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:
- Computational Thinking – Viewpoint. “In 2006, the head of the Carnegie Mellon Computer Science department, Jeannette M. Wing, wrote this short piece on what ‘computational thinking’ is. She reasons that it’s a different kind of problem solving, in many ways the purest of forms, in which search, synthesis, and conceptualizing. I read it years ago, and came across it recently. As we spend more of our lives on bits, ideas, and information, and less of it on atoms, matter, and the physical world, I find it useful to step back and think just how different thinking for a living has become.” (Alistair for Hugh).
- The Plan Was Simple: Infiltrate MAGA World and Tell Everyone What She Saw. Then She Was Found Out – Mother Jones. “I avoid posting links from partisan sites on either side of the political aisle, so this one comes with a caveat. But it’s a story of infiltration, and how we learn about fringe groups. When allies and enemies look identical, all we have to go on is reputation and the flimsy veneer of search results. Blending in at rallies was easy—’if she didn’t wear a mask, held her tongue, and acted friendly, demonstrators simply assumed she was on their side.’ The risks are real, but they also make me wonder about the amateur sleuthing of an increasingly divided politik, infiltrating one another, and what happens as extremism gets even more extreme.” (Alistair for Mitch).
- Your Fitbit has stolen your soul – UnHerd. “This one is for Alistair, one of the first people I heard talking about the ‘quantified self’ (or something like it) many many years ago. I’ve always resisted the notion – the idea of tracking my steps, sleep, calories, heart rate etc has never appealed to me. I don’t begrudge anyone who finds this kind of data-driven self examination helpful in leading a more contented/balanced life, but I’m not interested. On the other hand, Justin E. H. Smith, thinks your soul is at risk.” (Hugh for Alistair).
- Cat gap – Wikipedia. “‘The cat gap is a period in the fossil record of approximately 2.5 million to 18.5 million years ago in which there are few fossils of cats or cat-like species found in North America.'” (Hugh for Mitch).
- The rise of boring architecture – and the case for radically human buildings – Thomas Heatherwick – TED. “This was, without a doubt, one of the best talks that I saw at this year’s TED conference in Vancouver. I’m always a sucker for sessions about cities, architecture, and the places that we work and live. This one really shook me. It made me think very differently about construction, architecture and the buildings that surround us. Is it all this dull? Maybe we don’t need urban infrastructure to be so bland, gray, and unwelcoming. Thomas Heatherwick‘s work proves that we can build things differently… But he also believes that we have a long way to go. This is especially powerful, when we start thinking about buildings that we are working now, and going forward.” (Mitch for Alistair).
- Why Write? – The Paris Review. “I do consider myself a writer, but I do not think I have the proclivity of writers like Stephen King or people like Ann Handley. I do have a level of frequency and consistency, but I don’t – to quote Steven Pressfield – ‘put my ass where my heart is.’ As a writer, I think that’s just a part of the personality – this constant nag that you should be writing more. Still, reading this incredible and inspiring article makes me want to spend more time banging on the keyboard and tapping out the words. I think you will agree. No matter what type of writing you are doing (or want to do).” (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)
Mitch Joel Mitch Joel lives at the intersection of technology, business transformation and consumer culture. He is the Executive Director of Next Era Institute, a strategic intelligence platform helping leaders understand the forces reshaping business, technology, culture and society. The Institute identifies which shifts matter, explores their wider significance and translates them into strategic direction and momentum. Mitch is also a globally recognized keynote speaker. He has delivered thousands of presentations across both B2B and B2C industries to organizations including Google, Walmart, LEGO, Shopify, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and Unilever. Strategy Magazine has called him “one of North America’s leading visionaries.” Mitch built his career by working directly inside the waves of change that reshaped modern business. He founded and built a digital marketing agency that worked with some of the world’s largest brands and was later acquired by WPP, where he served as President of a firm operating in 25 countries with almost 3,000 employees. Mitch is the bestselling author of Six Pixels of Separation and CTRL ALT Delete, and the host of Thinking With Mitch Joel, one of the longest-running business podcasts in the world. His writing and commentary appear in outlets including Harvard Business Review, Fast Company and Inc. Magazine. He is a member of Dr. Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches and was named to the Thinkers50 Radar. Mitch also hosts Groove – The No Treble Podcast, documenting the oral history of electric bass players. Mitch is also Co-Founder of ThinkersOne, a platform that enables companies to bring personalized thought leadership from world-class experts into meetings, events and off-sites in focused 15-minute bursts.