2026-10-25 -- control

#1 · news-in-context Oct 19, 2026

More than 4 in 10 Americans say the dead can protect or guide the living (46%), know what the living are doing (44%), or communicate with them (42%).

About 7 in 10 Americans (71%) believe in heaven, while 61% believe in hell and 60% believe in both.

Most Americans (83%) say people have a soul or spirit beyond their physical body, and 57% say animals can have spirits or spiritual energies, too.
Half of Americans believe spirits can inhabit burial sites such as cemeteries, and 48% say parts of nature such as mountains, rivers or trees can have spirits, too.

lead Humans have long wondered own · sim 0.60 · keep 0.55 · score -3

#2 · explainers Oct 19, 2026

The afterlife has perplexed humans across different periods, cultures, and belief systems.

Mentions of the living dead date back to ancient times, and ghost tales have been explored across cultures, continents, and periods, with rituals that still exist to connect with them and ward them off.

The places most commonly reported as haunted are sites like burial grounds, asylums, hotels, castles, and buildings where tragedy struck.
The idea of the soul, immortal and separate from the body, is held across different religions.
Some psychologists believe that religion evolved to soothe common anxieties related to death and the afterlife.

lead Mentions of spirits own · sim 0.62 · keep 0.70 · score -2

#3 · longform Jan 8, 2026

Many ghostly encounters have ordinary explanations rooted in how the brain works, from sleep paralysis to the instinct to see faces in shadows.

Survival instincts can make people sense a presence that isn’t there, see faces in shadows, and hear ordinary sounds as supernatural.

Sleep paralysis happens when the mind wakes during REM sleep while the body stays paralyzed, which can bring on shadowy figures and voices that feel real.
In experiments, people holding séances have reported contact with spirits that were invented for the study.
Fascination with the supernatural has grown into big business, including a market for modern ghost-hunting gadgets.

lead The idea of the soul own · sim 0.43 · keep 0.75 · score -8

#4 · explainers Oct 1, 2026

Consumer spending accounts for 70% of US GDP, making Black Friday significant

Lizabeth Cohen, a history professor at Harvard and author of the book "A Consumer's Republic: The Politics Of Mass Consumption In Postwar America," has argued that the US government has presented consumerism as a way out of economic crisis or decline since around World War II.

itk Americans are expected to spend $13.5B on Halloween this year, with one study finding that own · sim 0.46 · keep 0.18 · score -10

#5 · curiosity Oct 1, 2026

Read an oral history of the Y2K panic

This oral history brings together programmers, engineers, and officials who first identified the date flaw and then spent years alerting the public to the danger and racing to repair millions of lines of code.

itk Cybersecurity agencies worldwide urged admins to patch flaws in a programming language use own · sim 0.43 · keep 0.35 · score -4

#6 · curiosity May 27, 2026

The history of many kitchen appliances involves unexpected discoveries and applications, including wartime radar turned hamster defroster and replacing an 'ice king' with heat-stealing boxes.

Frederick Tudor started a global ice trade in the early 1800s, shipping ice from New England ponds and lakes to warmer regions, using sawdust as an insulator.

The first commercial ice-making machine was invented and patented in Australia in the 1850s.
Refrigerators, which work by compressing a gas to transfer heat from an insulated compartment to the external environment, would be developed for home use by the early 1900s.
Refrigerators have also been built from magnets and rubber bands, in which stretched rubber bands cool to room temperature after stretching and then get even colder after being released.
When standing near a cavity magnetron—a component of radar systems in World War II—chocolate in a person's pocket began melting, showing its potential as a heating element.
The cavity magnetron would lead to the development of the microwave, which was once used to defrost frozen hamsters in cryopreservation experiments as an alternative to warming them with a heated spoon.
Toasters, ovens, kettles, and air fryers are the result of experiments with nichrome to achieve the opposite effect—turn heat back into electricity.

itk Hackers remotely raised the temperatures of refrigerators and freezers at more than 500 Fr sibling · sim 0.41 · keep 0.63 · score -1

#7 · experiences Mar 26, 2026

Reimagining YouTube as cable TV, complete with channel-surfing

The site streams YouTube content as if it were broadcast television, providing the ability to flip through channels and enter videos mid-stream, and you also can't easily skip ahead. The product is designed in part to bring back serendipity to video discovery.

etc Apple, Spotify, YouTube sibling · sim 0.43 · keep 0.73 · score -2

#8 · curiosity Sep 17, 2026

Spotify's success turned Swedish entrepreneur Daniel Ek into a billionaire in his mid-30s.

