Thursdays are all about longform links on Abnormal Returns. You can check out last week’s linkfest including a look back at the Beanie Baby bubble.
Quote of the Day
"Technology itself does not have a mind. Technology itself does not have values. It is we human beings who have minds and values and can use technology for good or for ill."
(Alan Lightman)
Books
- An excerpt from Peter S. Goodman's “Davos Man: How the Billionaires Devoured the World.” (nytimes.com)
- An excerpt from Oliver Roeder's new book, “Seven Games: A Human History.” (wsj.com)
- An excerpt from “Blood in the Garden: The Flagrant History of the 1990s New York Knicks” by Chris Herring. (nytimes.com)
Fraud
- The pandemic was very good for the business of ID.me. (bloomberg.com)
- How the FBI art crime team operates. (hyperallergic.com)
Sports
- Is the NCAA ultimately doomed? (indianapolismonthly.com)
- A big profile of the resurgent Steph Curry. (gq.com)
Longreads
- During GE's ($GE) long descent its top executives never really suffered financially. (rogerlowenstein.substack.com)
- mRNA vaccines have been a long time in the making. (nytimes.com)
- Telegram is still looking for a business model. (readthegeneralist.com)
- Innovation hubs existed before Silicon Valley. (investoramnesia.com)
- Climate change is warming the planet. Refrigeration and air conditioning make it worse. (newyorker.com)
