are everywhere now. / The Cut
One theory for why there's an apparent uptick in cases of head lice among children and teens: group selfies with head-to-head contact. / The Washington Post [+]
A health reporter on the one weird health hack you really do need to know: You have an internal bullshit meter. Use it, because it could save your life. / Vox
"Not having power in that situation can be very scary for a lot of individuals." How to deal with the buzzing of cicadas for those with tinnitus or sensory issues. / NPR
On the appeal—and surprisingly, the history—of lawn-mowing video games, beloved for their ability to send our brains into flow states. / The Guardian
Cooking with an electric grill tests what it means to barbecue, and in the case of one model it was "like taking a giant George Foreman grill out on the patio." / Lifehacker
"They seemed like an aspirational item." We have now entered the era of aesthetically pleasing window air conditioners. / The New York Times [+]
A buying guide to beautiful vintage CD players. / In Sheep's Clothing Hi-Fi
Why Alaska's rivers are turning orange: As permafrost melts, acids and metals are released into rivers, rusting the waters. / Atlas Obscura
"Writers of autofiction tend not to spend much time on the Internet, viewing it (wisely) as competition. Other writers do." / Literary Hub
Saturday headlines: Free for me but not for thee
By overruling the decision that led to Chevron doctrine, the Supreme Court just upended federal agencies' authority to interpret laws. / SCOTUSblog
Related: The ruling could have a major effect on environmental regulations and the speed with which agencies can react to scientific findings. / Yale Environment 360
Drought and inflation have hit prairie states particularly hard, with farm income expected to be at its lowest since at least 2010. / Reuters
India is set to embark on a massive project that would link several of its rivers in hopes of balancing areas prone to flooding and those prone to water shortages. / Hakai Magazine
By allowing hemp sales but bungling the legal limits of THCa, Texas inadvertently created a massive drug market that understaffed regulators can't contain. / Texas Monthly
After Roe was overturned, the rate of young women getting sterilized doubled in America. / KFF Health News
If anything, AI search can offer a starting point when looking for answers, but humans still outperform bots in discerning the accuracy of information. / Vox
See also: Microsoft AI's CEO calls online content "freeware" for training models—except for content that's produced by anyone with lawyers. / The Register
"Something else to know about Jane's friends and coworkers is that they all use two spaces after periods." Plundering Jane Appleseed's emails from an Apple Store. / Escape the Algorithm
Caity Weaver on Frontier House, the PBS reality show that remains unmatched in its unhinged authenticity. / The New York Times Magazine [+]
Considered the first horror film, 1896's three-minute The House of the Devil established some of today's horror-movie clichés. / Boing Boing
"I feel myself stepping into the role of the critics who went after the magazine in 1974." What happened to People magazine? / Culture Study
Friday headlines: Mind games
Yes, Democrats are panicking about Biden's poor debate showing, and while there are calls to replace him, he'd have to drop out first. / The New York Times [+], POLITICO
Hamilton Nolan: "This is the outcome of any system in which wealth and power naturally accumulate over time." / How Things Work
By allowing officials to pressure social networks to remove content, the Supreme Court may have squashed influence operations—but the decision threatens free speech. / Platformer
AI search engine Perplexity, which bases its business on plagiarizing news sources, is under investigation by AWS for scraping sites without consent. / The Verge, Engadget
"My job wasn't to be a Shakespeare expert, it was to be interesting." Behind the scenes as a book commentator tasked with training an AI reading companion. / WIRED
Human brains are nothing like computers—not in the ways they process, access, or store data—and it's a fallacy that has persisted since the dawn of the computer age. / Aeon
BreakTime is a game like Breakout, but it runs inside Google Calendar and can—if you wish—decline the meetings you destroy. / eieio.games
"Rather than living longer, people who consumed daily multivitamins were marginally more likely than non-users to die in the study period." / The Guardian
How the colors fire hydrants are painted denote their capacity—red is the highest, blue is the lowest. / National Fire Sprinkler Association
See also: The federal government's official color palette—yes, it has one—controls much of what we see. An investigation into how America elects to paint itself. / The Morning News
Legendary Texas satirist, musician, and onetime gubernatorial candidate Kinky Friedman has died at 79. / The Texas Tribune
The BBC sound effect library. / BBC
Thursday headlines: Newsy nugz
Explaining the Supreme Court's decision in the Idaho abortion case: It "does nothing to help those same patients in the other 49 states." / Vox
