#it's just so funny. and the traffic life members are all too polite to directly call people out half the time so they just go along with it

[melonpond]

This might actually be my favorite life series so far

[werevulvi]

What are some things you love about your country? Then what are some things you abhor?

Things I love about Sweden: - The healthcare system. Honestly. It's not perfect but it's MUCH better than the US and many other European countries. If I'd move to another country and could only bring one thing, it'd be the healthcare system.

- That many people here are very tolerant and polite, even if they might think nasty things about others, Swedes aren't particularly likely to be outright mean, harass, violent, etc. At least not in the countryside and smaller cities. Sure, crimes happen even in my small village, but it's very rare and 99% of them are drug related.

- The nature is really nice. Lots of forest and a rich wildlife. I grew up around a really old forest with huge trees that had been growing for hundreds of years. I could see the Northern Lights on the sky just above the house. Lots of greens, fields of flowers, etc. On this island I live now there are wild horses and wild bunnies. Swedish nature can be the stuff of fairytales, almost, and I think that's really beautiful and mesmerising.

- Is mostly neutral when it comes to wars and hasn't been in a war (officially/directly) since like the 1600's. (Still makes and sells weaponry to war torn countries, but still.)

- The words "lagom" and "orka" are priceless, but unfortunately not translatable. "Lagom" roughly means "just enough" or like "perfect" but un-enthusiastically. "Orka" refers to lacking energy, willpower, or both, for doing something or caring about something. Both these words can also get really funny when used in humour, etc.

- Very much personal opinion, but I really like the rich viking history that my country has. The old runestones that have been found all over, ancient jewellery, clothing, weaponry, tools, etc. My dad used to be an archeologist so I heard about it already from early childhood. I've also been fascinated by the Old Norse Religion (Asatro) and the mythology surrounding it ever since I was a kid. My new name that I'm changing to officially (meaning my actual irl name) comes from it: Sigvard. I mean, I just always really liked that that's the history my ancestors come from! (Too bad Christianity came and ruined it all.)

- Speaking of religion, I also really like that Sweden separates the state from the Church and thus is politically atheist. We still have religious freedom, but religion is not allowed to interfere with politics. However, politics (meaning political parties/government) are allowed to interfere with religion. I think statistically, most Swedes are atheistic Christians. Which means they're just members of the church and celebrate Christmas but don't believe in God or the Bible or anything.

- Very area specific, but the city closest to me is mostly still preserved medieval buildings, etc. So it's very beautiful, unique, withering a bit, and slightly dangerous to run around in due to very steep hills and gnarly alleys. The whole island I live on is a bit special like that and is basically a huge tourist trap. (I love what the place looks like, but I hate the tourists!)

- Having Swedish as one's native language makes it much easier to learn other languages and to not have a particularly strong accent or mis-pronounciations. This is because of how the Swedish language is built, in terms of pronounciation, melody, etc.

- It's generally very LGBT friendly, was one of the first (7th) countries to allow gay marriage (2009) and one of the first to allow gender transitions (back in 1973) which is good in general, despite it's deeply soaked in libfem.

- We had Astrid Lindgren, Alfred Nobel, Anders Celsius, Gustav Vasa, and many other interesting people that made history. Also ABBA and Ace of Base!

Things I abhor about Sweden: - Expect yearly vitamin D deficieny, from October to March.

- The immigration policy is bad. In like... all possible ways it can be bad. Kick out the law-abiding decent immigrants who try their hardest to make life better - and let the criminals who can't be fucked to care stay. Take in more immigrants than there are resources to help. We're totally out of housing, healthcare resources, jobs, space in education, etc, and going over our limits increasingly by the day. I can't move to Stockholm or anywhere off this island because of this and it SUCKS ass. It's NOT the fault of the immigrants, it's the fault of the government making shitty choices to avoid a financial collapse by trying to replace the elderly with younger immigrants (to work to increase the economy,) basically. The European Union is also to blame, because it's pushing the countries to take in more immigrants than there are resources to accommodate for. It's a mess and I'm morbidly curious how that all is gonna end. Probably not well.

- Speaking of the government, it is useless, retarded and even the "conservative" parties are hopelessly libfem.

- News media is almost all (libfem) biased, and most people don't get that they're being sold half-lies en masse. Hence the sad result of governemt and why people keep voting for them, many people are “woke” and why I'm so despondent about it all. Send halp plz.

