The Life Science Library was a set of 26 books published in the 1960s. Each book focused on a single topic, such as weather, the human body, or planets. My family had a set when I was a kid, and I studied them obsessively. I was as fascinated by the incredible design as I was by the text and images. My favorite of the set was The Mind, published in 1964, which explored the mysteries and complexities of perception, memory, learning, mental illness, psychoanalysis, and the nervous system. While much of the information has been superseded by later discoveries, it introduced me to many things that have stuck with me my entire life: Ames rooms, Louis Wain’s kaleidoscopic cat art, and the stunning William Kurelek painting, The Maze. Out of print, but used copies are available, and you can view it at the Internet Archive.— MF

The built-in AI in the iPhone is now so good that you can use it to quickly identify plants, flowers, and many birds. Take a photo of your target, open it in Photos, and swipe it up. At the top of the meta information will be the species or common name. If it doesn’t know it, it gives you one button to “look up” that will usually give you an answer. It’s just about as accurate as the dedicated Seek app I was using before. — KK

Propstore.com consigns and sells entertainment memorabilia, like props, costumes, posters and other collectibles, through both Live and Online Auctions. I have not purchased or bid on anything (yet), but I enjoy browsing the website for doses of nostalgia. This weekend there is a live auction of rare and collectible posters, and I pinned some of them for design inspiration. — CD 

I play the NY Times’ Connections game every day, where the objective is to organize 16 words into four groups, with each group containing words that are connected to each other in some way. A game called Same Energy Snap is like Connections, but for photos instead of words. In this game, you are presented with a 4x3 grid of images, and your task is to find pairs of photos that share a similar vibe or "energy." — MF

I’ve been seeing this image collection of Root System Drawings around the Internet, and they’re so cool and beautiful I feel compelled to continue sharing them widely. I don’t know much about the university or research behind it, other than they are located in the Netherlands, and that the drawings are the result of 40+ years of root system excavations across Europe. There is something about the symbolism of trees, plants and roots that I can’t put into words but resonates deeply, fostering a connection to both the Earth and my spirit. — CD 

Wool T-shirts are now my goto shirt. Modern 100% merino wool fabrics are better than cotton even in topical weather. They dry quick, never smell, feel nice. Since I live in perpetual autumn, and work indoors, I wear long-sleeved wool t-shirts. Logo-less brands, such as Meriwool and Merino.tech are not expensive ($49) and offer a long sleeved T in three weights from light to heavy, and many colors. — KK

If you find Recomendo useful, you’ll definitely enjoy Rambull — a newsletter that profiles a different person each week and shares 6+ recommendations for living, buying, experiencing, and more. I had the pleasure of being profiled last week, and I was truly impressed by the thoughtfulness and care Rob, the creator, invests in crafting an issue. A few of the things I shared were ones I had intended to recommend here, making this a bonus Recomendo! — CD

Years ago I used Q-tips to remove wax from my ears. They didn’t do a good job because most of the wax got pushed deeper into my ear. Later, I found specialized ear wax removal tools that are designed to scoop and scrape out the wax more effectively. One tool I like is the Clinere earwax removal tool, which has a built-in stop guide to prevent accidentally poking too far and damaging the eardrum. — MF

I’ve visited many tourist caves in the world. They all have their attractions. But by far the best cave experience I’ve had is Carlsbad Caverns National Park. Not only is it huge, but it is highly decorated, with endless intimate, close-up ornate formations. And an unthinkable amount of work went into making its immense spaces accessible, without wrecking its wildness. You can easily spend half a day enchanted. Like the Grand Canyon, or the Pyramids, it is an experience that cannot be captured by images. Bonus tip: Get the self-guide audio tour. I rank it in my top 3 favorite national parks. — KK

While reading an article, I came across a link to a court document hosted on Scribd. However, Scribd charges a monthly fee of $12 to access their hosted files. Since I didn't want to subscribe just to read a document that is in the public domain, I used a website called Scribd.vpdfs.com to download the file instead. (You may want to check out the numerous complaints filed with the Better Business Bureau by users who claim that Scribd continued to charge them even after they canceled their subscription.) — MF

At first, the title sounds like an insane idea: One Billion Americans. But this easy-to-read book is very persuasive in making the case why current Americans benefit from a vigorous immigration policy and generous family friendly programs, as ways to increase the country’s prosperity. Matt Yglesias, the author, deals with all the obvious objections of a billion Americans in an even handed way. He changed my mind; I think it is a great idea. — KK

PamPam lets you create custom maps in minutes and it’s fun to use! I was able to quickly search for and add points of interest by simply describing them to an AI. Then, I customized them with stickers and text. It feels very playful. For an even faster map-making experience, you can copy and paste text or a link to a list of places. PamPam is free for personal use and that includes 5 maps, 100 spots, and up to 500 views per month. I decided to test it out by making a nostalgic map of my hometown in under 5 minutes, and here's what I created. If you're unable to view it, it's probably because I have a free account and I've reached the limit of 500 views. However, you can check out the templates here. — CD

I need to transcribe a large number of recorded interviews every month.. I used to be a subscriber to Otter.ai, but it has a limit of 10 uploads per month. I have found a superior replacement, notta.ai, which is cheaper ($8.25 per month) and offers 1,800 minutes (30 hours) of transcription per month, which is more than enough for my needs. Notta's free plan provides 120 minutes, which should be sufficient for most people. I’ve also noticed that Notta is faster and just as accurate as Otter. — MF

The Library of Consciousness is a growing collection of writings, lectures and media about the human experience and all its mysteries. You don’t have to know what you’re looking for, just click around or search for keywords to navigate. It’s a source of inspiration. Right now, there are 200 authors in the library, and the curator says that they are actively seeking female and POC perspectives and welcomes recommendations. — CD

The biggest cultural export from China this century is the science fiction novel The Three-Body Problem. A ten-part Chinese version of it was made a few years ago, which was okay, but Netflix has just remade 3 Body Problem into an 8-part series produced by the guys behind Game of Thrones megahit series. I’m enjoying this version even more than the book. The story has been globalized, ramped up, and supercharged with appropriate effects, to make it clear, compelling, great science fiction. — KK

Do you find certain subjects too stressful to bear in a movie? If so, Does the Dog Die? is for you. Here, you can input a movie title and it provides a list of content warnings. For example, Marathon Man includes a warning for "damaged teeth," which makes my skin crawl. You can also search in reverse — a search for “Are any teeth damaged?” results in a scarily long list of movies that depict teeth being broken. — MF

This graphic illustrates 15 popular time management tactics. The methods I use the are the Pomodoro Technique, which involves working in 25-minute cycles with breaks in between, and Time Blocking/Task Batching. This is my first time hearing of the “Pickle Jar Method,” but it does seem like I could cross a lot of things of my list working this way: 1. Do major tasks first. 2. Slot in minor tasks around the major ones. 3. Continuously assess and reprioritize tasks. — CD

When I work in the garden, or fiddle with bike tires, or work on something that requires I kneel, I grab an inexpensive foam kneeling pad, like this one, from a pack of Gardzen (3 for $16). No knee discomfort. A small thing that makes a big difference. — KK

If you need to merge, split, compress, or convert PDFs, try ILovePDF. This free site transforms PDFs into various file formats (and vice versa). You can also use it to edit, sign, unlock, encrypt, and repair PDFs. — MF

Here’s a soothing 3-minute visualization that zooms in and out across the known scales of the Universe — from the tiniest particle to the vast cosmic web. This higher perspective makes me feel both small and a miracle. — CD