Since Biden's new asylum restrictions took effect, daily crossings of undocumented migrants have fallen to the lowest level of his presidency. / POLITICO
Yesterday, armored vehicles broke into Bolivia's government palace as part of a general's apparent coup attempt. / The Boston Globe
"If we have access to the technology and finance, I think we can save the Maldives... the problem is, we don't have access to finance and technology." / The New York Times [+]
The audio samples that show how AI music startups are infringing on copyright sure do make the music industry's lawsuit sound like an open-and-shut case. / 404 Media
See also: YouTube is offering record labels upfront payments to let it train AI song generators on artists' music. / Ars Technica
"I started working as a data scientist in 2019, and by 2021 I had realized that while the field was large, it was also largely fraudulent." I will fucking piledrive you if you mention AI again. / Ludicity
Why medical ethics need to be integrated as early as possible in the development of AI digital health tools: It all comes down to "do no harm." / STAT
Josh Wardle shows Wordle's early design iterations, and reveals the game's original name: Mr. Bugs' Wordy Nugz. / The Verge
A fascinating, behind-the-scenes look at how the British Film Institute restores sound to aging films. / BFI
Paramount just "streamlined" its site and in the process erased more than 25 years of The Daily Show. / LateNighter
"When you remove the headphones, there is probably no one around to talk to." Life as a low-ranked pro tennis player. / The Guardian
See also: A pro author challenges a pro tennis player to a tournament. A story of dueling, drumming, and one extraordinary victory. / The Morning News
A Q&A with the no-tipping influencer who is either a hero holding restaurants accountable or just some asshole. / LA Taco
Wednesday headlines: Canceling noise
Some Providence residents say the city is too noisy, and the mayor agrees, but plans to curtail noise could unfairly target poor and immigrant communities. / The New York Times [+]
See also: Johns Hopkins undergrads have invented a 40% quieter leaf blower. / Johns Hopkins University
"It's designed to fix a problem that technology is responsible for introducing into our lives in the first place." Is noise canceling bad for us? / Heavies
A study has found forever chemicals can enter the bloodstream through the skin—especially concerning in the case of sunscreen and waterproof cosmetics. / The Washington Post [+]
"It's oddly relaxing because of the nostalgia factor, but it's also the lack of any real drama that I love." The John Candy guide to Midwestern summer. / The Melt
See also: Even as some summer camps ban ghost stories, a reasonable amount of spookiness may help some children learn to deal with feelings of stress and fear. / Atlas Obscura
And also: This week at Camp ToB, we wrap up our discussion of Tommy Orange's Wandering Stars. / The Tournament of Books
Your weekly white paper: "An Anatomy of Algorithm Aversion," or when people "prefer human forecasters or decision-makers to algorithms." / SSRN
"How someone talks is no longer a reliable indicator of where they're coming from." How social media broke slang. / The Atlantic
An interactive deep dive into where the 4.1 million migrants who live in the US originally came from, and where they've settled. / The Washington Post [+]
Recreating Schotter, Georg Nees's iconic 1968 generative artwork, in Python. / Zellyn
Watch: Ranking every elevator in the Myst series. / YouTube
Tuesday headlines: Crushing it
Abortions are on the rise nationally, bans are more likely to hurt the maternal health of Black women, and other ways abortion has changed since Roe ended two years ago. / Vox
A Texas medical panel has approved additional guidance for doctors performing abortions, including modifying some reporting requirements—but refused to list exemptions to the ban. / Associated Press
See also: Before Roe was overturned, Texas had an average of 4,400 abortions a month; now it's five. And infant mortality has increased by nearly 13%. / The Texas Tribune, STAT
"They wrote off our heat rashes as poor hygiene." Amazon workers say facilities are blazing hot, with some indoor work areas reaching into the 90s. / The Daily Beast
Google's AI search consumes 10 times the energy of a traditional Google search, and around the same amount of power as talking on a landline for an hour. / Jacobin
"Flooding the internet with an infinite amount of what could pass for journalism is cheap and even easier than I imagined, as long as I didn't respect the craft, my audience, or myself." / 404 Media
All three major record labels have filed a lawsuit accusing AI music startups Suno and Udio of copyright infringement, seeking damages up to $150K per stolen work. / Musically
"I…wanted to crush this object with another iconic element from the oldest culture in America." Sculptor Chavis Mármol drops a nine-ton replica of an Olmec head on a Tesla. / Hyperallergic