- The country is handling the corona situation VERY badly. Like really, really badly. No one wears masks, people don't give a shit about social distancing, schools were never closed off when the pandemic hit, and the government refused to react to it in a decent enough time. Testing for corona pretty much doesn't even happen. Many, MANY old people die from it and are refused hospital care, etc. I've heard so many horrible stories it hurts my heart. Elderly people being mistreated on a state level is just beyond awful. They worked for my country to be what it is today (please see the list of what I love about Sweden) and do NOT deserve such a horrible fate.

- Speaking of old people, the elderly care is worse than how people in prison are treated here. LITERALLY. I wish I was joking. Their health care, hygiene, food, etc, is at a much lower quality than that of incarcerated people. If I ever get Alzheimer I'm gonna just shoot myself, rather than end up in a retirement home. (To clarify I'm NOT planning suicide, this is a JOKE. But it's also an important reflection on the sad reality of Swedish retirement homes.) And let's not even talk about my parents and their future prospects.

- Dentistry is not included in the good health care system. So you have to pay for it out of pocket as soon as you turn 18, basically, and it's not cheap.

- Streets/railroads are not getting properly cleared from snow in the winters and every, I mean EVERY god damn year traffic collapses nationwide because snow happened. As if it was a surprise that snow would happen. As if other snow-ridden countries don't know how to handle the snow... *

Okay I should probably stop this list now, lol, it's getting out of hand! I hope it was entertaining, interesting, shocking, or something of value!

[teampandawang]

GOT7 Reaction: having a crush on you

By: Mow

Genre: Fluff

JB

You were friends with the members for a couple months now. JB had always been attentive and sweet to you, but it wasn't until Bambam and Yugyeom started making fun of him by saying that his feelings were becoming too obvious that he realized what the source of his attitude was. Now he knew why'd he always waited for your text announcing that you got  home safe to go to sleep, why his mood always got brighten up when you entered the room. He didn't hesitate much before telling you how he felt, but he became a little distant for a couple days waiting for your reaction to confirm or denied if you might return his feelings. The moment you confront him for avoiding you for an entire week, the light of hope started shining in his chest. 

"Did I do something wrong?" You asked him somewhere in between of anger and sadness. 

"Why’d you think so?"

"Maybe because you've been almost hiding from me the entire week?" 

"And that's bothering you?" He asked serious. 

"Are you kidding me, Jaebum? Of course it is! If you think you can just exit my life like that with me just watching, you're awfully mistaken." You answered not understanding where this attitude was coming from. "You're too important to me to do that." 

"Would you go on a date with me?" He asked leaving you confused but relieved.

"W-what?" 

"I've been looking for a signal from you that tells me if you like me or not and I'm still not sure about it, but I like you too much to wait any longer for an answer.”

MARK 

He was quiet by nature, but when you were in the same room as him, he reached another level. He had almost never spoke to you directly, so at some point you started to think that maybe he didn't like you, completely oblivious of how much he actually did. 

One day when you went to the dorm in order to return Jinyoung's book, Mark opened the door. His relaxed expression disappeared the moment he saw you, making you a little uncomfortable. 

"Hey, Mark." You said with a low voice. 

"Y/N, what are you doing here?" He asked still not knowing how to talk to you without being awkward. 

"Ehm... I just needed Jinyoung. Is he here?" You asked in return trying to find someone who could save you from the tense atmosphere. 

"Oh. No, he's not." He was cursing himself for not being a little more polite to you. 

"Then I'll come later." 

"Wait. You can wait for him inside. I don't think he delay." He said with a small smile at the thought of you staying with him. 

"Sure? I don't want to bother you." You said being honest with him. "I'm pretty sure you dislike me." 

"What? No. Why'd you think that? I do like you." He said too fast for his mind to filter his words. "I mean..."

"I like you too." You told him with a smile not letting him finish. 

JACKSON

It was a rainy day, it was too late and there were no cabs in the street. That's what made you ask Jackson if he could ride you home after a movie night with the guys at the dorm. When you approached him and asked him, his heartbeat sped up. He had never tried to hide his crush on you, but that didn't prevent his nerves to show up. 

When both of you reached the car, he opened the door for you like the gentleman he had always been with you. The whole way to your house he asked you about your day, how college were going, if there was something you needed his help to. 

