Thursdays are all about longform links on Abnormal Returns. You can check out last week’s linkfest including a look at the spread of sports gambling across the U.S.
Quote of the Day
"The multiverse hypothesis is not accepted by all scientists. But one thing is almost certain: Life in our universe is extremely rare."
(Alan Lightman)
Books
- An excerpt from "They Knew: How a Culture of Conspiracy Keeps America Complacent" by Sarah Kendzior. (vanityfair.com)
- An excerpt from "How to Speak Whale: An Voyage Into the Future of Animal Communicaiton" by Tom Mustill. (hakaimagazine.com)
Environment
- The planet is changing in a number of ways, including how it sounds. (canadiangeographic.ca)
- Boreal forests store a lot of carbon. Now they are at-risk of climate change. (ft.com)
Longreads
- How Occidental Petroleum ($OXY) squeaked through the pandemic to become a market favorite. (wsj.com)
- The energy transition is going to create new and exciting industries. (notboring.co)
- Casey Sep, "If companies can use the two-step to protect themselves from any and all consumer liability, even from states themselves, what’s left to hold them accountable?" (newyorker.com)
- Focus is a key commonality among great investors and entrepreneurs. (neckar.substack.com)
- The market for song royalties has been completely transformed, in large part by Hipgnosis. (ft.com)
- What does it take to create a toy that stands the test of time? (thewalrus.ca)
- Some clues on the cause of Covid-related 'brain fog.' (theatlantic.com)