Ek and his cofounder Martin Lorentzon envisioned Spotify as a legal version of Napster.

Securing licensing deals with major labels like Universal Music, Sony, and Warner Music gave Spotify access to a broad music catalog.
Its freemium model, offering both a free tier supported by ads and a paid ad-free tier, helped attract early adopters.
Customers loved the convenience of streaming songs rather than paying per download from services like iTunes.
At first exclusive to desktops, Spotify launched mobile apps for iOS and Android devices in 2009.
Rapid growth followed Spotify’s mobile expansion; the service had around 1 million users at the start of 2009, which grew to around 7 million by the end of that year.
Spotify entered the US in 2011, which helped its global user base expand to 20 million by 2012.

etc Apple, Spotify, YouTube own · sim 0.41 · keep 0.32 · score -6

#9 · news-in-context Oct 6, 2026

A 2020 poll found around 50% of Americans believe ghosts and demons are real

Ghosts are typically represented as sad and still retaining some of their humanity. Demons are more associated with evil and the devil, without any connection to being human.

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#10 · explainers Oct 30, 2025

The science behind ghosts, explored

Every culture has them—restless spirits, haunted houses, things that go bump in the night. But why do we believe in ghosts? Psychologist and skeptic Dr. Chris French joins host Sony Kassam to explore the science behind the supernatural, from sleep paralysis and hallucinations to the brain’s pattern-making instincts.

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#11 · longform Oct 18, 2024

Ghost stories across cultures often trace back to traumatic events

From a bat-like demon in Tanzania to a malevolent woman figure hovering above your sleeping body, the four disturbing tales outlined in this NPR article offer a glimpse into how happenings from WWII or the Aztec Empire haunt people’s memories.

lead Mentions of spirits own · sim 0.55 · keep 0.60 · score -5

#12 · explainers Oct 6, 2026

Day of the Dead has started to blend with Halloween

As American Halloween becomes more popular across the globe, Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations have begun to take on some of its traditions. While some believe this dilutes the holiday, other scholars suggest that Day of the Dead has always been rooted in Catholicism.

itk Americans are expected to spend $13.5B on Halloween this year, with one study finding that sibling · sim 0.46 · keep 0.16 · score -11

#13 · curiosity Feb 9, 2026

The average person celebrating Valentine's Day spends $189

That might include dinner, flowers, or something even more romantic. The most popular gift is candy, with 56% of people celebrating the holiday by purchasing sweets. That's about $2.5B in sales.

itk Americans are expected to spend $13.5B on Halloween this year, with one study finding that own · sim 0.46 · keep 0.36 · score -12

#14 · curiosity Oct 23, 2026

Trick-or-treating comes from an Irish tradition intended to ward off evil spirits.

Halloween's roots go back to Samhain, a Celtic holiday that marked the start of a new year.

Samhain was on Nov. 1, but on Oct. 31, spirits were said to roam the streets; people dressed as scary creatures, called "guising," and left them food to ward them off.
Samhain became All Saints' Day sometime in the seventh or eighth century, likely under Pope Gregory III, who sought to blend pagan and Christian traditions.
All Saints' Day was known in Middle English as All-Hallows, making the night before All Saints' Day "All-Hallows Eve," which eventually became "Halloween."
Halloween, and its many Celtic traditions, arrived in the United States in the middle of the 19th century with the massive influx of Irish and Scottish immigrants fleeing famine and economic hardship.

itk Americans are expected to spend $13.5B on Halloween this year, with one study finding that sibling · sim 0.44 · score -18

#15 · experiences Sep 2, 2024

YouTube brought endless content—and endless culture wars

How did YouTube grow from a startup in 2005, to a media powerhouse with more than 2.5 billion monthly logged-in users who watch more than 1 billion hours of video every day? That’s what this podcast interview with Bloomberg tech reporter Mark Bergen on NPR’s Fresh Air explores.

etc Apple, Spotify, YouTube own · sim 0.43 · keep 0.29 · score -3

#16 · news-in-context Sep 17, 2026

Read a user's review of the differences between Spotify and its closest rival, Apple Music.

