Six Links That Make You Think #724

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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: 

  • Question Mark, Ohio“I stumbled across a weird reference to Question Mark on the socials, and went down a rabbit-hole. Turns out it’s an episodic quasi-ARG, a sort of real-time radio play for the Internet age, with characters posting clues and plot points on Instagram accounts, newsletters, and the Web in general. I haven’t dug into it yet, but I’m going to devote a few hours to it and see if it’s as immersive as it appears. This page seems to be a good starting point.” (Alistair for Hugh).
  • Megadeth Drummer Hears “Mr. Brightside” For The First Time – Drumeo. Dirk Verbeuren hadn’t heard The Killers‘ ‘Mr. Brightside‘ before this recording. In a couple of passes, he not only learns to drum the song, but absolutely makes it his own. Watching him listen intently is pretty magical.” (Alistair for Mitch).
  • The Line In Progress – NEOM. “I’ve posted before about NEOM, the totally bananas, but real-ish, sci-fi mega-city-building project happening (more or less) in Saudi Arabia. One part of this insane project is The Line, a 170 km long ‘city’ that will be 200m wide and 500m high (the Empire State Building is 450m high). Clad in glass, made up of multiple communities, with twenty minute end to end travel, totally renewable energy and water, all that’s missing is the transporter beams. Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!” (Hugh for Alistair).
  • Hate That Vacant Lot In Your Neighborhood? Turn It Into Something Great – Dwell. “If The Line is centralized urban planning insanity, how about some anarcho urbanism, how to turn that vacant lot into a guerrilla garden.” (Hugh for Mitch).
  • Colin Quinn – Our Time Is Up – Full Stand Up Comedy Special. “I would not normally click on a YouTube video like this. I’m not a huge fan of Colin Quinn and I don’t know enough about him (beyond Saturday Night Live and his friendship with Jerry Seinfeld) to watch a full stand up special of his. But I clicked it… and I entered another dimension. First off, as a stand up comedy special, the content is ‘must see’. He is very funny and brilliant, but it’s his spin on our tech-first and self-first society that is everything from hysterical to clinical. Speaking of clinical, this is not recorded in your standard comedy club or theater. Quinn recorded this at a corporate event called the 2024 Psychotherapy Networker Symposium. The stage and audience is my everyday professional fare. It’s a business conference (and the kind of stages I work every week), so that made it ever-more interesting. I flicked the link over to another speaker friend, Ron Tite, and we both agree that this is some incredible stuff. So, now I’m a huge Colin Quinn fan. Watch it and let me know what you think…” (Mitch for Alistair).
  • How The US Is Destroying Young People’s Future – Scott Galloway – TED. “I know that this video has gone viral. I know that if you’re a fan of Scott Galloway (like I am) that you’ve probably heard him ranting on this topic on his podcast, in his newsletter or in other media appearances, but there’s something about how he both packaged this message and delivered it for this year’s TED event that brings it all home… and it stings. Last weekend, I went to the Dissident Dialogues event in Brooklyn, New York because I was feeling lost. I didn’t know where to place myself in terms of politics, culture and the indicators for the future. I’m a parent and my kids are young. If I’m worried about what’s next for me, I am terrified about what’s next for them. So… I am searching for something… rational minds… smarter perspectives… ideas about a positive and optimistic path forward (I found that at Dissident Dialogues and in this TED Talk). Please watch this… start thinking critically (not like a cog) and stop worrying about being on a side. Instead, worry about finding your courage to think independently and intelligently. I know that courage is a muscle and I’m currently bulking up. This is some buff stuff from Scott Galloway. Share it with everyone that you know…” (Mitch for Hugh).

Feel free to share these links and add your picks on XFacebook, in the comments below or wherever you play.

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