In 2018, health guidelines stopped recommending adults over 60 take aspirin daily to prevent cardiovascular events, though nearly a third still follow the old guidance. / STAT
Nine years after the Apple Watch launch, users will finally be able to choose a ringtone. / 9to5Mac
See also: Why "By the Seaside" is Apple's most polarizing ringtone. / CNN
"Imagine an extra-extra-thick, slightly under-seasoned soup. Anyone would be lucky to eat it." Dog food is so fancy now that I ate some. / The Atlantic [+]
Saturday headlines: Don’t even glow there
More than 1,170 pilgrims die during this year's hajj due to extreme heat. / The Wall Street Journal [+]
A journalist shot by Minneapolis police while covering protests over the death of George Floyd is dying of her injuries. / NPR
Extremist groups are using AI to spread their messages more efficiently and recruit new members. / WIRED
Derek Thompson: We really are living in an era of negativity-poisoned discourse that is historically unique. / X
Barcelona plans to ban apartment rentals to tourists by 2028, to make the city more liveable for residents. / Reuters
A new show in New York City underlines the importance of Vivian Maier's street photography. / Artsy
Could a "glow-down" become a trend for bity-city restaurants? I.e., "an unphotogenic room, clashing and utilitarian signage, low-key food and service." / The New Yorker
Unrelated: What viewers of gay porn are searching for, state by state. / Them
A guide to trends in the wine world at the moment. / Punch
Some scans from 1976's Cocaine Consumer's Handbook. / Flashbak
A professor of medieval literature answers questions from X about the Middle Ages. / Open Culture
Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Willem Dafoe, and other actors explain what it's like to be in a Yorgos Lanthimos movie. "He does like to do impressions of me." / GQ
Friday headlines: Sorry, Homer
The White House plans to send nearly $110 million in security and police assistance to Haiti. / Reuters
While Zimbabwe's economy worsens, traditional healers are making money by promising people wealth. / rest of world
Congress almost unanimously passed a clean energy bill this week and "it didn't receive a single mention from any of the cable news networks." / Wake Up to Politics
Related: See how your city is likely to feel in 2070 as the climate crisis continues. / The Pudding
Montana contains nearly twice as many cows as people, but only about one percent of beef eaten by locals is raised and processed in the state. / The New York Times [+]
Smartphones are a global phenomenon, but the rise in youth anxiety is not—unless young people start copying Americans. / The Atlantic
Young designers and illustrators describe what it's like to watch corporations mimic their style. / It's Nice That
Millennials love ankle socks, Gen Z loves calf socks, and never shall the twain meet. / The New York Times [+]
Need a new hobby for summer? A basic guide to reading wildlife tracks and signs. / Atlas Obscura
A report from attending some of this winter's balls in Vienna, a tradition that started in 1814. / The Dial
A music teacher explains why the bottom number in time signatures is so confusing. / Ethan teaches you music
"It feels kinda blasphemous to say, but by modern standards, I don't think the Iliad is very good. Sorry, Homer." When classics don't live up to the hype. / A Reasonable Approximation
Thursday headlines: It’s a disc, man
Leading AI chatbots are spreading Russian disinformation created by an American fugitive operating from Moscow. / NewsGuard
A major expansion is underway inside one of Iran's nuclear facilities. / Semafor
A majority of Iranians now support Iran pursuing nuclear weapons. / Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
See also: How to use free satellite imagery to monitor the expansion of West Bank settlements. / Bellingcat
Students from more than 120 colleges pledge to refuse work from Google or Amazon until they quit selling cloud services to the Israeli government. / WIRED
Two thirds of Gen Z workers on Linkedin want a "green" job. / Business Insider
Climate activists paint Stonehenge orange to the dismay of politicians and pagan priests. / The Guardian
Trees more than 1,500 kilometers apart will drop their fruit at the same time. / Quanta Magazine
What is it like to eat at one of supposedly the world's 50 best restaurants? "It was an assault, and not fun." / The New York Times [+]
A fashion expert explains why "the most powerful men in America are the worst dressed." / Vox
Unrelated: Some tips on how to extract insights with seemingly limited resources. / Understanding the unseen
Scenes from a ballet by one of the former members of Daft Punk. Also, l from "the early ufology scene." / YouTube, Instagram
An argument for buying an old Discman: "There is no better format for discovery than streaming, but no better format for listening than CD." / Andrew Womack
Wednesday headlines: The tiger house rules
In many regions, communicable diseases are surging past their pre-pandemic levels, "often by significant margins." / yahoo! news
The surgeon general calls for a warning label on social media platforms. / The New York Times [+]