"You're so sweet, Jackson. I don't understand how are you single." You told him joking. 

"That's because the only girl a like keep ignoring my attempts to ask her out." He said half joking half serious. "I'm starting to believe that she does it on purpose."

"What? Then she's crazy. What girl wouldn't want you?" 

"I don't know. You tell me, you're the crazy one." He said with a small and shy smile. 

"W-what? Is that girl me?" You couldn't believe it. Of course you'd like Jackson. He was amazing, how could you not. 

"Yes. Did you really never noticed it?" 

"No..." You answered with your face getting kind of red. 

"Then I'll have to be more direct." He said with a smirk. "Y/N, do you want to go on a date with me?"

JINYOUNG 

You know how people used to say when you were a child that when a kid teased you, it was because he liked you? Well, that's exactly how Jinyoung's flirting should be described. 

He never missed the chance to joke about you: some outfit you wore, a face you made, an opinion you gave... 

Sometimes he accidentally crossed the line and you got mad at him for a few days. But this was a particularly bad day. You failed an important test at college, your phone's screen broke and you were stuck on traffic for almost and hour. 

When you arrived at JYP's building to return Bambam the coat he left at your apartment last week, they were in the middle of practice, but you didn't mind. It wasn't the first time you showed up in that circumstances. 

As soon as you walked in, you greeted and called Bambam, not wanting to waste their time neither yours. 

"Bambam, can you come here for a minute, please?" 

"So you interrupt our practice and take away a member just like that? Who do you think you are?" Jinyoung said almost entirely joking. 

"Fuck off." The tears from the stress of the day started to run down your face in a second. 

The slam of the door took him out of his shock. He knew he really messed this one up.  

He run until he caught you in a hug. 

"I'm so sorry, Y/N." He said softly. "I've never wanted to make you cry." 

"Why are you such an ass sometimes?" You said between sobs with your head hide in his chest. 

"I know I am. It's just that I like you so much... I don't know how to deal with it."

YOUNGJAE 

After realizing his huge crush on you, he became the sweetest. He always asked you about your day, spending as much time with you as he could. He called you at nights when he couldn't sleep because he knew you usually didn't sleep well either. 

His feelings for you were absolutely notorious. All the members knew and you kind of suspected it too. But after seeing how shy he was to confess and that he kept missing your signals of his returned feelings, you decided to take the first step. 

When he called you again at midnight, the opportunity showed up. 

"You're so sweet, Y/N. Thank you so much for always answer." He said with a sleepy voice. 

"I love talking to you, Jae. I'm always happy when you call." You said, preparing yourself. 

"Really?" He said surprised with his heartbeat raising.

"Of course I do. Actually I'll rather you to be here." After that there was a long silence. "Jae? Are you still there?"

"Yes, yes! It's just... I'll love it too if I was there... May I, uh, you know, go?" He said hoping with all his heart you'll say yes.

"Please." Both of you smiling as wide as you can. 

BAMBAM 

Bambam couldn't stop looking at you, admiring how beautiful you were, but most important, admiring how you managed to reach so deep places inside his being. Since the beginning he noticed how easy was for him to remove every layer and show himself just as he truly was. He loved that, just as much as he loved you.

There were you two shopping, you both loved to do that together. But today was being specially hard for him to keep his feelings for himself. He had absolutely no idea if he should tell you about them, he wouldn't be able to manage it if you said no. 

"What do you think about this dress, Bam?" You asked, making his feets step back to reality. 

"I- I think you're gorgeous." He said while his eyes lost themselves in your body. When his gaze went back to your face, he blushed at the sight of your also red cheeks. "I mean, the dress looks gorgeous." 

"T-thank you." 

"Let me buy it for you, I want to give it to you. It's... you look... perfect." He managed to say while running to the cash register. Leaving a confused you behind, with not just your face burning, but also your chest, wanting to ask him what he meant, hoping it meant what you’ve wanted to say to him for a long time.

YUGYEOM 

We all know Yugyeom is a funny guy, joking around almost the entire time, but when it came to girls, he was the most timid guy ever. 

You two were really good friends and spend high quality time together, but he never thought you would return the feelings he has been hiding for several months. He even started to believe you might like one of his hyungs rather than him. 

One night after you left the dorm and Jaebum was driving you home, Bambam got worried about Yugyeom after had seen him with teary eyes walking to his room. Bambam knew how he felt about you and how bad Yugyeom was feeling at the thought of you with someone else, so he started a plan. 

