Thursdays are all about longform links on Abnormal Returns. You can check out last week’s linkfest including a look at how the super-rich are different than the rest of us.
Quote of the Day
"The government may or may not care about the resolution of the U.F.O. enigma. But, in throwing up its hands and granting that there are things it simply cannot figure out, it has relaxed its grip on the taboo."
(Gideon Lewis-Kraus)
Book stuff
- A Q&A with Julia Galef author of "The Scout Mindset." (vox.com)
- A Q&A with Katy Milkman author of "How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be." (mailchi.mp)
- A Q&A with Michael Moss' new book "Hooked: Food, Free Will, and How the Food Giants Exploit Our Addictions." (gq.com)
- A Q&A with Suzanne Simard author of "Finding the Mother Tree." (npr.org)
Profiles
- Martha Stewart has remained relevant for four decades: lessons learned. (notboring.co)
- A new book calls into question just how much of Frank Abagnale's story is actually true. (whyy.org)
- A profile of Guy Fieri and his work to help support restaurant workers. (hollywoodreporter.com)
Taste
- It's not your imagination: all new buildings look pretty much the same these days. (marker.medium.com)
- Connoisseurs may be annoying to outsiders but they make things better for the rest of us. (freddiedeboer.substack.com)
Longreads
- Marc Rubenstein, "The fact is, for investment banks, risk management is their business." (epsilontheory.com)
- As time goes on, the case for the 'lab release' theory for SARS-CoV-2 grows stronger. (nicholaswade.medium.com)
- An oral history of the Osama Bin Laden raid ten years later. (politico.com)
- The case against free will is pretty strong. (theguardian.com)
- What is the market like for a Bob Ross original painting? (thehustle.co)
- Why everybody can find something to like in 'Ted Lasso.' (politico.com)