Leading off this week, a fantastic read: As NASA increasingly relies on commercial space, there are some troubling signs.
From C. Lee, and it happens on the regular: When the Mismanagerial Class Destroys Great Companies. This is a brilliant read: A Different Dust Bowl. This is unexpected: Early puberty may be linked to a common chemical used in personal care products. Ack! Reusable water bottles have more bacteria on them than dog bowls and toilet seats, study finds. This is very cool: There's an optical illusion hidden in San Francisco's Transamerica Pyramid. Oops! Mattel accidentally linked a *orn site on Wicked doll packaging. This has enormous possibilities: New thermal material provides 72% better cooling than conventional paste. An excellent read: The ironic god of overly familiar Osaka. A very odd trend: Why are cassette and CD players so bulky now? This is a wonderful story: 79-year-old Japanese granny who fell in love with Initial D sports car finds perfect new owner.
From Wally, a coffee nerd alert: Bloom Phase: How to Read the Bubbles In Your Coffee. This is short but terrific (drawing comics professionally): The Wisdom of Wally Wood. A long read on a pivotal American Revolution battle: Trenton 1776. I was totally blown away by how many flavors of potato chips ("crisps") they had in England: The crunch, the flavours, the rituals: how crisps became a British snack obsession.