"Y/N, Hi!" Bambam said through the phone. 

"Hey, Bam. How are you?" You responded sweetly. 

"I'm fine, but I called you to talk about someone that is not." He stopped for a second. "Yugyeom." 

"My God. What do you mean his not okay? What happened to him? Is he hurt?" You asked all at once with a notorious worried tone in your voice. 

"Physically, yes. Y/N, I'm going to be direct. Would you like to go on a date with him?" Bambam questioned without hesitation. 

"What? W-what are you talking about?" You said nervous. 

"Just answer." 

"Yes... I would." 

"Would you please asked him out then? I'm seriously worried for him if you don't." 

[playlist-reid]

Time to Pretend - Spencer Reid

welcome to my new spencer blurb! this one is inspired by Time to Pretend by MGMT.  it is a really good song to listen to as you are driving at night, btw.  this is when the reader just gets out of a relationship and spencer is there to go on an adventure with the reader.  gif is not mine

enjoy!

word count:  2,104

You sat on your kitchen counter with your legs crossed and the plate of sweets in front of you, pitifully eating the rest of the chocolate cake.  News had just broke that your partner of three years broke off your relationship quite suddenly, and you were feeling dangerous and destructive.  You wanted to break something, whether it be a vase or the law, you were not very sure.  Either way, you were itching to get out of your house and do something foolish.  

It was quite unlike you to be like this.  You had two PhDs, and you were normally very put together, but today you were bitter and angry at the world.  You had called Penelope, who was on holiday to Paris, and told her all of what had happened, and she wanted nothing more than to be there with you, so she did what she could and called up another member of the team, Spencer Reid, to come comfort you.  

Spencer was a close friend to you.  He was funny and so brilliant, and you loved that about him.  He was able to hold conversations with you and even calm you down, usually, when you were angry with life.  So, now there you were, waiting patiently for Spencer to knock on the door of your home.  

Not too long after you finished your cake, there was a knock at your door.  You slipped your sneakers on as you walked towards the door and grabbed your keys and jacket from the hook and table near the door.  Without so much as a word to Spencer, you closed and locked the door behind you and he followed you to your car.  

“What are we doing?”  Spencer asked you as you climbed into your car, starting it up and waiting for him to buckle up.

As he did, you backed out of the garage and into the street, going down towards the highway quickly.  “I don’t know.”  You said through partially gritted teeth, an guilt overcame you as you considered how cold you were being to him.  

Spencer nodded carefully and looked out of the window at the dark sky outside.  “Do you want to tell me what happened?”  He asked you slowly and so gently that you were sure he was afraid of how you’d react.  

You sighed gently, wiping your face with your free hand as you felt tears come to your eyes.  You nodded, and finally took a deep breath.  “I got a call from their mom, and she had told me that I had left a jacket and pair of shoes at her house sometime last week.  She then asked me why I had not said hello to her when I visited, given how far away we live, and I let her know that I had been in a rush and I will be sure to take her to dinner next time I am in town.  The problem is that I was not in town last week at all, and it was not my jacket or shoes at his home.  It was another person’s.  So, very calmly, I called them and asked who the clothing belonged to, and they basically admitted that it was another significant other and that the long distance was not working.  To avoid saying something I would regret, I simply hung up before I reached through the phone and fucking strangled them.”  You explained to Spencer as you turned onto the highway towards New York City.  

It was by luck that you had this coming week off from work, because you could take off for a few days with Spencer as a hostage and not feel guilty about abandoning the team.  Either way, you had a feeling you would not be coming back soon.  

Spencer was at a loss of words once you finished, and his blood boiled at what you had told him.  How could anyone treat you like that?  Someone so kind and gentle as you, and you are getting walked all over like it is nothing?  He could not fathom the cruelness it took.  “I am so sorry for that, (Y/N).  It is horrible that they would do that to you after so long.”  Spencer said and glanced out of the window.  “Thirty-nine percent of people cheat in relationships.”  Spencer told you, and you glared at him for a moment.  

“Wonderful.”  You deadpanned and Spencer blushed.  

“No, I didn’t mean to upset you-” Spencer began, but your voice cut him off.  

