When lucidity puzzles scientists (Scientific American)
by Lydia Denworth
People living with devastating dementia sometimes have sudden, brief moments when they speak and listen with full understanding—often not long before they die. Scientists are beginning to study this “paradoxical lucidity” in the hopes of learning more about how dementia works.

How media re-traumatizes survivors (Pacific Standard)
by Louise Godbold
To understand the impact of violence and abuse, we need to hear from survivors. But reporters and video producers can inadvertently hurt people living with trauma. A better storytelling system would understand survivors’ needs and treat them as collaborators rather than resources.

The mysteries of a weird dog tumor (The Atlantic)
by Ed Yong
Thousands of years ago, an extremely unusual tumor started to spread from dog to dog, traveling with the species as a mostly benign parasite. Now, the tumor has allowed scientists to track dogs’ migrations around the world. It may also hold lessons for treating human cancers.

Our dangerous food utopia (Aeon)
by Louise Fabiani
For centuries, hungry people told stories of magical lands where food was free for the taking without requiring hard agricultural labor or moral questions about eating fellow creatures. Today, that’s how many of us experience eating. What does that mean for our treatment of animals and the planet?

What makes money money? (The New Yorker)
by John Lanchester
Long before Libra or Bitcoin, government-backed fiat currencies were a new invention, supplementing or substituting for currency based on precious metals. What can the history of Europe’s earliest central banks tell us about the ways the value of money rests on trust and the fear of punishment?

Got a hot tip about a well-researched story that belongs on this list? Email us here.