When it comes to digital music streaming services, Spotify and Apple Music have solidified their place as the #1 and #2 services, respectively, based on their number of users.

Spotify’s closest rival in the US is Apple Music, which reportedly had more than 93 million paying users as of January 2025.
Spotify had about 300 million paying subscribers as of August 2026.

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#17 · news-in-context Oct 1, 2026

The ghost-hunting industry helps maintain historical buildings

There's no shortage of spirit-obsessed customers in America, with an estimate that ghost-themed tours generate about $300M annually in the country.

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#18 · explainers Jun 10, 2026

Sleep paralysis occurs when the body fails to 'unfreeze' in sync with waking.

This well-known but little-understood phenomenon happens when the brain awakens early—before the body—and typically results in haunting hallucinations and reports of supernatural terrors.

This type of paralysis is separate from REM atonia, the normal temporary loss of muscle tone in most skeletal muscles during sleep—except for those involved with eye movement, breathing, and the inner ear. REM atonia acts as a fail-safe to help ensure that the brain doesn't force the body to act out dreams.

lead Ever felt like someone was watching you when nobody was there? own · sim 0.49 · keep 0.59 · score -3

#19 · longform Oct 25, 2023

Why is there a regular event to call Houdini from beyond the grave?

An annual seance on the anniversary of Harry Houdini's Halloween death seeks to communicate with the great escapologist from the great beyond. This podcast episode explores why the Hungarian illusionist wanted these magical rites held after his...

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#20 · explainers Sep 16, 2025

UNICEF collects donations for children at Halloween

For generations, Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF has been one of the main ways American children are introduced to the work of the United Nations. The Halloween campaign encourages them to collect donations for children in need—instead of just candy.

itk Americans are expected to spend $13.5B on Halloween this year, with one study finding that sibling · sim 0.45 · keep 0.54 · score -14

#21 · curiosity Oct 19, 2026

Halloween, a holiday primarily popular in the US and Canada, originated 2,000 years ago with the Celtic festival of Samhain.

The Celts interpreted the transition from warm to cold weather as the return of ghosts to the land of the living.

To mark this occasion, rituals such as feasts, bonfires, and the wearing of costumes made of animal body parts are held on Oct. 31.
Once the Roman Empire had conquered most of the Celtic territory, the rituals of Samhain were combined with other Roman festivals relating to the passing of the dead.

itk Americans are expected to spend $13.5B on Halloween this year, with one study finding that sibling · sim 0.44 · keep 0.45 · score -20

#22 · curiosity Oct 1, 2026

Day of the Dead, celebrated by 91% of Mexicans, honors deceased loved ones with altars, food, and cemetery visits each Nov. 1 and 2.

Day of the Dead generated more than $2B in tourism revenue for Mexico in 2023, and many other Latin American countries also observe it.

The holiday blends Aztec mythology, Indigenous heritage, and Catholic traditions, and despite falling just after Halloween, it has a separate cultural history.
Pop culture has raised the holiday’s global profile, including the 2015 James Bond film “Specter” and Disney’s 2017 animated feature “Coco.”

itk Americans are expected to spend $13.5B on Halloween this year, with one study finding that own · sim 0.43 · keep 0.35 · score -24

#23 · experiences Sep 17, 2026

Read about how Spotify creates niche genres, from 'Webcore' to 'Phonk.'

One of Spotify's most recognizable features is its playlists.

The provider offers an endless stream of strangely titled mixes with names like "Hyperpop" and "Lorem," which suggest uniform genres and scenes despite featuring seemingly random assortments of artists and songs.
By organizing its music in this way, some argue that the process erases organic movements that developed outside of the app.

etc Apple, Spotify, YouTube sibling · sim 0.42 · keep 0.56 · score -4

#24 · explainers Dec 31, 2025

Viral pop artists create systems of participation, not just music

Musicologist (and Swift expert) Paula Clare Harper weighs in on the factors that make music go viral. Tracks designed for shareability that feed well into content algorithms on streaming platforms are able to grow in popularity, with traditional human gatekeepers sidelined.

