A list of good reads
- Malini Nair in Scroll uncovers the fascinating tale of an Englishwoman who pioneered Indo-Western fusion music—with the help of courtesans in Lucknow.
- Reader’s Digest has a handy guide to tipping etiquette across the world. Yes, Reader’s Digest has its useful moments.
- Amanda Ruggeri in BBC News looks at why people are becoming increasingly “habituated” to horrors—and how to avoid it.
- Speaking of news, Semafor argues that American journalism has lost its signature fearlessness.
- Dr Nameeta Nadkarni in Mint Lounge explains why banning certain breeds will not help reduce dog bites.
- Also in Mint Lounge: Arpita Das writes of walking as a form of dissent for female Indian saints like Meera, Lal Ded, and Akka Mahadevi.
- Kelsey Piper in Vox takes a fascinating look at sentience in AI chatbots—what’s real and what’s ‘hallucination’?
- Vijeta Kumar in Third Eye pens a lovely essay on female friends—and being a partner in their crimes.
- JSTOR looks at the first published work of Shakespeare—which is a derivative poem. We all have to start somewhere.
- New York Times (splainer gift link) has a helpful guide on everything there is to know about the much-vilified sodium.
