Surprises share the road with solitude. Plus, peach cobblers; green books; biological warfare
 | VIDEO AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY MATHIAS SVOLD
| | AAA may try to talk you out of driving this highway. Your tank should be full, you should be carrying plenty of water—and, of course, a spare.
U.S. Route 50 (above), long dubbed the loneliest road in America, traverses a bumptious history. But our photographer discovers plenty of life, too—and an appreciation for quiet pleasures.
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A sign on a lonely road: John lives in his car topped with a sign that reads, “Pray for me please.” He stayed on Route 50 for three weeks, and says the sign is a way to start conversations with people who pass by. | | | |
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Off the beaten path: Alien-themed decor blankets a room at the Stardust Ranch, a brothel in Ely, Nevada. Nevada is the only state in the U.S. where brothels are legal. | | | |
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Last chance gas: The Border Inn is a gas station, motel, and diner on the Utah-Nevada border in Baker, Nevada. The next eastbound gas station is 83 miles away. | | | |
| | Scary reminders: Flower-draped crosses can be seen along “the loneliest road in America.” Read more. | | | |
 | PHOTOGRAPH BY REBECCA HALE, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC
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 | BRIDGEMAN/ACI
| | Poisoned arrows and snake venom: You thought biowarfare and chemical weapons dated back to, say, World War I? Nope. Not even close. Ancient Greeks and others used germs, toxic plants (like hellebore illustrated above), and fiery materials against their enemies—and even contaminated water sources, Nat Geo reports.
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 | | PHOTOGRAPH BY STACY KRANITZ | |
Georgia peach: This iconic fruit is the muse for songs. It graces the state’s license plates. And it’s the main ingredient for the world’s largest peach cobbler (cooked by Rich Bennett pictured above). But to grow, peaches require up to 900 hours of cold weather. With a warming climate, will they survive?
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Aw, you guys made me ink: Like Pearl from Finding Nemo, Costello the octopus, who’s being studied by scientists, “appeared to emerge from sleep and then act out defensive behaviors before inking his tank,” Nat Geo reports. The reason? He was having a nightmare. (Pictured above, a day octopus—not Costello—is seen at the Butterfly Pavilion in Colorado.)
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Today’s soundtrack: Keep the Car Running, Arcade Fire
This newsletter has been curated and edited by David Beard, Hannah Farrow, and Jen Tse. Amanda Williams-Bryant, Alisher Egamov, Rita Spinks, and Jeremy Brandt-Vorel also contributed this week. Thanks for reading! | | | |
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