Help Keep Now I Know Going Strong
Hi!
Yep: today I’m asking you to support Now I Know financially. I don’t do this often — the last time was back in March — so thanks for bearing with me.
For 16 years, I’ve been writing Now I Know — a little story in your inbox most weekdays, sharing surprising, curious, and often weird bits of knowledge. I love doing it, and I’m grateful every single day that so many of you read along.
Most of what keeps Now I Know going comes from recurring and one-time support from readers like you. In March, about two dozen of you signed on as new supporters, which I’m still humbled by. I’d like to repeat that success today — my goal this fall is to add another 25.
(And just to be clear: Now I Know isn’t going anywhere. Your support doesn’t keep it alive — it helps make it stronger and more sustainable, and it gives you the option to get it ad-free.)
If you’d like to help, there are two easy ways:
Become a monthly supporter
I send about 20 editions a month. A $5 monthly contribution works out to just 25 cents per email — the cost of:
- Roughly seven and a half Tic Tacs
- A dishwasher detergent capsule
- Almost a third of a U.S. postage stamp
For a quarter a day, you’re helping make sure thousands of curious people keep learning something new each morning. That’s better than a small handful of mints, right?
Click Here to Support Now I Know
- $5/month gets you an ad-free version of the newsletter. (Today’s issue has two ads in it — supporters won’t see them.)
- $10/month gets you the same ad-free version, and I’ll count you as two supporters toward the goal.
Make a one-time contribution
Not comfortable with recurring support? Or want to make a REALLY BIG one-time gift? That’s great! Whether it’s $5, $50, or, in a truly heroic turn of events, $500,000, I’m grateful for it.
A big thank you, too, to everyone who already supports Now I Know. Your generosity makes the ad-free version possible and lets me spend more time on great stories.
If Now I Know has ever made you say “huh, that’s neat,” I’d be honored if you’d consider chipping in.
Thanks!
Dan
The Now I Know Week In Review
Monday: I was off for Yom Kippur.
Tuesday: Free Money’s Fine Print: An ATM error in your favor comes with strings attached, even if you would have gotten away with it.
Wednesday: The Bathrobe Defense: How wearing pajamas in public can help keep you out of prison (but not indefinitely).
Thursday: When First Comes in Third: Second comes in first, maybe, but not always; regardless, it always comes before First, at least in this real-life Abbot and Costello skit.
Long Reads and Other Things
Here are a few things you may want to check out over the weekend:
1) ”Impossibility is a Myth” (The Fence, 22 minutes, September 2026). The subhead: “Sacha Jafri sold an artwork for $62 million dollars in 2021 at an auction. But the money never changed hands. What happened?”
2) “Getting Rich and Going Broke, One Pack of Sports Cards at a Time” (GQ, 30 minutes, September 2026). Over the past few weeks, I’ve been plugging my Whatnot referral link here because I like baseball, and your sign ups have earned me credits to get some free cards. (Thanks for that!) I’ve also seen — but haven’t participated in — the channels that sell cards in the manner described in this article. It’s a weird, and potentially dangerous mix of card collecting and gambling. The GQ story does a great job articulating the situation, and is a great read even if you’re not into baseball.
3) “The great American road trip is in peril” (Grist, 18 minutes, August 2026). The subhead: “Along my family’s 9,000-mile trip this summer, our days whiplashed between grandeur and extreme weather crises.”
Thanks again for supporting Now I Know — and have a great weekend!
Dan