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: 

• Colophon (publishing) – Wikipedia. “Working on some book design things, and I went down a rathole about the history of the Colophon (“a brief statement containing information about the publication of a book.”). I know that you know this stuff, but I find it fascinating that Colophons and their near twin, record sleeves, have left us. I love the artifacts and metadata around a creation; the marginalia and trivia that went into the stuff. So I’m sharing this, not because you don’t know it, but because I wanted to lament, for a moment, the loss of physical metadata.” (Alistair for Hugh).
• Artists must confront the climate crisis – we must write as if these are the last days – The Guardian. “Not with a bang, but with a whisper. Social media acts as a pressure valve for our outrage, and it’s easy to tweet our dismay at COP 26 while we drive our SUV through a Starbucks drive-in. Art and culture shape political discourse, and move the Overton Window. Ben Okri says we need to act like it’s the end of days, simply to force society to confront the hard truths about what’s happening to our planet.” (Alistair for Mitch).  
• Books Do Furnish a Civilization – Commentary. “A couple of articles today on libraries, those great, beloved and neglected institutions.” (Hugh for Alistair).
• Before Oxford’s Library Was the Finest Institutional Library in Europe, It Was… Kind of a Dump – Literary Hub. “On the transformation of Oxford’s library from ramshackle book storage place to a temple of learning.” (Hugh for Mitch). 
• What are the effects of isolation on creativity? – It’s Nice That. “The pandemic will have many long-lasting impacts on who we are – as a people – that we have yet to uncover or understand. This may be the most impactful… but who knows? Is isolation good or bad for creativity? What are the results of this creativity? Let’s dive deep into the notion that isolation and remote experiences may be the source of some of the greatest creativity…” (Mitch for Alistair).
• The Sting Interview – Rick Beato – YouTube. “Sting is a very polarizing artist. Some love him. Some hate him. Some only love his music with The Police. Some only love his solo work. I’ve always been a cautious fan… but a fan nonetheless. With that, I am a huge fan of Rick Beato and his incredible YouTube channel that goes very deep into music of all genres, and it’s comfortable getting very detailed and theoretical. This just released interview is a great example of people who love music and love talking about music. I was transfixed by this conversation. It was so good, that it left me thinking, ‘maybe I should write some music?’ Easier said than done…” (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).