Clubhouse and the craving for the human voice (The Conversation)
by Damian Radcliffe
How did Clubhouse become the buzziest social media network? It’s partly about celebrity power, but another big piece is the power of the human voice.

Bringing back Mongolia’s unique working dogs (Atlas Obscura)
by Shoshi Parks
Soviet-era collectivization cut the bonds between many Mongolian nomadic herders and the bankhar dogs that were family members and work partners. Now, communities are working with nonprofits and other supporters to revive the traditional relationship of humans, livestock, and dogs.

Yes, there’s a German word for that (Slate)
by Rebecca Schuman
The past year has brought experiences we may not have words for. But that doesn’t stop the Germans, whose language facilitates the quick development of words for concepts like “vaccine envy” and “distance beer.”

Can personalized brain zaps help with mental health problems? (The New York Times Magazine)
by Kim Tingley
Mental health issues like depression are notoriously difficult to treat, and highly variable from person to person. An experimental treatment with electrical pulses suggests a way to target the unique functioning of individual brains.

The roots of those $10,000 electricity bills (The Washington Post)
by Gavin Benke
How did Texans end up owing thousands of dollars for a few days of electricity? The story goes back to the 1990s, and the free-market ideas about how to run energy markets promoted by advocates including Enron.

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