
I’ve recently been captivated by , a podcast from The New York Times and the makers of Serial. It follows the wild case of a nurse who repeatedly stole fentanyl from a fertility clinic and replaced it with saline. It took a long time to uncover what was happening; meanwhile, dozens of women had to undergo in vitro fertilisation (IVF) without receiving any pain-relief medication – though their doctors didn’t know that at the time.
I’ve also read a couple of great books. The first was by Ben Smith, following the rise (and fall, for many) of the first internet media companies. It’s an insider look at what the early days of BuzzFeed, Gawker, The Huffington Post, the Drudge Report and more were like.
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The second is by Robert Sapolsky, in which the famed neuroscientist builds his case that free will doesn’t exist. I found it both fascinating and challenging – though I’m not sure if I really had a say in the matter.
Timothy Revell
Deputy US editor
New York