How to Trick a Bird (Knowable)
by Betsy Mason
Stage magic depends on exploiting quirks of human cognition. But other animals experience the world in different ways. To explore those differences, scientists are performing magic tricks for birds and monkeys.

Reveling in Weltschmerz (Big Think)
by Kevin Dickinson
Feeling overwhelmed by the state of the world? So were the European Romantics. But they considered weltschmerz and melancholy a route to a better life.

The Global Treasures of Ancient Balinese Graves (Atlas Obscura)
by Nicky Nielsen
More than 1,000 years ago, elites in Bali were buried in huge, painstakingly carved stone sarcophagi. Even more impressively, their graves contained treasures from Han Dynasty China and Roman Egypt, delivered to a place far from home through global trade routes.

The Politics of Underpopulation (The Conversation)
by Rafaela Dancygier and David Laitin
When we talk about the rise of right-wing politics in parts of Europe and the US, we’re often talking about immigration. But the real shift may be less due to people arriving than to those who are leaving.

Why Do Bears Look Like Friends? (Scientific American)
by Carin Leong and Allison Parshall
There’s a meme that asks why bears, who are most definitely not our friends, are “friend-shaped.” An ecologist who’s been studying bears for fourteen years has some possible answers.

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