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#25 · curiosity Oct 19, 2026

Sharing ghost tales has been around for centuries. Ancient Mesopotamia, Rome, and Greece each had their own chilling stories about encountering spirits.

The earliest recorded ghost stories are 5,000 years old and come from ancient Mesopotamia.

Ancient Greeks believed the underworld goddesses Melinoe and Hecate presided over the restless dead, each leading a nighttime procession of ghosts, with Hecate’s heralded by barking dogs.
Specters and ghosts appear in some of history’s most famous writings, such as the "Epic of Gilgamesh" and "The Odyssey."

lead Mentions of spirits any_band · sim 0.67 · keep 0.49 · score -1

#26 · explainers Oct 18, 2024

There are psychological benefits to believing in spirits

A number of psychologists believe religion helps subdue our fears of death by giving us a sense of what’s to come and, therefore, a sense of control over how to ensure the best possible outcome.

lead The idea of the soul own · sim 0.53 · keep 0.50 · score -3

#27 · experiences Jun 30, 2026

The science of optical illusions

The human brain has developed cognitive shortcuts to help us navigate in a world where our visual senses are constantly bombarded of information. But these shortcuts can also be exploited, tricking the brain into telling us something is happening when it really isn't. This short video unpacks the neuroscience behind some of the most common (but perplexing) optical illusions.

lead Ever felt like someone was watching you when nobody was there? own · sim 0.44 · keep 0.81 · score -7

#28 · explainers Jun 10, 2026

In 2018, it took about 2.3 years to develop a way to exploit a software bug for malicious purposes, but as of 2026, AI tools have reduced this time to about 20 hours.

The automation afforded by AI tools, which can analyze and test computer code much faster than humans, has made finding critical bugs much easier, substantially increasing potential cybersecurity threats.

Vulnerabilities can exist in foundational code that has not been revised in decades, such as one in the OpenBSD operating system that had existed for 27 years and was found by Anthropic's Claude Mythos.

itk Cybersecurity agencies worldwide urged admins to patch flaws in a programming language use own · sim 0.49 · keep 0.73 · score -1

#29 · curiosity Oct 1, 2026

'Halloween' is one of the most profitable indie films of all time, making $47M in its initial run despite a modest budget.

The film skimped on costuming, paying $200 for star Jamie Lee Curtis' entire wardrobe and just $1.98 for the ominous killer's now-iconic mask.

The crew created the killer Michael Myers' mask by painting a store-bought mask of Captain Kirk—William Shatner's character from "Star Trek"—white.
Director John Carpenter also composed the score, which he wrote in three days after a test audience said the film wasn't scary enough.
Roger Ebert argued that Carpenter’s filmmaking techniques, alongside his original score, made the film a "carefully painted" work.

itk Americans are expected to spend $13.5B on Halloween this year, with one study finding that sibling · sim 0.42 · keep 0.56 · score -26

#30 · curiosity Oct 23, 2026

Poisoned Halloween candy is a myth, with no evidence that a child has ever been killed or seriously hurt by intentionally-contaminated treats.

Versions of the myth appeared in newspapers during the 1950s—sometimes alleging poison-laced treats or that dangerous objects like razor blades might be hidden inside chocolates—but the hysteria escalated during the 1960s and early 1970s.

In the 1950s, there were warnings that some people might heat pennies on skillets and then place them in the hands of unwitting trick-or-treaters.
Joel Best, a University of Delaware professor who has studied the legend for 40 years, said the rumor is passed down among concerned parents but has no basis in reality.
There are real instances where children are harmed by eating candy, but they are rarely attached to Halloween or include extenuating circumstances, like preexisting health conditions or family abuse.

itk Americans are expected to spend $13.5B on Halloween this year, with one study finding that sibling · sim 0.41 · score -38

#31 · curiosity Jun 30, 2026

19th-century Americans used technology to try to prove the existence of ghosts

In the 19th century, following technological advancements like the telegraph, phonograph, and others, efforts were made to capture proof of ghosts. These technologies seemed supernatural in their own right and emerged at the same time Spiritualism took off in the US, resulting in new approaches to connecting with the dead.

