Nine anti-government factions in Ethiopia say they've formed an alliance "amid growing fears they will attempt to overthrow the government." / The Guardian

In Venezuela, a rum company offers gangsters a life outside of crime. In turn, they've helped the company thrive. / The New York Times

Some 1.67 million Indians died in 2019 from the effects of pollution, accounting for one in six of the country's deaths. / The Economist

The United States has only eight toilets per 100,000 people, which makes us tied with Botswana. / Bloomberg CityLab

Pfizer says its experimental antiviral pill for Covid-19 cuts hospitalization and death rates by nearly 90% in high-risk adults. / The Associated Press

What's behind the shortages of rapid Covid tests? "Overzealous regulation and anemic government support." / ProPublica

Profiles of four homeless people in Oakland—all of them from the city, all of them former homeowners. / The San Francisco Chronicle 

A small city in Indiana offers free "grandparents on demand" to lure remote workers to town. / ABC News

Dierdre Wolownick, mother of famous rock climber Alex Honnold, started climbing at 60 to be closer to her son. At 70, she just scaled El Capitan. / CBC

Related: What it's like to grow up a Texas surfer. / Texas Highways

Rax King learned about sex from the Samantha character in Sex and the City. "People already thought I was a slut, but she taught me that I could be proud of it." / Lithub

True crime, as a genre, dates back to a series of plays staged more than four centuries ago. / The London Review of Books

A poem for your autumn weekend: "Reasons to Survive November" by Tony Hoagland. / Writer's Almanac

Some serendipitous moments in Eric Kogan's street photography around New York City. / Eric Kogan

An odd little intellectual mystery told in comic form: "The Autograph Collector" by Ulli Lust. / Popula

The worst gadgets ever reviewed by The Verge. / The Verge