2025 Challenge: Read 100 new things

[Del Murder]

My challenge for 2025 is to read 100 new things. Should be much easier than doing 100 novel things but there is a catch. I'm keeping the spirit of 'novelty' in this, so it doesn't count if it was something I would have read anyway. So whatever book of Wheel of Time I'm on doesn't count, nor does random work related articles, unless I specifically target one I would not have read otherwise.

The goal here is to expand my horizons to different writings. I feel like I do fairly well on that already with the books I read, as I do all different genres, but I'm not so good at reading articles other than the local news.

Also, I need to actually read the piece. Not just the title or summary or to skim it. Actually read it.

Length doesn't matter as long as it is more than a couple paragraphs. Can be a book, article, blog post, editorial, but not a Tweet.

I will post updates in the thread and links if possible. Here goes!

[Del Murder]

1. Top places to visit in California in 2025 (https://www.sfchronicle.com/projects/2025/top-california-places-to-visit/) (1/5)

[Del Murder]

2. The Militia and the Mole (https://www.propublica.org/article/ap3-oath-keepers-militia-mole) (1/9)

[Del Murder]

3. James webb space telescopes little red dots come into focus (https://www.npr.org/2025/01/14/nx-s1-5258907/james-webb-space-telescopes-little-red-dots-come-into-focus) (1/14)

[Spuuky]

Could have done "read 100 novel things" and then read that many novels, but I suppose we all must choose our battles

[Del Murder]

I would never be able to read 100 novels per year, unless I quit my job and they were all novellas. Suggest an article for me Romeo!

[Del Murder]

4. What we get wrong about time. (https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20191203-what-we-get-wrong-about-time) (1/20)

[Del Murder]

5. Improved radon gas mapping finds nearly 25% of Americans living in highest risk areas (https://phys.org/news/2025-01-radon-gas-americans-highest-areas.amp) (1/21)

[Del Murder]

6. Microsoft Chose Profit Over Security and Left U.S. Government Vulnerable to Russian Hack, Whistleblower Says (https://www.propublica.org/article/microsoft-solarwinds-golden-saml-data-breach-russian-hackers) (1/22) - I read a series of articles on this but it starts with this one.

[Del Murder]

7. No More Periods When Texting. Period. (https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/29/crosswords/texting-punctuation-period.html) (1/26)

[Mr Gashtacular]

7. No More Periods When Texting. Period. (https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/29/crosswords/texting-punctuation-period.html) (1/26)

ive long thought this, and experienced it during actual fights

You can tell when someone is really mad in texts/chatrooms when they start using grammar and full sentences, like this.

[Del Murder]

8. In the Wild West of School Voucher Expansions, States Rely on Untested Companies, With Mixed Results (https://www.propublica.org/article/school-voucher-management-classwallet-odyssey-merit-student-first) (2/1)

[Del Murder]

9. How Costco Hacked the American Shopping Psyche (https://archive.ph/nMoNi) (2/2)

[Del Murder]

10. Washington Governor Orders Team to Study Data Centers’ Impact on Energy Use, Job Creation and Tax Revenue (https://www.propublica.org/article/washington-data-centers-study-bob-ferguson) (2/5) - read this plus the original reporting.

[Del Murder]

11. My identity was stolen. This one tip could have saved me from the entire ordeal (https://www.sfchronicle.com/personal-finance/article/freeze-credit-prevent-identity-theft-20011780.php) (2/9)

[Del Murder]

12. 7 health benefits of walking (https://healthy.kaiserpermanente.org/health-wellness/healtharticle.benefits-of-walking?wt.tsrc=em&cat=2a&mkt_tok=NDkyLU5RVS0wMTQAAAGYnyGN5TS7eCCx_EsMFa8dc7gjHrKc9i2tAu0s5Fc-807bYftHngc1mp_yq_vlrIavP_BYt8xIUtRfApZNKXL__7QxNzTgTqE5-CWloRHHU8b5-w) (2/14)

[Del Murder]

13. Silicon Valley’s Macho Makeover Was a Warning, Not a Trend (https://www.wired.com/story/power-dressing-silicon-valleys-macho-makeover-is-a-warning-not-a-trend/) (2/16)

[Del Murder]

14. California’s almond crop threatened by ‘catastrophic’ honeybee losses (https://www.sfchronicle.com/climate/article/bee-almond-tree-california-20164083.php?utm_content=cta&sid=61e77a5092109b7957096b09&ss=A&st_rid=d990cd25-4cd6-45d9-9c81-082b8d1dc104&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=headlines&utm_campaign=sfcn%20%7C%20the%20must-read) (2/22)

[Del Murder]

15. This is Water by David Foster Wallace (https://fs.blog/david-foster-wallace-this-is-water/) (2/22)

[Cell]

12. 7 health benefits of walking (https://healthy.kaiserpermanente.org/health-wellness/healtharticle.benefits-of-walking?wt.tsrc=em&cat=2a&mkt_tok=NDkyLU5RVS0wMTQAAAGYnyGN5TS7eCCx_EsMFa8dc7gjHrKc9i2tAu0s5Fc-807bYftHngc1mp_yq_vlrIavP_BYt8xIUtRfApZNKXL__7QxNzTgTqE5-CWloRHHU8b5-w) (2/14)

I've really got to get back into doing my daily step count targets.