“It’s fine, Spencer.  I know you are just trying to calm me down.  I shouldn’t be so critical to you.”  You told him with a small smile, trying your best not to snap at him anymore.  Spencer nodded, and gave you a tight smile in reply.  “I’m sorry, Spencer, but do you mind if you don’t come home for a few days?”  You asked him and but your lips twitched nervously.  

Spencer made a face, but shrugged.  “That is fine, I suppose.  I didn’t really have plans for this week to begin with.”  He admitted and gave you a reassuring smile.  

You smiled in return, tightening your grip on the ceiling wheel as you sped down the highway.  

~.~

Ten hours later, after some heavy traffic and Spencer falling asleep, you pulled into a bed and breakfast in Boston, Massachusetts.  Once parked, you jostled Spencer lightly with a gentle smile on your face.  He jolted awake, blinking rapidly and adjusting to the light provided by the streetlamp outside.  Your smile only grew as Spencer looked at you, alarmed, and then looked outside his window at the steady rain falling from the sky.  

“Where are we?”  He wondered out loud and checked his phone for the time.  

You opened your door and slid out, reaching back in to grab your wallet.  “Take a guess.”  You told him and closed your door, walking around to the other side of the car and waiting for him to put his shoes back on.  Rain fell steadily, dampening your hair, but you didn’t mind.  

Spencer climbed out of your car, and you locked it quickly as you made you way to the lobby of the bed and breakfast. “Boston.”  Spencer finally said, and you smiled brightly as you nodded.  Spencer held the door open for you and the bead and breakfast was cozy and very home-like in a sense that made you feel as if your grandmother was going to walk through the doors to the kitchen at any moment.  

“Hello!”  A plump older lady greeted, and you smiled in return.  “Looking for a room for the night?”  She asked, and you nodded softly.  

“That would be great.”  You laughed and Spencer hovered behind you quietly.  

The lady nodded and looked down at a guest book behind the small desk in the lobby.  “We have a room with a queen bed and a room with a king bed available.  Which would you prefer?”  She asked you and Spencer with a warm smile.  

Your own smile faded as you glanced at Spencer, nervously.  “You don’t have anything with two beds?”  You asked quickly and the blush rose to your cheeks.  

With a tight smile, the lady shook her head.  “I do not.  You can rent both rooms, though.  If need be.”  She added, as if she were hinting that would be a worst case scenario.

You glanced at Spencer, wanting his opinion, and he looked at the lady without bothering to make eye contact with you.  “We will take the king bed, please.”  Spencer said and dug into his pocket for his wallet, but you beat him to it and set your debit card on the counter.  

“Wonderful!”  The lady clapped and began ringing you up quickly.

Spencer glanced at you with his eyebrows furrowed, and you smiled gently.  “It’s the least I could do for dragging you all the way up here.”  You told him and placed a hand on his arm.  He blushed, and you dropped your arm, glancing back at the woman.  

She smiled at the two of you, and you could see a twinkle in her eye that you had a feeling thought you and Spencer were a couple.  “How long will the two of you be staying?”  She asked politely, and again, you glanced up to Spencer.  

“Five nights.”  Spencer answered and you smiled even wider.  That would give you so much time to explore parts of the city that you have been itching to see! 

The lady finished ringing you up, and then she led you up to your room, where you immediately raced Spencer to the shower. 

~.~

Sometime later, you emerged from the bathroom with a thick white bathrobe ties around your body and the only pair of clothes you had in your arms.  “I suppose we should have went to get clothes.”  You said to Spencer as he looked up from the book he was reading. 

The room was so cozy and sweet, and you loved it entirely.  There was a large wardrobe on the wall directly in front of the large bed, and it had a TV inside of it and drawers for clothes beneath it.  On either side was two large book shelves, filled to the brim with books.  You knew immediately that Spencer would be all over that.

A blush rose to his cheeks as he saw you in your robe, and you stood there, embarrassed and pathetic.  “I can go get us clothes.”  Spencer suggested.

You looked up at him, smiling wide, and moved to your wallet.  You pulled out your credit card and set it on the bed next to him, along with your car keys.  “You literally couldn’t get any more perfect, Spencer.”  You told him and he smiled lightly.  But, the daunting feeling of unhappiness was building in your stomach.

He took your card and the keys, and marked his place in the book.  “I’ll be back soon.”  He told you, and all that was left was a waiting game.  

