TIDINGS: Is our worms learning?


Welcome back to Tidings readers. All of the links in this newsletter were shared first by the community of users on Seabird. If you're not yet on Seabird, download the app or sign up on the web for the full experience.

Are memories transferable — or edible?

A chronicle of some very strange experiments on worm memory and the contemporary scientists struggling to get worms to learn in the first place.

Quanta | Claire L. Evans

Most flags used to be ugly

A case for resisting optimization of flag design and choosing unaesthetic uniqueness over boring simplicity.

Works in Progress | Ned Donovan

The milkman

“I’ve put a couple kids in the hospital, and they have been sick, but they recovered [...] But here’s the thing: I’m a pioneer." How raw milk became a big business, despite multiple outbreaks and risk of life-threatening disease.

Pro Publica | Annie Waldman

The last straw

Not just for peasants: thatched roofs are highly sought after, while in England a feud simmers between advocates for straw versus reed.

The New York Times | Rukmini Callimachi

‘Soccer’ is a fine term for the beautiful game

As the World Cup begins, a defense of "soccer" and a brief lesson in its etymology.

The Conversation | Kirk Bowman


A minimum wage natural experiment has been running for over a decade

What are the employment effects of raising the minimum wage? An economist rounds up recent evidence.

Arin's Substack | Arin Dube

How Britain became as poor as Mississippi

Not just Brexit: a look at Britain's self-destructive policies, including a hard turn against immigration.

The Atlantic | Idrees Kahloon

Andrew Tate's empire of abuse

A deeply reported investigation into the sickening exploitation of women by manosphere celebrity, misogynist, and Trump ally Andrew Tate.

The New Yorker | Heidi Blake

Anguished parents, crying doctors

In Utah, low uptake of vaccines is making measles resurgent, pushing health care providers to the limit and making outbreaks impossible to control.

Wired | Amy Maxmen

Meet the dementia rebels

A look at activists working for engagement and fulfilment for those diagnosed with dementia, especially in its early stages.

The Guardian | Anne Karpf

How I learned to read way, way more

"I used to read a few books a year. Now I read about one a week. [...] I look back and feel as though I spent several years of my life without showering. How was I getting by at all? Why didn’t anyone say something?"

John Paul Brammer

The man who reads books for a living

And a profile of a man whose entire job is reading books to assess their viability for adaptation to the big screen.

Literary Hub | Julien C. Levy

A world-class omakase in America's most landlocked state

On the pride and frustrations of making it as a sushi artisan in Omaha, Nebraska.

The New Yorker | Hannah Goldfield

Arrived early and staying late

How Oakland became a capital of Yemeni coffeeshops, offering a more convivial experience than the typical austere third wave coffee place.

Oakland Review of Books | Max Ramirez

Oregon gets its first California condor visit in 122 years

Finally, in bird and Oregon news... the state gets its first visit from a California condor in more than a century.

OPB | Roman Battaglia

Tidings is edited by Jacob Grier. The links in our newsletter were all shared first on Seabird, our minimalist platform simply designed for recommending worthwhile links. Learn more about us here and join to discover and share articles like these every day. Your recommendations may appear in a future edition of Tidings.

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Welcome back to Tidings! In this issue you'll find stories about AI, VAR, a puffin-inspired robot, and even lichen. If you're lichen this newsletter, share it with a friend! These links were all shared by our community on Seabird, our minimalist platform for sharing links. Sign up to check it out on web or mobile. Ctrl-Z-the-world A brief history of the undo button. Mercury | Deena Prichep I got slopped A reporter discovers she is the subject of a new biography sold on Amazon and sloppily...

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Happy Independence Day weekend, American Tidings readers! May we suggest declaring your independence from social media algorithms, suppression of links, and the tyranny of short-form video by joining Seabird? All of this newsletter's links were shared first by our community of users on the app or web. And if you're enjoying Tidings, please help spread the word by sharing it online or forwarding this email to a friend. Five words that changed America Recommended Independence Day reading: "It...