You have until June 26 to prevent Meta from using your photos and text to train their generative AI. Eleven steps for opting out. / Ladyparts
Developers are trying to partner with churches, temples, and synagogues to build new housing. / Vox
Along those lines, "Anti-Growth Fervor Grips US South After Pandemic Boom." / Bloomberg
A lot of people supposedly want to become "tiger parents"—or, they want to live near some. / The New Yorker
Unrelated: "Every Place On Earth Has Wrong Amount Of Water." / The Onion
A woman finds out the right-wing internet thinks she's the CIA-connected leader of the "censorship industrial complex." / The Atlantic
See also: A former CIA officer describes how expensive watches are used to recruit spies. / Watches of Espionage
"The best content on the internet is created by people who have turned research into their leisure activity." When your favorite form of entertainment is downloading PDFs. / personal canon
An attempt to understand Ursula K. Le Guin better through her early-internet blog. "It was website as imagination, a website was effort." / DIRT
Tuesday headlines: Neutral milk excel
Millions in the United States, from the Midwest to the Northeast, prepare for a weeklong heat wave. / axios
People explain what it's like to live through a 121 degree day. "I can't complain. Other people have it harder." / Goats and Soda
Researchers say they've found a way to turn wool into graphite, a key component in lithium batteries. / ABC News
Related: A supplier for Apple's batteries claims an "insane" breakthrough in storage. / Ars Technica
Can an AI system that is non-biological be embodied in a meaningful way—is "an open question." / Vox
A new AI company is paying famous authors a lot of money to help people read classic literature. / The New York Times [+]
What is a so-called "creative?" According to Jessa Crispin, it's an artist without the art. / The Culture We Deserve
Remembering MTV's The Real World, which gave birth to reality television. / The New Yorker
A long report from the Microsoft Excel World Championship in Las Vegas. "I can be normal if I need to be." / The Verge
A month spent in Julia Child's home in southern France. A day in the life of a Southern California fast-food manager. / Condé Nast Traveler, The Wall Street Journal [+]
From 1993, remembering the man who spent 42 years playing cards at the Beverly Hills Hotel pool. / Metafilter
Monday headlines: Cogito ergo bum
Chinese and Philippine ships collide, making for a test of Beijing's new coastguard law. / The South China Morning Post
A remote outpost in the South China Sea is said to be the front line of potential conflict. / The Atlantic
During the pandemic, the US military launched a secret campaign to sow doubt in the Philippines about the safety and efficacy of Chinese PPE. / Reuters
See also: Nine health and science takeaways from Anthony Fauci's new memoir. / STAT
An assessment of China as a scientific superpower. / The Economist
Green energy is making fast progress around the world. / Semafor
In 2022, more fish were farmed worldwide than harvested from the wild, seemingly a first. / Grist
Meanwhile, Sephora reportedly sells a jar of "Brazilian Bum Bum Cream" every six seconds. / After School
In response to the rise of AI imagery, a team at The Guardian is making all of its election-coverage artwork by hand. / It's Nice That
As you read these words, do you have a voice saying them in your head? That's "subvocalization." / IFL Science
Sebastian Junger has a new book about near-death experiences. "I saw my father, and I saw the pit." / Vox
"A feud between sisters? Isn't that... female?" Patricia Lockwood is back with an essay about A.S. Byatt. / The London Review of Books
Saturday headlines: So you think you can France
G7 leaders finish their summit in Italy by telling China to quit helping Russia invade Ukraine. / Voice of America
See also: The summit's final communiqué referenced the country 28 times, "almost always as a malign force." / The New York Times [+]
Eight examples of congressional bipartisanship that you probably didn't hear about this week. / Wake Up to Politics
Recent history is repeating itself in Sudan, but this time there's no serious discussion about peacekeepers. "The reality is much more craven." / Persuasion
Related: Summarizing the week in events on the African continent. / This Week in Africa
Teenage American boys are chewing "facial-fitness gum" purported to improve their jawlines. / The Cut
Gwendolyn Bounds: At 46, I started to compete in grueling obstacle-course races. / The Wall Street Journal [+]
An engineer constructs a Memory Palace for his small parts drawers. / Scope of Work
Among headlines we noticed this week: "Tracey Emin, who made that bed, is made a Dame." / The Art Newspaper
A brief history of the EP. An oral history of the Livestrong bracelet. / The Daily Heller, Texas Monthly
Are Japanese whiskies—coveted, delicious, expensive—actually Japanese? "It's complicated." / Esquire
Some thoughts on American fantasies about French parenting. "It feels like a worthy goal to strive for." / Vox
Friday headlines: Call my agent!
