Thursdays are all about longform links on Abnormal Returns. You can check out last week’s linkfest including a look at the long strange, and lucrative afterlife of Albert Einstein.
Quote of the Day
"In an age where opinions are common but truth is rare, a strong mind doesn’t take anything in as gospel."
(Lawrence Yeo)
Books
- An excerpt from “The Man Who Broke Capitalism: How Jack Welch Gutted the Heartland and Crushed the Soul of Corporate America―and How to Undo His Legacy” by David Gelles. (nytimes.com)
- A Q&A with Becca Levy author of "Breaking the Age Code: How Your Beliefs About Aging Determine How Long & Well You Live." (gq.com)
- A Q&A with Marissa Moss author of "Her Country: How the Women of Country Music Became the Success They Were Never Supposed to Be." (annehelen.substack.com)
Companies
- Why do government agencies keep backing down when it comes to Elon Musk and Tesla ($TSLA)? (latimes.com)
- Sara Morrison, "Google has never faced as much of a threat to its business model and structure as it does today." (vox.com)
- Substack is on the cusp of becoming a big company. (vanityfair.com)
Environment
- Coal production has a long tail of environmental harm. (washingtonpost.com)
- Well-manicured lawns took over the world. Some push back is finally here. (bbc.com)
Food
- The longer he hangs around, the more respect Guy Fieri garners. (nytimes.com)
- A history of Haribo gummy bears, the world's first (and best). (smithsonianmag.com)
Longreads
- Fears of overpopulation still drive many of the debates we have today. (theatlantic.com)
- AI can create works that look like art. Why they aren't (erikhoel.substack.com)
- If hypnosis works, why don't we use it more? (bbc.com)
- Big money has entered the pickleball business. Controversy has ensued. (si.com)
- Why the Eurovision song contest works. (lauriepenny.substack.com)
