I spent 45 minutes interacting with the sliders and buttons at Learning Synths and now I understand concepts like envelope, attack, decay, sustain, and release. I was having so much fun I didn’t realize I was being taught a lesson, either. — MF

For the past 8 years Sci-Hub has been the Napster of academic papers. It’s a pirate site that serves up scholarly journal articles usually stashed behind paywalls. You copy and paste the link from the official journal site (or its DOI) into the Sci-Hub website and it immediately gives you the PDF. I have no qualms using it. Many researchers who have legitimate access to the journals prefer to use Sci-Hub because its interface is easier, consistent, and better designed. — KK

We have a new weekly newsletter called What’s in my bag? Each week, one interesting person shares four favorite things they carry in their bag. Last week Mark shared the four things he always travels with, which he keeps in Japanese see-through zipper bags. Check it out! — CD

My 16-year-old daughter and I are interested in learning about artificial intelligence, and we found a YouTube series produced by Google that has easy-to-understand examples that you can program yourself using the Python programming language. The first program we wrote was only 6 lines long, but it can tell the difference between an apple and an orange. — MF

My friend Rob gave me the ThruNite Archer LED Flashlight ($30) and it is the best small flashlight I’ve ever owned. It throws a bright beam, and because it’s made from aluminum, it feels solid. Importantly, it uses AA batteries instead of less-common batteries often required in bright flashlights. I bought one for my father for Father’s Day because I knew he’d appreciate it. — MF

I am often frustrated when trying to fly from one obscure place to another obscure place with as few stops in between. Most flight sites want you to keep the journey on the same airline. What I want is “show me ALL the flights from this airport,” and I’ll figure out a route on my own. No surprise, there’s a site for that, called appropriately enough FlightsFrom.com. I can assemble a route, sometimes with obscure airlines, that won’t show up elsewhere. — KK

I have multiple Gmail accounts that I use throughout the day and I developed a bad habit of keeping them open and constantly clicking through tabs to check the status of my inbox even though I know nothing’s changed. Checker Plus is a chrome extension that lets you preview, delete, star and archive email without opening up Gmail or leaving your current window, and it works with multiple accounts. Since I’ve been using it, I have definitely been more productive. — CD

I enjoy the way Adam Savage, formerly Mythbuster co-host, builds complicated things. He has a new show, Savage Builds, running on Discovery Channel. In the first episode he made a “real” bullet-proof, flying Ironman suit, which is inspiring. For the next 7 days only, that episode is streaming for free on the internet. — KK

I just finished reading Fall; or, Dodge in Hell, Neal Stephenson’s new sci-fi novel. The first half of this 850-page book is set in the near future and is among Stephenson’s best work. It’s got cryonics, uploading the dead into Bitworld, grand media hoaxes and anti-hoaxes and counter-anti-hoaxes. The second half is a different story-within-the-story where he re-images the Biblical creation story of Adam and Eve, and Greek demigods; although a great performance, it was less satisfying. I recommend the first half of Fall, which is still 400 pages of a plausible future. — KK

For fast, clean, straight paper cuts, I pull out my Fiskars SureCut Deluxe Craft Paper Trimmer ($21). It’s foolproof and kids can use it without supervision because there’s no exposed blade. — MF

I got a Breville Barista Express six months ago and now coffee shop cappuccinos will never be as good as homemade. I wanted to be able to take my cappuccino to go on mornings I drive to work, but my travel mug is too big and mixes my drink when I pour it in. This 8oz reusable coffee cup by KeepCup ($15) fits under the portafilter spouts and fits in my car cup holder. It serves only one purpose, but it does it perfectly. — CD

Most of my audible credits tend to be spent on audio from the Sounds True library. I’ve listened to all the Brené Brown training talks they offer (like condensed versions of her books) and working my way through the Clarissa Pinkola Estés collection of healing stories and myths. But right now what I’m really enjoying is the very trippy 14-hour-long Out of Your Mind: Essential Listening from the Alan Watts Audio Archives. It makes my commute mind-expanding. — CD

Google’s algorithm is not working as well as it once did for product recommendations. It could be that spammy websites have gotten better at gaming the algorithm, pushing their search results to the top. My friend Rob Beschizza shared a wonderful tip. He tweeted, “a search for ‘best cordless hedge trimmer’ gets 400 identical top lists of amazon referral links with smarmy PR copy. But “‘best cordless hedge trimmer reddit’ gets the best cordless hedge trimmer.” Try it, it works for any product! — MF

This interview of Ramit Sethi by Tim Ferris gives an alternative view of personal finances, which I thought was refreshing and worth listening to. Sethi advocates selective thrift in order to permit passion spending in one area, the value of access over ownership, and other heresies. He also discusses pre-nups, which he rightly claims, is discussed nowhere else. — KK

In a time of great complaints about new tech, I am encouraged by the Pessimist Archive which goes through historical records collecting end-of-the-world rants about the horrors of such inventions as bicycles, subways, and electricity. Most complaints about modern things could have been recycled from 100 years ago. The Pessimist Archive is a necessary counterpoint to complain wisely today. I follow both their Twitter stream and their podcast. — KK

Last year I made the very important decision to not have children. This quiz helped me figure out the true reasons I wanted to be a parent and I realized that those reasons were not really aligned with what I wanted for my life. After that came a lot of reading and therapy before I became confident that this was the best decision I ever made for myself. So in case anyone else is on the fence, here’s a place to start. — CD

Now that its summer, I’m seeing a lot of reviews for the best daypack to buy and I feel like I have to give my Patagonia Nine Trails 14L a proper shout out. I tried on every pack they had at REI and ultimately decided to order this one online because of all its features. It’s smaller than most other packs (1lb), and includes a 2-liter HydraPak so I can hike and drink hands-free without having to stop and pull out a water bottle. Aside from the main compartment where my HydraPak lives, there’s two more large compartments (one zippered, one stretch pocket) where I keep an extra layer of clothing, snacks, trauma pak, pStyle, and more. The waist belt has zippered pockets where I keep my keys, pepper spray, chapstick and a small bottle of sunscreen, but the most essential features are the two quick-stash side pockets where I keep my phone and sunglasses since I’m always sliding those in and out. My friend has an older version of this same backpack without the quick-stash pockets and is really jealous of mine. — CD

Good sign: I stayed up all night to finish Delta-V, the latest techno-thriller from Daniel Suarez. Besides being a page-turner at the end, no one has researched or described in convincing detail the logistics and science of mining asteroids in deep space as well as this book. — KK

I use a Google Chrome extension called uBlacklist to stop Pinterest results from showing up in Google searches. You can create a list of other sites you don’t want to show up in search results, too. uBlacklist replaces Google’s Personal Blocklist extension, which it got rid of a while ago. — MF

Instead of buying windshield washer solvent in gallon plastic jugs (and paying about $5) I bought this box of 24 6-ounce bottles of concentrated solvent ($34). One bottle makes 1.5 gallons of solvent. Easier to store, too. — MF