+
Sign up for
The Upworthiest
Our top stories of the day delivered straight to your inbox.
More

The problem with men explaining things. Plus, the best of the web this week.

The best of the Web this week includes an explanation of "mansplaining," an amazing art project in China, 61 things you didn't know about hoboes, five tricks Facebook uses when dealing with your privacy, and more. Enjoy!

Arts and Culture

The Problem With Men Explaining Things / Rebecca Solnit / Mother Jones

This piece floored me. You should read it, especially if you're a man. Or a woman.





Obituary: Neil Armstrong / The Economist

An amazing man and story: "The original landing area turned out to be full of large boulders. ... By the time he found his spot, there was only 25 seconds of fuel left in the thanks."




61 Things I Learned At The National Hobo Convention / Matt Stopera / BuzzFeed

A wonderful story, animated by curiosity and genuine interest. Lots of gems, including: "6. When a hobo dies, they are said to have 'caught the Westbound.'"




Green Pedestrian Crossing In China Creates Leaves From Footprints / Christopher Jobson / Colossal

Art and advocacy meet in this clever and beautiful campaign.




Politics and World Affairs

I'm Right, You're Wrong And Other Political Truths / Ramesh Ponnuru / Bloomberg

Finally, something people from both parties can all agree on!




Fear Of A Black President / Ta-Nehisi Coates / The Atlantic

A searching and sobering consideration of race relations in America, and of the poignant mixture of disappointment and pride Coates finds in Obama and his administration.




What I Learned At Bain Capital / Mitt Romney / The Wall Street Journal

Romney makes the case for how his business experience has equipped him to turn around the economy.




So, Mitt, What Do You Really Believe? / The Economist

Ouch: "A businessman without a credible plan to fix a problem stops being a credible businessman. So does a businessman who tells you one thing at breakfast and the opposite at supper." (via Maurice)




The Reality Of Trying To Shrink Government / Lawrence Summers / The Washington Post

Important perspective: "For structural reasons, even preserving the amount of government functions that predated the financial crisis will require substantial increases in the share of U.S. economy devoted to the public sector."




Business and Economics

The Cheapest Generation / Derek Thompson and Jordan Weissman / The Atlantic

Car and home ownership are down significantly among millennials, with many interesting explanations and implications. One insight: "young people prize 'access over ownership.'"




The Acqui-Hire Scourge: Whatever Happened To Failure In The Valley? / Sarah Lacy / PandoDaily

Interesting and well-argued piece. "Everyone loves to say that Silicon Valley's great strength is an acceptance of failure." But widespread acquisitions may be undermining this.




The Case For Spending A Little More Sometimes / Carl Richards / The New York Times

Simple advice: Avoid the temptation of cheap and disposable, and invest in things that are worth owning for the long haul.





Tootsie's Secret Empire / Ben Kesling / The Wall Street Journal

A fun story on the candy company's secretive, and aging, CEO. Plus, this great lede: "How many licks does it take to get to the center of Tootsie Roll Industries? No one really knows."




Smart Service Design Needs A New Language For Anonymity / Jan Chipcase / Co.Design

Some interesting nuggets on the value, and dangers, of personal recognition in customer service. (via @dbkahn)




Science and Technology

Digital Scarcity / Tuhin Kumar

Soon enough, digital "... will replace physical as the primary dimension in which we spend our time. ... We need to find a better way to tell others what is worth their time."





5 Design Tricks Facebook Uses To Affect Your Privacy Decisions / Avi Charkham / TechCrunch

Side-by-side comparisons show a concerted effort to make it less clear what permissions you're granting.




Apple V. Samsung Verdict Is In: $1 Billion Loss For Samsung / Joe Mullin / Ars Technica

Interesting context: "Apple's ultimate target is Google," whose Android operating system so enraged Steve Jobs that he promised "thermonuclear war."




The Worldfalls / Oliver Morton / Heliophage

A short, vivid mental image that will change the way you think about energy, from the author of a book on photosynthesis called "Eating the Sun."




* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Sign up to receive the Best of the Web in your inbox each week.




Joy

Airbnb host wakes his guest up in the middle of the night so she wouldn't miss the northern lights

Best. Host. Ever.

@penslucero/TikTok

Pency Lucero taking in the Northern Lights

Seeing the northern lights is a common bucket list adventure for many people. After all, it ticks a lot of boxes—being a dazzling light show, rich historical experience and scientific phenomenon all rolled into one. Plus there’s the uncertainty of it all, never quite knowing if you’ll witness a vivid streak of otherworldly colors dance across the sky…or simply see an oddly colored cloud. It’s nature’s slot machine, if you will.

Traveler and content creator Pency Lucero was willing to take that gamble. After thorough research, she stumbled upon an Airbnb in Rörbäck, Sweden with an actual picture of the northern lights shining above the cabin in the listing. With that kind of photo evidence, she felt good about her odds.

