Thursdays are all about longform links on Abnormal Returns. You can check out last week’s linkfest including a look at the downside from the death of local newspapers.
Quote of the Day
"If the ‘metaverse’ means anything, it reflects that we have all grown up with this now, and we’re looking at ways to absorb it, internalise it and reflect it in our lives and in popular culture - to take ownership of it."
(Benedict Evans)
Chart of the Day
Americans are quitting their jobs at record numbers and it’s not just restaurants and retail.
Books
- An excerpt from Michael Dell's new book "Play Nice But Win: A CEO's Journey from Founder to Leader." (forbes.com)
- A Q&A with Jonathan Nightingale and Melissa Nightingale author of "Unmanageable: Leadership Lessons from an Impossible Year." (annehelen.substack.com)
- Sonal Chokshi and Marc Andreessen talk with Andrew McAfee author of "More from Less: The Surprising Story of How We Learned to Prosper Using Fewer Resources — and What Happens Next." (future.a16z.com)
- An excerpt from Herbert L. Roitblat's new book “Algorithms Are Not Enough: Creating General Artificial Intelligence.” (thereader.mitpress.mit.edu)
- A Q&A with Luke Burgis, the author of "Wanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life." (neckar.substack.com)
Finance
- How Jane Fraser plans to remake Citigroup ($C). (bloomberg.com)
- Should any company, like Blackrock ($BLK), wield so much influence? A profile of CEO Larry Fink. (ft.com)
Covid-19
- On the current state of the lab-leak theory. (newyorker.com)
- What other diseases will be targeted with mRNA technology? (ft.com)
Environment
- The search is on for an effective solution to the methane emissions from livestock. (ft.com)
- Why we humans don't think twice about killing a spider. (bbc.com)
Shopping
- On the dark underside of online shopping returns, i.e. "reverse logistics." (theatlantic.com)
- What's the point of 15-minute grocery delivery? (vice.com)
Longreads
- On the deadly effects of this summer's heat dome in Oregon. (newyorker.com)
- How the CIA used a secret gate to help Americans and Afghans enter the Kabul airport. (wsj.com)
- Why drones are the future of outdoor search and rescue. (outsideonline.com)
- Meet “scambaiters” who are working to disrupt the plans of crooks. (theguardian.com)
- How MLB is experimenting with tweaks to make the game faster, and more popular. (bloomberg.com)