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#32 · explainers Oct 19, 2026

Experts believe that ghost stories help us process death, loss, and grief.

Scholar Coya Paz’s research into ghost stories indicated that people often use them to grieve and remember tragic histories.

Paz notes that specters in stories almost always demand acknowledgment.
She also shares that the three most common types of ghosts we hear about are either vengeful, unwelcoming, or comforting.

lead Mentions of spirits own · sim 0.57 · keep 0.81 · score -3

#33 · experiences Oct 23, 2026

This mind-bending optical illusion creates motion-induced blindness—stare at the middle dot and the others disappear.

Researchers aren't sure why the phenomenon occurs, but it's possible the brain interprets static features against a moving field as errors and actively edits them out.

lead Ever felt like someone was watching you when nobody was there? sibling · sim 0.42 · score -11

#34 · explainers Aug 3, 2026

Consumer spending accounts for 70% of America's gross domestic product.

Consumerism as a building block of the American economy dates back to the Great Depression, when recovery plans focused on putting money directly into people’s pockets.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis defines consumer spending as the value of goods and services bought by individuals and households in the US.
Consumer spending includes everyday purchases such as groceries, gas, clothes, shoes, haircuts, and utilities.

itk Americans are expected to spend $13.5B on Halloween this year, with one study finding that own · sim 0.42 · keep 0.21 · score -32

#35 · explainers Apr 8, 2026

Linux and other open-source software can still be safe and secure because they enable many individuals to actively monitor and review publicly available source code.

While no computer system is immune to all cyberattacks and malware, the transparency of open-source technology means thousands of developers can review and oversee the underlying code powering the software.

Ongoing monitoring increases the likelihood of catching and patching vulnerabilities before smaller groups of cybercriminals can exploit them, a concept known as Linus's law, after the inventor of Linux.
Besides the Linux kernel, widely used open source software includes the Advanced Encryption Standard, WordPress, VLC Media Player, LibreOffice, and MySQL.

itk Cybersecurity agencies worldwide urged admins to patch flaws in a programming language use any_band · sim 0.44 · keep 0.62 · score -2

#36 · longform Sep 15, 2025

'Long live the rose that grew from concrete when no one else even cared.'

Rapper Tupac Shakur (1971-1996)

itk Man convicted in Tupac Shakur's murder sentenced to 40 years to life in prison. any_band · sim 0.47 · keep 0.28 · score -1

#37 · explainers Oct 6, 2026

The perception of haunted places is influenced by psychology, setting and suggestion

Gothic architecture and tragic histories contribute to the perception of hauntings. Infrasound and black mold can cause experiences reminiscent of paranormal phenomena. Although paranormal investigators use technology to seek natural explanations, many paranormal experiences remain non-falsifiable.

lead Ever felt like someone was watching you when nobody was there? any_band · sim 0.48 · keep 0.60 · score -4

#38 · explainers Sep 25, 2023

Some scientists argue NDEs are constructed by the brain, not actually experienced

Despite the powerful memories associated with NDEs, scientists question the idea that the experiences prove consciousness endures after death, opting instead to find physiological explanations for common reports of out-of-body experiences, euphoric and lucid thinking, and more.

lead Humans have long wondered own · sim 0.50 · keep 0.47 · score -8

#39 · longform Feb 6, 2026

See if your city hosts one of the most haunted places in the United States.

A night at Colorado’s Stanley Hotel inspired Stephen King to write “The Shining,” and guests still report ghosts in Rooms 217 and 428.