[Del Murder]

16. As Facebook Abandons Fact-Checking, It’s Also Offering Bonuses for Viral Content (https://www.propublica.org/article/facebook-meta-abandons-fact-checking-boosts-viral-content) (3/1)

[Del Murder]

17. Trump's Blockade of America (https://www.apricitas.io/p/trumps-blockade-of-america) (3/5)

[Del Murder]

18. Why 20-somethings are abandoning San Francisco — even when they can afford it (https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/san-francisco-20somethings-exodus-20178534.php?utm_content=cta&sid=61e77a5092109b7957096b09&ss=A&st_rid=d990cd25-4cd6-45d9-9c81-082b8d1dc104&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=headlines&utm_campaign=sfcn%20%7C%20the%20must-read) (3/11)

[Del Murder]

19. Why can’t we remember our lives as babies or toddlers? (https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/feb/16/why-cant-we-remember-our-lives-as-babies-or-toddlers) (3/15)

[Del Murder]

20. The Parallel Economy and the New Rules of American Power (https://open.substack.com/pub/kyla/p/the-parallel-economy-and-the-new?r=3wq67g&utm_medium=ios) (3/15)

[Del Murder]

21. The Great Salt Shake Up (https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2025/04/kosher-salt-trend-cooking/681762/) (3/21)

[Del Murder]

22. The Nicest Swamp on the Internet (https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2025/04/reddit-culture-community-credibility/681765/) (3/21)

[Del Murder]

23. Stuck In Place - Why Americans stopped moving houses—and why that’s a very big problem (https://www.theatlantic.com/press-releases/archive/2025/02/the-atlantics-yoni-appelbaum-stuck-in-place/681629/) (3/21)

[Del Murder]

24. UC’s most competitive major has a 1% acceptance rate, and it’s not computer science (https://www.sfchronicle.com/college-admissions/article/uc-csu-nursing-major-acceptance-rate-20230860.php?utm_content=hed&sid=61e77a5092109b7957096b09&ss=A&st_rid=d990cd25-4cd6-45d9-9c81-082b8d1dc104&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=headlines&utm_campaign=sfcn%20%7C%20the%20must-read) (3/23)

[Del Murder]

25. Growing Up Murdoch (https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2025/04/rupert-murdoch-family-succession-james-murdoch/681675/) (3/26)

[Del Murder]

26. The brain makes a lot of waste. Now scientists think they know where it goes (https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2024/06/26/g-s1-6177/brain-waste-removal-system-amyloid-alzheimer-toxins) (3/29)

[Del Murder]

27. The psychology behind why children are hooked on Minecraft (https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20250328-the-psychology-behind-why-your-childs-hooked-on-minecraft) (3/31)

[Spuuky]

26. The brain makes a lot of waste. Now scientists think they know where it goes (https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2024/06/26/g-s1-6177/brain-waste-removal-system-amyloid-alzheimer-toxins) (3/29)I don't need this article, I already knew it went to social media posts

[Del Murder]

No, that’s what creates the waste!

[Del Murder]

28. As special ed students are integrated more at school, teacher training is evolving (https://www.npr.org/2025/04/15/nx-s1-5247585/teacher-training-special-education-disabilities-schools) (4/15)

[Del Murder]

29. A Warning Out of Time (https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2025/05/trump-executive-order-lawlessness-constitutional-crisis/682112/) (4/16)

[Del Murder]

30. Everything We Once Believed In (https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2025/05/trumpism-maga-populism-power-pursuit/682116/) (4/17)

[Del Murder]

31. The World Porn Made (https://www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/archive/2025/04/what-porn-did-to-american-culture/682610/) (4/27)

[Del Murder]

32. Everyone Is Cheating Their Way Through College (https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/openai-chatgpt-ai-cheating-education-college-students-school.html) (5/9)

[Del Murder]

33. Right to Remain Secret (https://www.sfchronicle.com/projects/2024/police-clean-record-agreements/) (5/14)

[Del Murder]

34. We Are the Most Rejected Generation (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/15/opinion/rejection-college-youth.html) (5/22)

[Del Murder]

35. Meet the ‘Stealthy Wealthy’ Who Make Their Money the Boring Way (https://www.wsj.com/business/making-money-wealth-boring-8cc6c2cd) (5/22)

[Del Murder]

36. Cartoon Network’s Last Gasp (https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2025-05-13/cartoon-network-and-adult-swim-struggle-to-survive-zaslav-and-streaming) (5/23)

[Del Murder]

37. Fast and Fatal (https://www.sfchronicle.com/projects/2024/police-chases/#) (5/24)

[Del Murder]

38. The Golden Age of the Fried Chicken Sandwich (https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2025/06/fried-chicken-sandwich-food-culture/682618/) (5/25)

[Del Murder]

39. Mail By Mule (https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2025/06/mule-mail-delivery-supai-arizona/682619/) (5/25)

[Del Murder]

40. SFUSD kills controversial grading proposal after backlash (https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/sfusd-kills-controversial-grading-proposal-20349399.php) (5/30)

[Del Murder]

41. America’s College Towns Go From Boom to Bust (https://www.wsj.com/us-news/education/college-towns-economy-macomb-illinois-aae84dcc) (5/31)

[Del Murder]

42. AI is ‘breaking’ entry-level jobs that Gen Z workers need to launch careers, LinkedIn exec warns (https://fortune.com/2025/05/25/ai-entry-level-jobs-gen-z-careers-young-workers-linkedin/)(5/31)

[Del Murder]

43. Waymo is teaching its robotaxis cars to drive more like humans. Here’s what that means (https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/waymo-robotaxis-driving-like-humans-20354066.php) (6/3)

[Del Murder]

44. The Gentle Singularity (https://blog.samaltman.com/the-gentle-singularity) (6/11)

[Del Murder]

45. Science Shattered (https://projects.propublica.org/nih-cuts-research-lost-trump/) (6/12)

[Del Murder]

46. Portland Said It Was Investing in Homeless People’s Safety. Deaths Have Quadrupled (https://www.propublica.org/article/portland-homeless-deaths-multnomah-county). (6/13)