The white album (is up for auction)
Some experts say Russia's recent mixed nuclear rhetoric is an attempt to pressure the West into forcing Ukraine to reach a peace settlement. / Vox
Masha Gessen: The more the Kremlin signals its readiness to go nuclear, the more the world seeks a reason to believe that it will not. / The New Yorker
Chris Blattman: Here's why I see a serious chance of World War III—should China invade Taiwan—in the next decade. / Chris Blattman
New analysis by astrophysicists finds the cosmos composed of about two-thirds dark energy, one-third matter (mostly dark matter). / The Harvard Gazette
A satellite photo shows what appears to be a (creepy) face on the sun. / The Guardian
Meanwhile, "a young bar-tailed godwit" appears to have set a non-stop distance record for migratory birds." / The Associated Press
See also: The world's largest plane flies for five hours with a hypersonic vehicle on board. / Interesting Engineering
This newsletter exists because it's reader-supported. It takes less than a minute to join us as a Sustaining Member. (Thank you!) / TMN
Starbucks is being sued for allegedly stealing coffee-flavored lip balm. / Sprudge
Experts say a part of the United States' addiction problem is language. "Cancer patients are not referred to as cancers." / STAT
When capitalism meets spiritualism, meets Americans: "Their mission? Selling as many Ouija boards as possible." / The Hustle
Do you have leaves in your yard? Experts suggest leaving them there. / NPR
A Town & Country article promoting a facial toning device would have women believe there is “vertical aging” and “horizontal aging.” / Jezebel
A tour of some of the hundreds of Joan Didion's furnishings and things to be sold at auction next month. / The New York Times
Some video of the world's lowest string instrument playing some very mellow Mozart. / Classic FM
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Your headlines are sourced and written by Andrew Womack and Rosecrans Baldwin, Monday through Saturday.