Reported White House ghosts include Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln Bedroom, Andrew Jackson laughing and swearing, and Thomas Jefferson playing the violin.
Built in 1857, San Diego’s Whaley House served as a theater, courthouse, and store, and visitors report hearing a boy who died there of scarlet fever.
Legend says a witch buried in Yazoo City, Mississippi, vowed to burn the town in 20 years, and two decades later, a fire destroyed 200 buildings.
At the Hotel Monte Vista in Flagstaff, Arizona, guests report a ghostly bellboy who knocks, calls out “Room service!” and vanishes.

lead Mentions of spirits own · sim 0.54 · keep 0.76 · score -6

#40 · explainers Oct 6, 2026

Day of the Dead is more than 'Mexican Halloween'

However, it's becoming increasingly common to celebrate the two holidays simultaneously. Hollywood films have made Halloween more popular in Mexico and Day of the Dead more popular outside the country. As a result, events like Mexico City's annual parade now include elements of both holidays.

itk Americans are expected to spend $13.5B on Halloween this year, with one study finding that sibling · sim 0.41 · keep 0.38 · score -39

#41 · news-in-context Oct 18, 2024

Here's how much money Americans spend on Halloween

In 2024, Americans are expected to spend more than $11B on Halloween, which averages out to roughly $104 per person, according to the National Retail Federation's Halloween Spending Survey, conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics. That $11B number includes an anticipated almost $4B spent on costumes. See the full breakdown here.

itk Americans are expected to spend $13.5B on Halloween this year, with one study finding that any_band · sim 0.77 · keep 0.37 · score -1

#42 · news-in-context Sep 24, 2026

Explore a list of bug bounty programs, which pay ethical hackers for finding vulnerabilities in computing systems.

In 2025, the HackerOne cybersecurity platform reported paying out $81M for the identification and disclosure of vulnerabilities, which companies pay to have found rather than face potentially more costly remediation.

Payouts for identified vulnerabilities vary based on the severity of the bug, with companies hoping to be competitive enough to deter the sale of information on the dark web.

itk Cybersecurity agencies worldwide urged admins to patch flaws in a programming language use any_band · sim 0.44 · keep 0.33 · score -3

#43 · curiosity Oct 19, 2026

Spiritualism, the belief that the dead can talk to the living, swept the US and Britain after 1848, drawing séance guests from Queen Victoria to Charles Darwin.

Scientists and intellectuals founded the Society for Psychical Research in 1882 to test paranormal claims, and even its skeptics encountered things they could not explain.

The mass grief of World War I revived spiritualism, with Sherlock Holmes creator Arthur Conan Doyle as its most famous champion.
North Carolina researchers JB and Louisa Rhine argued that uncanny experiences came not from ghosts but from untapped powers of the mind, or extrasensory perception.
Telepathy and telekinesis spread through popular culture, and during the Cold War, scientists explored them as potential weapons.
In the 1970s, Connecticut couple Ed and Lorraine Warren became famous for cases like the Amityville Horror, using methods critics consider deeply dubious

lead The idea of the soul any_band · sim 0.54 · keep 0.66 · score -2

#44 · explainers Jan 2, 2023

The science of fear

The Hidden Brain podcast team explores the science of fear by traveling to a haunted house curated by a scientist to investigate what scares us, and why some people enjoy this sensation more than others.

lead Ever felt like someone was watching you when nobody was there? own · sim 0.46 · keep 0.50 · score -5

#45 · longform Aug 24, 2023

Ghost hunting in the 19th century

This 40-minute podcast explores what it meant to hunt ghosts during the 19th century, when studying the paranormal was considered a mainstream scientific field.

In 1847, a pair of sisters reportedly communicated with the spirit of a dead man...

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#46 · explainers Apr 13, 2026

Minor technology failures can spiral into massive internet outages

A mix of centralized cloud infrastructure and legacy protocols leaves the internet susceptible to downtime from minor cyberattacks or software bugs, infrastructure damage caused by extreme weather, and human error if a DNS service provider—the internet's phone book—or a backend system, such as Amazon Web Services, were compromised.

itk Cybersecurity agencies worldwide urged admins to patch flaws in a programming language use sibling · sim 0.43 · keep 0.26 · score -5

#47 · news-in-context Jan 27, 2026

Climate shifts are projected to cause more cases of food poisoning

Research published in 2024 suggests that with more severe heatwaves and natural disasters, scientists expect there to be a rise in foodborne disease, especially in Africa and Asia. Already, there are an estimated 600 million food poisoning cases and 420,000 deaths annually. Diarrhea is the most common cause of those deaths.

itk Hackers remotely raised the temperatures of refrigerators and freezers at more than 500 Fr any_band · sim 0.40 · keep 0.12 · score -2

#48 · news-in-context Oct 19, 2026

Halloween spending is expected to reach $13.5B in the United States in 2026.

