How to photograph a black hole (The New York Times)
by Seth Fletcher
A virtual telescope, a decade in the making, combines observations from around the world. Astronomers are using it to try to take a picture of the black hole at the center of our galaxy—which could hold the secret to what happened in the Big Bang.

Hacked motherboards and the complications of global trade (The Washington Post)
by Henry Farrell and Abraham Newman
The reported hacking of Chinese computer components highlights the complicated effects of globalized supply chains, which go way beyond issues of economic competition.

Can talk therapy be dangerous? (Aeon)
by Christian Jarrett
Cognitive behavioral therapy has become the gold standard for psychotherapy, proven successful in treating many mental health ailments. But a new study suggests that, like many other kinds of medical treatment, it can have troubling side effects.

The violent history of castor seeds (Atlas Obscura)
by Sarah Laskow
We know castor oil as a nasty medicine fed to children in days gone by. But other uses of the oil, and the seeds it comes from, are far more sinister.

The fight against wartime rape campaigns (USA Today)
This year’s Nobel Peace Prize winners, Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad, are fighting against the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war, a crime whose victims often go unrecognized.

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