the reading room
Read something worth talking about.
Short, research-checked reads on friendship, connection, learning, figuring out what matters to you, and staying human in the age of AI.
a column
Humans matter.
AI is changing work and life fast, and for a lot of us that’s frightening. A column on getting through the uncertainty together: the anxiety, the questions about who we are, and the people who carry us.
Feeling AI anxiety? Here’s what helps
Worried about AI and your job? Facts, trends, and tips to support yourself during turbulent times.
How to make friends in your 20s (without a dating app)
Doomscrolling, quiet group chats, dating apps as the only way in? What actually works for friendship in your 20s.
Your job ≠ your purpose. How to find meaning in life in 2026
If AI has you questioning your work, here’s where meaning really lives: in experience, connection and each other.
AI can’t replace friends. Here’s how to make real ones in 2026
Lonely and talking to a chatbot? That’s completely normal. Why AI still can’t be your friend, and how to find real ones.
Screw artificial care. Meet real humans.
AI can sound kind. Being heard by someone who chose to listen is different. Here’s why, and where to find them.
Nobody should face this alone: why community matters now
When work goes, or feels shaky, the people around you matter more than ever. On belonging, solidarity and mutual aid.
Who are you beyond your job title?
Uncertain times call for inner resilience. What Maslow really meant, and how to know who you are beyond work.
AI should bring people together, not replace them
AI keeps offering to be your companion. We think technology should help you find people instead.
How to find your purpose (what the research actually says)
Purpose is built more than found. The research, the questions that help, and small experiments to try.
Talking it through: why saying your thoughts out loud helps
Why thoughts get clearer the moment you say them out loud, and how to make it work for you.
Why we avoid our own thoughts (and why sitting with them helps)
Why we fill every quiet second, and what the research says happens when we finally stop.
How to make friends in a new city: what research says works
Why a new city feels lonely, how many hours friendship really takes, and six things that actually help.
Questions that go deeper than small talk (and how to ask them)
20 questions that go deeper than small talk, from playful to big, and how to ask them without it getting weird.
Why is it so hard to make friends after 30? (It’s not you)
Your social circle peaks around 25. Here’s why friendship gets harder after 30, and how to rebuild it.
How curiosity helps you learn: what happens in your brain
Curiosity primes your brain to remember, even things you weren’t trying to learn. Here’s the science.
Why you learn better with someone else (even a non-expert)
Two people who don’t know the answer can often talk their way to it. Here’s why, and how to use it.
The Socratic method explained: learning by conversation
Socrates, the Upanishads and why some of the oldest classrooms were conversations between two people.
The best way to learn something? Stop rereading it
Why pulling knowledge out of your head beats pouring more in, and how to use it today.
Active learning vs lectures: why easy learning fools you
Why the learning that feels easiest often teaches you least, and what to do instead.
Learning by explaining: why you understand it once you say it
Why explaining an idea to someone else is one of the fastest ways to actually understand it.
Why is it easier to talk to someone you don’t know?
Why we often open up to people outside our circle, and avoid the ones closest to us.
Does being kind make you happier? What the research really says
Kindness really does lift the giver, just less than the mugs claim. Here’s what the studies show.
People like you more than you think: the liking gap explained
Think that chat went badly? Research on the liking gap says the other person probably liked you more than you think.
Does social media make you unhappy? What the 2026 report found
The 2026 World Happiness Report on screens, young people and why messaging and feeds pull in opposite directions.
Does meditation change your brain? What the evidence says
Brain scans, rumination and what meditation really does: what the evidence says, and how to start.
Does deep conversation make you happier? What research shows
Researchers recorded people’s everyday chats. Here’s what deep talk has to do with a happier life.
Is loneliness bad for your health? What the research says
Why health officials now treat loneliness like a health risk, and what the best evidence says helps.
Why do we avoid deep conversations? The science of closeness
We expect deep talk to be awkward. Research says we misjudge it in three predictable ways.
Do friends help you live longer? What the research says
Strong friendships are linked to longer life and calmer stress responses. Here’s what the evidence shows.
Why talking to someone new makes you happier
We predict that chatting to someone new will be awkward. The research says we’re usually wrong.
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