Happy Friday! If you're new to Now I Know, you'll notice that today's format differs from the rest of the week. On Fridays, I pause to write the "Weekender," my  "week in review" type of thing, or to share something else I think you may find interesting. Thanks for reading! — Dan

Hi!

This weekend marks Now I Know’s fifteenth (!!) anniversary. That’s a long time! On June 22, 2010, I sent out the first-ever issue of Now I Know to 20 people. Today’s will go to more than 60,000. For me, Now I Know has always been a hobby — a way to share all the really neat stuff I've come across. I never imagined that there'd be so many of you willing to listen!

But it wouldn’t be worthwhile if it weren’t for each of you. Whenever I learn something new and interesting, Now I Know makes that discovery wonderful — I haven’t just fed my curiosity, but I know that I’ll get the joy of sharing it with each and every one of you. I write the newsletter, but you make it come alive.

So, thank you for reading. Thank you for inviting me to be part of your day, every day — our lives and our inboxes are busy places, and the five to ten minutes you give me is something I value more than I can express. And an additional thank you to everyone who writes back, sharing what they’ve learned, discovered, or simply appreciated along the way.

I don’t have any celebrations planned for this milestone; writing Now I Know has been its own reward. Thank you, again, for reading, and here’s to another 15 years (and beyond!).

Monday: The Original Slush Fund: The origins of the phrase “slush fund.”

Tuesday: The Earth's Great Bear Coincidence: Arctic = bears. Antarctic = no bears. But that's bearly relevant. (And yes, I know that’s spelled “barely.”)

Wednesday: The Radio Reporter Who Found a New Voice, Literally: Technology brings a man’s career back.

Thursday: Freed But Not Free: Not Juneteenth related, exactly, but my decision to re-run this story was inspired by the holiday.

Now I Know is supported by readers like you. Yes, you! Many of my readers donate a few dollars a month to help Now I Know grow and thrive. And in exchange, they get an ad-free version!

And thanks! — Dan

Here are a few things you may want to check out over the weekend:

1) “They Asked an A.I. Chatbot Questions. The Answers Sent Them Spiraling.” (New York Times/gift link, 18 minutes, June 2025). The subhead: “Generative A.I. chatbots are going down conspiratorial rabbit holes and endorsing wild, mystical belief systems. For some people, conversations with the technology can deeply distort reality.” Personally, I find ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot useful for very specific tasks — finding sources I can’t find via a Google search, specifically. I don’t think having “conversations” with them are useful or healthy at this point in their development, and this article suggests I’m right.

2) “I Was a Juror on a Murder Trial” (Thing of Things, 22 minutes, June 2025). Sitting on my desk, right now, is a juror summons for early July. I want to serve on a jury (although I think I’d be bored by it) because I never have, and I want to experience it. But I don’t want to be on a murder trial.

3) “A Day in the Life of a Bottle Collector” (Eurozine, 17 minutes, June 2025). This story takes place at a music festival, but it isn’t about the music — it’s about some people who are attending as a strange form of employment:

Thanks again for 15 years of Now I Know. Have a great weekend!

Dan