However now, with the revelations of the past year or so, it seems like the kind of thing that is risky to try and discover until after you learn tradecraft and how to protect your identity while exploring darknets.
I decided to fire up Tor and have a look at the places mentioned in the article, having previously browsed (but never used) Silk Road before it was busted out of similar curiosity.
They're basically as described. It's fairly disturbing that these exist. I don't mind people buying and selling drugs, as people are going to do that, but on these same market places people are selling identities, fraud equipment (POS and ATM skimmers), stolen credit card details, funds from hacked accounts and, most disturbingly, weapons.
The weapons are by far the worst aspect of it. There's listings for everything from 3D printed guns through to modified AK47s that are now fully automatic. Worst of all, there is materials listed for making explosives, as well as components like fuses and switches.
I hate to think of whose hands these things end up in.
1. http://www.cnet.com/news/nsa-likely-targets-anybody-whos-tor...
You still have to compartmentalize your illicit (or, in the case of research, simply suspicious) activity from your day-to-day computer activities, rigorously.
But I suppose for the original, "read only" purpose of perusing dark markets, Tails may suffice.