Categories: Articles

Six Links Worthy Of Your Attention #387

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, HBS, chair of Strata, Startupfest, Pandemonio, 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:

‘Do you want to be a pet or livestock?’–a new religion wants to prepare us for the future of artificial intelligence – Mashable. “If you think sentient AI is coming, then there’s just one question: Do you want to be pets or cattle? This is resignation at its best, and it’s literally a church. Want a sign of our times? Here you go.” (Alistair for Hugh).
Cow Clicker. “I hadn’t heard about this until recently, but apparently it’s been around since 2012. It’s a satire of Facebook games designed to demonstrate just how addictive social games are. You literally click to get more clicks. And despite this, it became successful. It’s offline now, but you can still click the place where the cow was — and people do. Want another sign of our times? Look no further.” (Alistair for Mitch).
Take This Hammer – YouTube. “I’ve been reading James Baldwin for the first time. Another Country, published in 1962 – still a radical book – is still amazingly relevant. Here’s a short clip of Baldwin talking about race and a specific word.” (Hugh for Alistair).
The doll doctor of Paris – The Guardian. “The stuff of nightmares.” (Hugh for Mitch).
When Is The U.S. Going To Ban The Internet Of Things For Children? – Fast Company – Co. Design. “Sometimes, technology happens and we just let it happen. We don’t think much about it. It kind of creeps up on us, while at the same time it becomes super-pervasive almost overnight. To me, that is how I can best describe the internet of things… or connected devices. We worry about the health and well-being of young people when it comes to the web and smartphones and screens. Well, how about this whole internet of things? Are just OK with it because it’s now everywhere? After reading this… not so much.” (Mitch for Alistair).
Why Is New York Full of Empty Stores? – The New York Times. “This is one very powerful read. Cities are changing beneath our noses and most people hardly notice it. Sure, just shrug your shoulders and mutter ‘Amazon‘ and move on. Think about it this way: if the most densely populated city on the planet is having a hard time keeping small businesses around, what chance does your community have? Is your only bet to set up shop on Shopify? Local merchants? There’s a depth to this issue and we’re ignoring it… even as these empty spaces sit right in front of our faces.” (Mitch for Hugh).

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

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.