At NPSC we know that one of the best ways to keep your brain healthy is to learn new things. Unfortunately, with all of the information available to us, it can feel almost impossible to find the time to sift through the web to find the gems.

So, we’ve decided to do it for you! Every Friday, you can find five new articles or videos from the week that will stretch your mind, fuel your spirit, and feed your brain.

“Chicken Bones May Be the Legacy of Our Time”by Brigit Katz, smithsonianmag.com

“A new study argues that the sheer abundance of chicken consumption, coupled with the strange skeletons of modern chickens, will leave a unique fingerprint.”

“Why Do We Hug Each Other?”by Haemin Sunim, lithub.com

“The answer is science. It’s science. (Also it’s nice).”

“From Cocaine To Cacao: One Man’s Mission To Save Colombia’s Farmers Through Chocolate” by Veronica Zeragovia, npr.org

“When our project started, it was going to be called ‘Más Cacao, Menos Coca,’ ” Palacios says — more cacao, less coca. He says all told, it has taken seven years to get to the point where enough Chocó farmers are growing cacao to supply his chocolate company, which is now a year old.”

“The Hidden Room Behind Mount Rushmore” by Jake Rossen, mentalfloss.com

 “To make sure people in the future knew the history of his project and the meaning behind it, Borglum announced an ambitious addition: a massive room situated just behind Abraham Lincoln’s hairline that would contain all the information anyone would ever need about the mountain.”

“Taking comfort in the fact that most of us have a holiday parenting fail (or 10)” by Madeleine Deliee,washingtonpost.com

“No one’s holiday is perfect. No one goes from mid-November to early January without burning dinner, breaking a decoration, or dropping something heavy on themselves and cursing loudly in front of their most judgmental relative. No one’s season is flawless — because none of us are.”

At NPSC we know that one of the best ways to keep your brain healthy is to learn new things. Unfortunately, with all of the information available to us, it can feel almost impossible to find the time to sift through the web to find the gems.

So, we’ve decided to do it for you! Every Friday, you can find five new articles or videos from the week that will stretch your mind, fuel your spirit, and feed your brain.

“Our Favorite Stories From Gastro Obscura’s First Year” by Alex Mayysi, atlasobscura.com

“Read about otherworldly apples, champagne-chugging marathoners, and fishy acts of God.”

“Why is Wednesday Spelled Like That?” by Arika Okrent, mentalfloss.com

It’s simpler than you might think.

“The Best Books of 2018,” smithsonianmag.com

“Throughout the year, Smithsonian.com’s editors and writers are surveying hundreds of newly released books, covering a wide swath of topics reflective of the subject areas researched, studied and exhibited by the Smithsonian Institution—science, history, art, world cultures, pop culture and innovation.”

“Bone Marrow Donor Meets the Man She Saved at NYC Marathon Finish Line” by Taylor Dutch, runnersworld.com

“They communicated through letters for five years, but hadn’t ever met in person until the race.”

“Youth sports still struggling with dropping participation, high costs and bad coaches, study finds” by Jacob Bogage, washingtonpost.com

At NPSC we know that one of the best ways to keep your brain healthy is to learn new things. Unfortunately, with all of the information available to us, it can feel almost impossible to find the time to sift through the web to find the gems.

So, we’ve decided to do it for you! Every Friday, you can find five new articles or videos from the week that will stretch your mind, fuel your spirit, and feed your brain.

“NPR’s Book Concierge: Our Guide to 2018’s Great Reads” by NPR Books, npr.org

Use the filters to explore more than 300 titles NPR staff and critics loved in 2018.

“What the Popularity of ‘Fortnite’ Has in Common With the 20th Century Pinball Craze” by Clive Thompson, smithsonianmag.com

“Long before parents freaked over the ubiquitous video game, they flipped out over another newfangled fad.”

“At-Risk Australians Run Their Way to a Better Life With a ‘Hand Up, Not a Handout’” by Jacob Meschke, runnersworld.com

“The nonprofit On My Feet believes being a committed runner has a lot in common with being a top-notch employee.”

“There Are Many Ways to Be a Girl, but One Way to Be a Boy: The New Gender Rules” by Claire Cain Miller, nytimes.com

“In a new poll, girls say they feel empowered, except when it comes to being judged on how they look. Boys still feel they have to be strong, athletic and stoic.”

“Ants Take Sick Days to Protect Their Colonies from Disease” by Emily Petsko, mentalfloss.com

“If you have the flu, it will benefit you—and your colleagues—to stay home until you recover. The same concept apparently applies to ants, which essentially take a sick day when they’ve been exposed to harmful pathogens, Newsweek reports.”