About half of consumers said they plan to spend money on Halloween even before October.

Among Americans celebrating Halloween, the top activities are handing out candy (61%), dressing up (50%), and decorating, carving pumpkins, and watching scary movies (42% each).
Spider-Man is the top children’s Halloween costume, followed by superheroes, princesses, witches, and ghosts, while “KPop Demon Hunters” characters rank No. 8.

itk Americans are expected to spend $13.5B on Halloween this year, with one study finding that any_band · sim 0.75 · keep 0.29 · score -2

#49 · curiosity Oct 30, 2024

What ghosts eat around the world

This Thrillist article compiles a rich assortment of cultural beliefs and practices surrounding food for the dead. From Bengali folklore to Ancient Greek mythology, peruse through the different ways in which cultures around the world use food to maintain connected to the deceased.

lead Mentions of spirits any_band · sim 0.54 · keep 0.70 · score -7

#50 · explainers Aug 17, 2026

Near-death experiences can be reminiscent of religious visions, yet people across different faiths as well as those with no declared religion have reported them.

Aspects of these experiences may often echo Christian concepts such as heaven or angels, but people practicing different religions have sometimes reported in their testimonials that their own experiences aligned with their religion—or with no religion at all.

This essay by Professor Atif Khalil of the University of Lethbridge examines the intersections of religion and science and the common elements in Western, often Christian, experiences with those of Eastern religions such as Islam and Buddhism.
Khalil writes in this essay that though people may reject near-death experience reports as "a hallucinatory byproduct of the dying brain" there may be utility in having faith communities engage more with this concept and exploring the ramifications for religion and thinking about the end times.
He writes that the growing incidence of near-death experience reports will necessitate further engagement with eschatology, which the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines as, "the branch of theology concerned with the final events in the history of the world or of humankind."

lead The idea of the soul own · sim 0.46 · keep 0.34 · score -6

#51 · explainers Aug 17, 2026

The body's response to cardiac arrest has been linked to near-death experiences.

Most people who report near‑death experiences report undergoing out‑of‑body sensations, altered cognition, emotional and spiritual shifts, or even supernatural phenomena, particularly during cardiac arrest.

Research suggests that many such experiences may be linked to experimentally replicable brain-generated sensory distortions, indicating a physiological rather than mystical cause.
Scientists have replicated the sensory experience in sleeping people, reportedly using direct electrical stimulation of the brain in an area normally inactive in REM sleep to provoke an out-of-body experience.
Other research has focused on brain activity when comatose patients were taken off their ventilators and detected a surge in gamma waves—a reaction normally associated with consciousness—as their bodies shut down. The activity was detected in a specific area of the brain that blends sensory information, called the temporo-parieto-occipital junction.

lead Ever felt like someone was watching you when nobody was there? any_band · sim 0.43 · keep 0.60 · score -8

#52 · explainers Sep 30, 2026

Although data breaches sometimes result from hackers exploiting software vulnerabilities, users can take various steps to protect themselves online, including using multifactor authentication.

Multifactor authentication requires a user to provide more than one proof of identity before granting access to a system, such as biometrics, thereby protecting data if a password is compromised.