However, as soon as she landed, snow began falling so hard that the entire sky was “barely visible,” she told Upworthy. Martin, the Airbnb host, was nonetheless determined to do everything he could to ensure his guests got to see the spectacle, even offering to wake Lucero up in the middle of the night if he saw anything.

Then one night, the knock came.

Keep ReadingShow less
nature
Pop Culture

Mississippi meteorologist paused for a 'human' moment while reporting on devastating tornado

"Oh, man. Dear Jesus, please help them."

WTVA 9 News/YouTube

Meteorologist Matt Laubham prays for the people in the path of a deadly tornado.

Broadcasters who have to report on tragedies as they are happening have a tough job. On the one hand, they have to maintain their professionalism and inform the public of what's happening in a factual way. On the other hand, they're still human and sometimes humanity trumps the traditional perception of what's "professional."

Such was the case for WTVA meteorologist Matt Laubhan, who found himself live on the air staring at a radar scan of a deadly tornado as it moved towards the small town of Amory, Mississippi. He, more than anyone, understood the severity of the situation, and he did his best to convey that to his viewers.

"This is a strong, life-threatening tornado that's going to move either extremely close to Amory or in through the northern part of the city of Amory."

He added, "Y'all trust me too much," explaining that people sometimes take his predictions of where the tornado will go as hard fact, but the reality is that tornados can change directions at any time. "So Amory, we need to be in our tornado safe place," he said.

Keep ReadingShow less
humanity
Family

Dad found out his son bullied a kid at school and came up with a brilliant teaching moment

"I told him that we have the opportunity to make things right."

@thehalfdeaddad/TikTok

Dad on TikTok shared how he addressed his son's bullying.

What do you do when you find out your kid bullied someone? For many parents, the first step is forcing an apology. While this response is of course warranted, is it really effective? Some might argue that there are more constructive ways of handling the situation that teach a kid not only what they did wrong, but how to make things right again.

Single dadPatrick Forseth recently shared how he made a truly teachable moment out of his son, Lincoln, getting into trouble for bullying. Rather than forcing an apology, Forseth made sure his son was actively part of a solution.


The thought process behind his decision, which he explained in a now-viral TikTok video, is both simple and somewhat racial compared to how many parents have been encouraged to handle similar situations.
Keep ReadingShow less
fatherhood
Pop Culture

Rick Astley covered Foo Fighters' 'Everlong' and it's shockingly great

Consider yourself Rick-Grohled.

Rick Astley/YouTube

Rick Astley rocking his Foo Fighters 'Everlong' cover.

Rick Astley has to be the luckiest '80s musician on the planet. The whole "Rickrolling" phenomenon has given his hit song "Never Gonna Give You Up" a reach far beyond its natural life span, and kept the guy a household name far longer than he probably would have been.

(For those who are unfamiliar, Rickrolling is when you make someone think they're being sent to a website, but the link goes to Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up" video instead as a joke. It's a silly viral bait-and-switch gag that's been going since 2006.)

But what people may not realize, because his most famous song has become an internet joke, is that Rick Astley is actually a really freaking great musician. The man can saaaang and it seems he's only gotten better with age.

Keep ReadingShow less
Education

People are raving about how much easier it is to read with 'bionic reading' font

This viral tool could be a game-changer for some.

Photo via Canva, @WhattheADHD/Twitter

The 'bionic reading' font is designed to help keep you focused and read faster.

Reading is a fundamental tool of learning for most people, which is why it's one of the first things kids learn in school and why nations set literacy goals.

But even those of us who are able to read fluently might sometimes struggle with the act of reading itself. Perhaps we don't read as quickly as we wish we could or maybe our minds wander as our eyes move across the words. Sometimes we get to the end of a paragraph and realize we didn't retain anything we just read.

People with focus or attention issues can struggle with reading, despite having no actual reading disabilities. It can be extremely frustrating to want to read something and have no issues with understanding the material, yet be unable to keep your mind engaged with the text long enough to get "into" what you're reading.

Keep ReadingShow less
Family

Badass bikers show up for abused children, offering advocacy and protection

They become an abused child's "biker family," and they let the child—and everyone else—know that NO ONE messes with their family.

Bikers Against Child Abuse/YouTube

When you are a child who has been abused by people who are supposed to protect you, how do you feel safe?

That question is the heart of Bikers Against Child Abuse International (B.A.C.A.), an organization dedicated to creating "a safer environment for abused children." With specific training and extensive security checks, the frequently big and burly members of B.A.C.A. serve as protectors of chid abuse survivors, giving vulnerable children people to call on when they feel scared, and even showing up in court when a child asks them to.

Keep ReadingShow less
bikers
Trending Stories