~.~

When Spencer came back, he had three large bags in his hands.  He set your keys and card in front of the TV on the wardrobe and set the bags on the bed, pulling clothes out quickly.  He handed you a blue pajama set, and a smile grew on your face as you felt the soft material.  “Thanks, Spencer.”  You praised him and moved towards the bathroom, changing quickly, and coming out to Spencer already in his pajamas, a matching red pair.  

You laughed slightly at the sight, and he smiled as well.  “They looked comfortable, so I had to get myself a pair as well.”  He explained as you crawled onto the bed, slipping under the covers.  Spencer marked his page in the book again, and followed in suit.  “Are you ready for the light to be out?”  He asked you and you nodded weakly as you stared up at the ceiling.  Silence enveloped the room, and it was quite awkward for quite some time.  That was until Spencer spoke up.  “You aren’t okay, are you?”  He asked you softly, looking at you.  

Slowly, you shook your head as a choked sob came from you.  Almost on instinct, Spencer scooted closer to you and pulled you onto his chest so your head rested on his shoulder and his arms were around you.  You sobbed against him and gripped his shirt tightly, letting all your emotions go.  Like the kind man he is, Spencer just stroked your back as he let you cry, murmuring comforting words in your ear.  “Shh, it’s going to be fine.  I am right here, and I will never leave you.”  He told you, and pressed his lips to the top of your head.  “Sometimes you have to see the worst in life before it is able to get better.  And this is your worst.  From here on out, things will beginning to be positive.”  Spencer reassured you, and from bottling your emotions all day, you felt like you were going to be sick from it all.  

You sniffled and sob more, and muttered to Spencer, “God, do I hope so.”  You muttered and you never felt so thankful for Spencer than at that moment.

[politicsprose]

Welcome to the 2017 Politics and Prose Holiday Newsletter. As always, we’re proud to present a selection of some of the year’s most impressive books. Happy holidays to all!

Science and Technology

The future is almost upon us! In their new book, Soonish (@thepenguinpress), husband-and- wife team Zach and Kelly Weinersmith focus on ten areas of emerging technology in which we will see the next big developments. From deep space exploration to the 3-D printing of human organs, the Weinersmiths take us on a tour of what is on the horizon. This is pop science at its best. Kelly, an adjunct faculty member in the biosciences department at Rice University, makes the details clear and fascinating, while Zach, the cartoonist behind Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal, ensures that the illustrations and comics sparkle and delight. You’ll learn what’s holding us back from asteroid mining, for example, and all the new ways scientists think they can make it happen. Some visions are closer to fruition than others. The giant space elevator that would take people directly into orbit is farther away than augmented reality, for instance. So close is augmented reality that its chapter had to be updated before the book went to press due to recent technological advances in just the last year, including the Pokémon Go phenomenon. This is a fun and informative read, and will make you the smartest futurist of the new year! - Keith V.

Sir Isaac Newton famously discovered that an object at rest or in motion will remain in that state unless acted upon by an outside force. Before Scott Kelly “slipped the surly bonds of earth” as an astronaut, this Newtonian law played out in a serendipitous fashion in his early life. As he describes in his tremendous Endurance: A Year in Space, a Lifetime of Discovery (Knopf), he was on a trajectory to nowhere in particular. Growing up in New Jersey, Kelly was a lackluster student. He drifted and daydreamed all the way to college but hadn’t settled on a direction. During his freshman year the outside force arrived in the form of The Right Stuff by Tom Wolfe. Never having been much of a reader, Kelly uncharacteristically devoured this book, finding inspiration in the tale of those early test pilots and astronauts. As a result, Kelly altered the course of his life and after years of struggle he proved he had the right stuff. The highlight of his memoir is his chronicle of his year aboard the International Space Station. Kelly vividly portrays not only the important work being done on the ISS but also daily life for a human floating in orbit. A moving, funny, and uplifting story, this is the closest you will get to experiencing the final frontier without strapping yourself to a rocket. - Michael T.

Do you ever find yourself looking at the starry sky and wondering how it all came to be, asking what is a universe and what is our place in it? Do you wish you knew more but are just too busy with your everyday life to start exploring and looking for answers? Well, then, Neil deGrasse Tyson’s new book, Astrophysics for People in a Hurry (@wwnorton​), is just what you need. And even though Tyson starts with the premise that “the universe is under no obligation to make sense to you,” he will try to explain. There’s no reason to feel intimidated; I’m sure you remember learning about Einstein’s E=mc² and Sir Isaac Newton’s Universal Law of Gravitation, and that’s all you need to start reading this book. How it all begun, the Big Bang and the expansion of the cosmos, dark matter and black holes, everything is explained in clear and understandable language with short chapters that you can read whenever you find a spare minute. You will learn that the observable universe may contain a hundred billion galaxies, bright and beautiful and packed with stars, and that “we are stardust brought to life then empowered by the universe to figure itself out—and we have only just begun.” - Marija D.

