Is there one link, story, picture or thought that you saw online this week that you think somebody you know must see?
My friends: Alistair Croll (Solve for Interesting, Tilt the Windmill, Interesting Bits, HBS, chair of Strata, Startupfest, FWD50, and Scaletechconf; author of Lean Analytics and some other books), Hugh McGuire (Rebus Foundation, PressBooks, LibriVox) and I decided that every week the three of us are going to share one link for one another (for a total of six links) that each individual feels the other person “must see.”
Check out these six links that we’re recommending to one another:
- On “The Fast and the Furious” – Sara Benincasa – Medium. “Sarah Benicasa is a great writer. But this one really stands out. She’s made a pact to watch—and write essays about—every installment of The Fast And The Furious, one of the longest-running action franchises out there. This is the first one. While it’s ostensibly about movies, it’s about much, much more: Epidemics, and mental health, and the chaos of life, and the American Dream, and so much more.” (Alistair for Hugh).
- Monster Supplies. “Years ago, when we started this link sharing thing, it was about the sites you can’t stop thinking about. We’ve covered a lot of science and society, but sometimes it’s great to get back to our roots: This may be the greatest e-commerce site I have ever visited. My Just Evil Enough partner in shenanigans, Emily, pointed me at this. Flawless branding, great layout, and subversive everywhere. Make sure you try the translations. And seriously: If you want to quantify the value of brand, look no further. So damned good.” (Alistair for Mitch).
- Welcoming Our New Robot Overlords – The New Atlantis. “Our well-founded worries about AI have shifted in the past few years. Once upon a time, we were worried about AI becoming sentient and deciding humans were too big of a risk to have around; or following human directives so precisely and turning the world into a giant paperclip. But our fears about AI are now much more tightly tied to fears of other humans: of our fellow-people being whipped up into a frenzy by AI-amplified ideas we don’t like (because they are wrong, or dangerous, or immoral, etc). Just a few months ago, the President of the United States was banned from Twitter and Facebook, ostensibly for egging on rioters who overtook the Capitol spurred in part by a belief that Democrats drink the blood of children, and that millions of fraudulent ballots contained fake votes for the President, while simultaneously containing real votes for congress. Welcome to 2021. We’ve placed so much human communication in the hands of companies and systems that we hardly understand, and don’t really have any idea how to control. AI on its own is pretty scary; it’s even scarier when people get involved.” (Hugh for Alistair).
- Superintelligence – Idle Words. “Here’s the great Maciej Cegłowski on some older worries about AI, as we contemplate our newer worries about AI.” (Hugh for Mitch).
- Genesis Live Bataclan France 16mm January 10, 1973 (4K) – G Music – YouTube. “I have no idea whether or not you like the band Genesis. Especially the version of Genesis from the early 70s that featured Peter Gabriel on vocals (and, yes, that is Phil Collins on the drums). Is the music amazing? It sure is. Is the music weird? It sure is. But what makes this extra special is how clean and crisp this whole thing looks and sounds. It’s from 1973 (this is almost fifty years old!). So… here’s a really crazy music trip for you. It’s going to take you places. I promise.” (Mitch for Alistair).
- A trip to Montreal with Leonard Cohen in 1965 is a glimpse into a singular poetic mind – Aeon. “This may be one of the greatest finds on the Internet these days. Whether or not you’re a fan of Leonard Cohen, this is true time capsule. Not just of an incredible artist that will never be duplicated, but to see him – at such a young age – working. Plus, if you know Montreal and/or Westmount many of these scenes will leave you feeling such joy for a time and city that has changed so much over the years, but still (culturally) feels so vibrant (even in these times). This short documentary is about 45 minutes long and it’s all in black and white, but it left me with all of the warm and fuzzies about being an artist, this city that I love so much, and the pure nostalgia from a time that happened well before I even existed. Pure magic.” (Mitch for Hugh).
Feel free to share these links and add your picks on Twitter, Facebook, in the comments below or wherever you play.
Are you interested in what’s next? How to decode the future? I publish between 2-3 times per week and then the Six Pixels of Separation Podcast comes out every Sunday. Feel free to subscribe (and tell your friends):