The US Supreme Court unanimously rejects a bid by anti-abortion groups to restrict access to the abortion pill mifepristone. / Reuters
Ian Millhiser: This is a victory for abortion rights, but it's also unlikely to be the last word in the fight over mifepristone. / Vox
Ukranian children describe what it's like to be stranded in Russia's orphanage system. (English translation here.) / Verstka, The Dial
See also, from November: Russian women receive instruction in how to be "proper" soldiers' wives. / The Dial
A "jailbreak" version of ChatGPT named Dan is a solace for Chinese women. / BBC News
The Japanese government launches a dating app to address the country's childbirth rates. / VICE
Analysis of the various fictional characters who appear in the background of Apple's keynote demonstrations. / Read Max
An explainer of the story behind the headline of the week, "No, a Remote Amazon Tribe Did Not Get Addicted to Porn." / 404 Media
See also: How data-fueled neurotargeting could kill democracy. / The MIT Press Reader
More than a third of Gen Z and millennial travelers say they prefer a traditional travel agent over online booking. / Business Insider
Travel experts say now is actually a great time to visit San Francisco. / The Points Guy
A skydiver explains what it was like when her parachute failed at 4,000 feet. (She survived.) / The Guardian
Thursday headlines: Shop until you stop
The White House plans to signal long-term commitment to Ukraine by signing a 10-year security agreement. / Newsweek
France's conservative wing implodes overnight. South Africa's ANC party tries to find unity. / Politico, Semafor
Regarding the climate crisis, hundreds of looming projects suggest we're on the verge of an oil boom in reverse—with carbon storage. / MIT Technology Review
See also: Interviews with women who stopped buying clothes. "It took about three to six months before I stopped wanting to shop." / The Cut
SpaceX and Elon Musk are being sued by former employees for sexual harassment. / The Los Angeles
Related: Interviews with several dozen people about Musk's "boundary-blurring relationships" with women at work. / The Wall Street Journal [+]
Asking rents in the United States fall for a 10th straight month. / Vox
In central Stockholm, the average wait for a rent-controlled apartment is 20 years. / The Economist
See also: A long account of how Ye destroyed an architectural masterpiece in Malibu. "This is going to be my Batcave." / The New Yorker
Kenji López-Alt uses computer modeling to find the perfect way to cut an onion. / The New York Times [+]
Supposedly, there's never been a better time to discover storytelling board games? / Metafilter
A literary argument against "story sensibility," i.e., when you expect life to artfully resolve, "and of course it never does." / Castalia
Camp ToB continues with a big chat about the ending in Percival Everett''s James! / The Tournament of Books
Wednesday headlines: America’s next flop model
A new poll finds Donald Trump with a slight edge, but the fundamentals favoring President Biden. / 538
American diplomats and White House aides say the far-right gains in Europe could've been much worse. / Politico
Unrelated: Why is Hungary so small? An illustrated guide. / Uncharted Territories
How the mayors of San Francisco and Los Angeles approach homelessness and drug use differently. / The Los Angeles Times
Banks like Chase, Citibank and Bank of America are redesigning their physical branches to resemble Starbucks. / Bloomberg
Scientists working to map the topology of the cosmos say we might be living inside a big donut. / The Guardian
"If the AI people are correct, then I don't think the public has any idea what's about to hit them." / The Money Illusion
From 2017, Cormac McCarthy attempts to explain the unconscious. / Nautilus
Some pictures of large artworks at this month's Art Basel. / The Art Newspaper
"Welcome to the summer of the mysteriously flopping arena tours." Theories abound on why bands are canceling their summer concerts. / Stereogum
Watch: A single sequence of Bach played front to back and then back to front. / Open Culture
A writer says talking to strangers is sometimes exactly what a person needs for their mental wellbeing. "We began as strangers, and we returned to that." / Why is this interesting?