MFA is recommended for all logins, password managers, and cryptographic keys.
Users should be mindful of MFA fatigue, in which users are repeatedly prompted for access by a hacker's repeated login attempts in the hopes they'll accept to end the annoyance.
To help protect their data and stay safe online, users should always change the default login credentials, use strong, unique passwords, and keep personal data, such as addresses, off public platforms.
Although firewalls can help block external access to a private network or computer, users should avoid unnecessary exposure to the dark web, avoid unnecessary services, and keep software up to date.
Cybersecurity literacy also involves being aware of social engineering attacks, in which a malicious party exploits a user's trust and may instill fear or urgency to obtain sensitive data.
Social engineering attacks include phishing—fraudulent emails, texts, voice calls, or other messages that claim to originate from a legitimate source—and baiting, in which a user is given malicious hardware.
While virtual private networks encrypt and hide a user's traffic, they shift the trust from an internet service provider to the VPN provider, which may not preserve user privacy.

itk Cybersecurity agencies worldwide urged admins to patch flaws in a programming language use own · sim 0.42 · keep 0.28 · score -6

#53 · longform Aug 10, 2023

A deep dive into the Murdaugh murder saga

Former South Carolina lawyer Alex Murdaugh was sentenced to life in prison for the double murder of his wife and son. In 2024, 40 more years were added to the sentence for theft-related charges. The case gained nationwide coverage and revealed a twisting saga of drugs, deceit, violence, and more. Dive into this 93-episode podcast series with journalist Mandy Matney, who reported on the family for years.

itk Man convicted in Tupac Shakur's murder sentenced to 40 years to life in prison. any_band · sim 0.41 · keep 0.19 · score -2

#54 · curiosity Oct 18, 2024

Ghosts can work as powerful literary devices

Noteworthy American novels like Toni Morrison’s "Beloved" tell us how spirits help deliver information and greater truths unknown to the characters. Wondering about our souls is common in literature, and the phantoms in these tales offer a unique way of contemplating the complicated experience of being human.

lead Humans have long wondered any_band · sim 0.48 · keep 0.53 · score -12

#55 · explainers Oct 6, 2026

Horror evolved from Gothic literature

Although creepy tales can be found in nearly every folk tradition, the roots of modern horror can be traced back to Gothic literature, which focused on the battle between humans and unnatural, evil forces.

lead Mentions of spirits own · sim 0.43 · keep 0.38 · score -25

#56 · curiosity Dec 18, 2024

Without mummies, ancient Egyptians feared their souls would perish

The ancient Egyptians placed major importance on mummification because of their beliefs about the afterlife. They believed a preserved body was essential for the soul’s survival, as it needed a physical form to return to. Without it, they feared the soul would perish.

lead The idea of the soul any_band · sim 0.48 · keep 0.78 · score -4

#57 · explainers Feb 10, 2026

Through prompt injection attacks, bad actors provide deceptive prompts to generative AI systems in order to manipulate their outputs and acquire sensitive data.

If large language models are unable to distinguish between developer and user instructions, hackers can exploit this confusion to obtain otherwise sensitive information.

If these attacks include instructions for malicious, self-replicating code, damage can cascade across widespread services without further human intervention.
Risks are likely to increase as AI agents—software that can complete requested tasks without ongoing human direction—become more prevalent and increasingly communicate and integrate with one another across systems.

itk Cybersecurity agencies worldwide urged admins to patch flaws in a programming language use sibling · sim 0.41 · keep 0.19 · score -8

#58 · news-in-context Feb 10, 2026

The worst cyberattacks of the last 10 years

It’s been a rough 10 years in cybersecurity—and it’s only getting worse. From the Stuxnet to the Sony Hack, learn about the worst cyberattacks over the last decade.

itk Cybersecurity agencies worldwide urged admins to patch flaws in a programming language use any_band · sim 0.41 · keep 0.34 · score -7

#59 · longform Mar 27, 2023

Florida man serving 400-year-prison sentence walks free after exoneration

A review found that Sidney Holmes and his car were likely misidentified at the time of his arrest and conviction. Read the full story on the case here.

itk Man convicted in Tupac Shakur's murder sentenced to 40 years to life in prison. any_band · sim 0.40 · keep 0.07 · score -3

#60 · explainers Dec 16, 2023

Why do dreamers twitch?

This thought-provoking piece highlights newer research suggesting sleep twitches may not be random dream leftovers, but instead a crucial way our brains map and understand our bodies. From sleeping rat pups to dreaming octopi, this biological mapping system appears universal across animal species.

lead Ever felt like someone was watching you when nobody was there? any_band · sim 0.42 · keep 0.63 · score -10

Ghosts, Hackers, and Creepy Science Images