#61: Crony beliefs
Plus MRI of Earth, Every .horse, interactive 4D, the dogecoin creator, and more.
💎 Word gems
Crony Beliefs (Melting Asphalt / Kevin Simler)
This is a great take rationalizing all those crazy beliefs - that they’re purely for social and political kickback.
But perhaps the biggest hallmark of epistemic cronyism is exhibiting strong emotions, as when we feel proud of a belief, anguish over changing our minds, or anger at being challenged or criticized. These emotions have no business being within 1000ft of a meritocratic belief system — but of course they make perfect sense as part of a crony belief system, where cronies need special protection in order to survive the natural pressures of a meritocracy.
Three Theories for Why You Have No Time (The Atlantic / Derek Thompson)
This articles describes how ‘better technology means higher expectations’.
New norms meant more work. Automatic washers and dryers raised our expectations for clean clothes and encouraged people to go out and buy new shirts and pants; housewives therefore had more loads of laundry to wash, dry, and fold. As one 1920s housewife wrote, of her new dusting and mopping and furniture-polish technology, “because we housewives of today have the tools to reach it, we dig every day after dust that grandmother left to a spring cataclysm.”
I’m Tired of Being Sustainable (The Cut / Brooke LaMantia)
I often feel helpless with big issues, just like sustainability, and end up compartmentalizing and feeling guilty. Get past the title and read this whole piece. It’s a great read if you’re feeling exhausted, too.
I had always been hopeful, always felt that there was something I could do to help fix things, and always avoided cynicism. But when my trust that those in charge would create change diminished, it did so completely. And it was a little bit of a relief. I don’t think I’ve been alone in feeling as if I were carrying the weight of our planet’s future on my shoulders. If that sounds familiar to you: Just take it off. Take a break.
This Twitter thread from the creator of Dogecoin holds no punches.
I am often asked if I will “return to cryptocurrency” or begin regularly sharing my thoughts on the topic again. My answer is a wholehearted “no”, but to avoid repeating myself I figure it might be worthwhile briefly explaining why here…
— Jackson Palmer (@ummjackson) 4:54 PM ∙ Jul 14, 2021
💩 Cool shit
MRI of the Earth - A beautiful data visualization of Earth.
How to professionally say - For when you need to professionally say something.
The Phone from “Dilemma” - Exactly what it says. The Nokia phone where you send messages from an Excel-like interface.
Every.horse - I love this for how silly and strangely old-web nostalgic it is. A list of every .horse domain.
How is Felix Today? - Felix has tracked data about himself to an impressive, albeit scary, level of detail.
Interactive 4D handbook - An interactive exploration of 4D spaces. It’s cool but I’m still confused.
Sector 32 - A portfolio site I’m honestly having a hard time explaining. But worth exploring.
DHS Coloring Book - Yes, this is on the DHS site, and yes, it is a coloring book.
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