Tuesday headlines: You can “I cannot”
The UN Security Council votes to support an American resolution backing a ceasefire in Gaza. Hamas's praise for it is said to be "a hopeful sign." / BBC News, France24
Energy drinks in Ukraine, branded with patriotic machismo, are said to be "an essential antidote" to the stresses of war. / The New York Times [+]
Titanium dioxide, an ingredient in many sunscreens, has found its way into pizza and salsa. / The Wall Street Journal [+]
A multimedia explainer demonstrates how microplastics get into your lungs. / The Washington Post [+],
See also: What if Taylor Swift is a virus? / 032c
Why did T-shirts start to have pockets? Was it a way to keep cigarettes from being crushed? / Gear Patrol
How to explain the prevalence of the phrase "I cannot?" Is it the feigned overconfidence of aphorism? / The Paris Review
Related: On the prevalence of "Chipotle boys," i.e., young men in large cities who order Chipotle "5-7 days a week." / Bustle
On the rise of so-called hyperpleasures: "To see beauty in limitation is not an easy thing." / Mere Orthodoxy
Dubious trend reporting says Gen Z thinks you're doing the heart sign wrong. / The Wall Street Journal [+]
Watch: A 14-year-old skateboarder becomes the first woman to successfully land a 900. / YouTube
"Lyrically and structurally, the album is what The Barbie Movie should've been." Some people feel the new Charli XCX album is the best album of the year thus far. / Antiart
Monday headlines: Tropical contact high
"What is going to happen when a recovered herd gets infected again? Maybe someone knows the answer to this already, but I don’t." Scientists have questions about bird flu. / STAT
Inside the controversy over the much-hyped Istanbul restaurant whose Syrian influencer chef has been accused of having links to Assad. / Foreign Policy
"Rafael Nadal may have lost in Round 1, but there was another 22-time major winner in Paris." 50 parting thoughts from the 2024 French Open. / Sports Illustrated
Flamingos have been largely missing from Florida since the early 20th century. Now at least 100 are back, possibly carried there last year by Hurricane Idalia. / Smithsonian Magazine
A new project that captures and tests airborne DNA to monitor disease spread could have far-reaching uses, from public health to conservation to agriculture. / BBC
To persuade reluctant investors, the founder of Rainforest Cafe built the first one in his own house. / The Hustle
Sleep No More changed immersive theater. Now that content culture is dominant, audiences would rather be the main character than experience what's happening around them. / Slate
See also: A collection of "alt text selfies—self-portrait descriptions that are shared online." Alt Text Selfies
The Windows XP shutdown sound played on various musical instruments. / YouTube
Measuring the near-ultrasonic tones that emit from PA systems in various locales, including subways, elevators, and parking garages. / Absorptions
See also: "No one who realizes what they’re doing would consent." When drivers are tracked by their cars and insurers, the level of data intrusion is disturbing. / The New York Times [+]
A data analysis of the current state of mullets in the Australian Football League. / ABC News
Saturday headlines: Never melt better
The attack on Snowflake, which provides cloud services to multiple large corporations, appears to be snowballing into one of the largest data breaches ever. / TechCrunch, WIRED
Ikea is hiring employees—at a rate of just under $17 an hour—to work in its Roblox store. / The Independent
Unrelated: TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods are outfitting retail employees with police-like body cams. / CNN
How to avoid "languishing," the internal alarm that begins ringing before burnout and depression hit. / GQ
"The idea of mountain country as the ultimate proving ground of human fortitude was now etched onto the modern mind." Why humans want to climb mountains. / Noema
See also: Two women accuse celebrity mountaineer Nirmal "Nims" Purja, the subject of a 2021 Netflix climbing documentary, of sexual harassment and assault. / Outside
"It's too hot for cameras." A heat dome is making Death Valley, the hottest place on Earth, even hotter. / Vox
See also: How an Antarctic research station produces freshwater and disposes of wastewater. / brr.fyi
"The reality is, most people do not want to eat like Alice Waters." How the fridge changed flavor. / The New Yorker
The original painted floorboards seen on the cover of Syd Barrett's The Madcap Laughs album are up for auction. / Omega Auctions
Six months out from this year's election, neither Google nor Microsoft's AI chatbots will answer the question, "Who won the 2020 US presidential election?" / WIRED
"Steve still hasn't got around to reading Infinite Jest but, with no Internet to distract him, he undoubtedly will." Life after the internet is gone. / The Villager