Kelli Anderson is a graphic designer whose works on paper don’t stay flat on a table. Previously she’s made, among other things, a paper record player and a paper camera. Her newest project, This Book Is a Planetarium (@chroniclebooks​), is not so much a pop-up book as it is a book of pop-up mechanisms. In addition to being a planetarium that can project the autumn night sky on your ceiling, it’s also a decoder ring to encrypt secret messages, a spiralgraph to create unique designs, a smart phone speaker, a perpetual calendar, and a paper lyre. Each contraption is accompanied by easy-to-understand explanations of why and how they work. In addition to its contents, the book itself is a stunningly engineered object and beautiful, too. As you open each page, the colors pop at the same time the gadget unfurls. The sturdy cardboard construction will hold up well to repeated use and two elastic bands are cleverly positioned to hold the book open when investigating each device. Get ready to be amazed and delighted. - Suzanne M.

Adding his voice to other compelling critiques of present-day technology, Franklin Foer passionately and deftly goes after Google, Facebook, Amazon, and Apple for threatening our culture and individuality. He warns that these technology giants are doing nothing less than “reordering the production and consumption of knowledge” and becoming “the most powerful gatekeepers the world has ever known.” In World Without Mind: The Existential Threat of Big Tech (@thepenguinpress​), Foer recounts the rise of the biggest tech players and examines how their vast efforts at data profiling and media control have come to influence much of what we do and think. To illustrate the difficulties of maintaining a cultural institution in the digital age, Foer writes as well about his own ill-fated experience at the New Republic, where he clashed with a new owner whose wealth derived from Facebook stock and who sought to turn what had been a little magazine into an engine of considerable social media traffic. Foer also offers some prescriptions, both large and small, for lessening the dangers he perceives. - Brad G.

Gamergate is one of the darkest chapters in the history of the internet. It began in 2014 when independent video-game developer Zoe Quinn, who had recently ended an abusive relationship with a tech-savvy man, was deluged by a tidal wave of hatred. Her attacker made false allegations about Quinn online, knowing he would spark a backlash. In her extraordinary Crash Override (PublicAffairs), Quinn chronicles her experience—and the details are shocking. Gamergate compromised all facets of her online persona. Professional opportunities evaporated. The mounting threats endangered not only Quinn but anyone she was in contact with. Against these incredible odds, Quinn persevered. She fought back, organizing a movement dedicated to fighting online hate. While I called Gamergate “history,” Quinn shows that it’s not. It is now. It is here. It is going on every day. She illustrates the toxicity people from marginalized communities face daily on the internet, and often from those they turn to for help. This insightful and inspiring book is a clarion call for widespread action that all internet users should heed. - Michael T.

A self-taught computer programmer and one of the few women in the industry, Ellen Ullman wrote code from the 1970s to the 1990s. Then, to redeem the human from the machine, she wrote a pair of brilliant novels and the sharply observed, engaging, and very smart essays gathered here. Life in Code (MCD) both evaluates the promise and reality of the internet and looks back at important moments —Y2k, the dotcom boom and bust, several generations of hard- and software—that brought us to where we are today. Ullman is a deeply informed, witty, and often passionate writer. Unlike most of her colleagues, she never aspired to change the world with technology, though she believes the web should be more than a platform for shopping, advertising, and surveillance. Also unlike the young white and Asian men who still define “the closed society where code gets written,” Ullman craves human contact. Conversation. Openness. She wants to “stick a needle into the shiny bubble of the technical world’s received wisdom,” and remind it of messy human emotions, bodies, and stories. By putting her insights about technology into the context of difficult bosses, gentrification, marriage, cats, and dinner parties (how would a programmer translate social cues and multiple forks for a robot?), she vividly reminds us that even today, as more and more people adopt the 24/7-online habits of alienated tech geeks, “technology is not the driver of change, what drives technology is human desire.” People are still in charge. - Laurie G.