When Beetles Dress Up as Ants (Nautilus)
by Deena Mousa
Rove beetles love hanging out in ant colonies. They love it so much that, over time, different species of the creatures have separately developed a variety of techniques for tricking the ants into letting them in.

Girl Bosses and Kept Women (Public Books)
by Tazeen M. Ali
The reality show Dubai Bling showcases the lives of women from the global elite living in one of the world’s most glamorous cities—and the way they and their families navigate the roles of mother, wife, and entrepreneur.

Is Fiction Real? (Aeon)
by Hannah H. Kim
In some contexts, “fiction” might be a way of saying “lies.” But the most basic way we divide up books isn’t just about what’s real and what’s made-up. And various cultures draw the line in different ways for a variety of reasons.

The Celebrity in Your Head (Quanta Magazine)
by Yasemin Saplakoglu
Your brain needs to know what’s going on when you eat an olive, or worry about your taxes, or see Jennifer Aniston on your TV screen. But scientists are just beginning to understand how the “concept cells” that encode these specific experiences work.

The Human Sound of Laughter (SAPIENS)
by Kirsten Bell
Laughter can bring us together—or expose us in all our uncontrolled, animalistic noisiness. But, while we share the impulse to laugh with our fellow great apes, we may be the only ones who giggle at jokes.

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