Six Links Worthy of Your Attention #433

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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 InterestingTilt the WindmillHBS, chair of StrataStartupfestPandemonio, and ResolveTO, Author of Lean Analytics and some other books), Hugh McGuire (PressBooks, LibriVox, iambik and co-author of Book: A Futurist’s Manifesto) 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:

  • Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can’t Lose – Epsilon Theory. “I’m not sure what this is. An ad for investment advice? Immunity to manipulation? A historical ramble? It says they’re ‘committed to real change in the practice of investing and the practice of citizenship.’ And I’m a sucker for Asimov. Whatever it is, I stumbled across it and found it intensely interesting and full of wide-ranging citations and philosophy. Maybe you will too.” (Alistair for Hugh).
  • The Making of a (Fake) Mom Fight – Jezebel. “Filed under ‘mom shit,’ this is a discussion of Kiera Knightley‘s apparent takedown of Kate Middleton‘s media-sanitized birth. ‘Rarely is it said: Of fucking course we’re fighting each other.’ A good read in the #metoo era, making points that are seldom discussed in public.” (Alistair for Mitch).
  • The Autocracy App – The New York Review of Books. “When social media started out, many of us (me included) thought that it would contribute to growing freedom and citizen empowerment. To some extent this happened; but social media now is also being used as a tool of oppression by autocratic regimes all over the world.” (Hugh for Alistair).
  • Here’s what the spread of misinformation on Twitter looks like – Poynter. “Hint: a lot less than you thought.” (Hugh for Mitch).
  • How the Enlightenment Ends – The Atlantic. “How does it end? Not with a whisper? Not with a bang? But… with an algorithm? That’s what Henry Kissinger thinks… yes… that Henry Kissinger. The question (still remains): If artificial intelligence does the job that it is prescribed to do, what makes us think (or believe) that it will stop at some of things that us mere mortals (still) believe is only capable within our own domain?” (Mitch for Alistair).
  • Why CEOs Devote So Much Time to Their Hobbies – Harvard Business Review. “It’s a total waste of time. That’s what many think about hobbies. Now, re-read that first sentence, but approach it with a positive attitude. That’s the point. Hobbies are supposed to waste time. They’re not supposed to bring you to a certain level of achievement. They’re there simply to satiate something within you (and for it to be something other than what you normally do). I don’t play enough electric bass, because I’m not that great at it. It’s just a stupid hobby, right? Well, hobbies are, increasingly, becoming a core metric in measuring someone’s success. So, the next time you think that your hobby (or the one that a friend is doing) is a total waste of time, maybe that’s actually the whole point of it… and it’s good for you!” (Mitch for Hugh).

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