Thursdays are all about longform links on Abnormal Returns. You can check out last week’s linkfest including a look at what makes for a useful non-fiction book.
Quote of the Day
"The reality of publishing things on the internet is that interesting things get boosted, and boring things get ignored."
(Julia Evans)
Books
- An excerpt from “Chaos Kings: How Wall Street Traders Make Billions in the New Age of Crisis” by Scott Patterson. (wsj.com)
- An excerpt from "Size: How it Explains the World" by Vaclav Smil. (engadget.com)
- A Q&A with Vanessa Patrick author of "The Power of Saying No: The New Science of How to Say No That Puts You in Charge of Your Life." (annieduke.substack.com)
- A Q&A from “The Long View: Why We Need To Transform How the World Sees Time” by Richard Fisher. (reasonstobecheerful.world)
- An excerpt from "Burn It Down: Power, Complicity, and a Call for Change in Hollywood" by Maureen Ryan. (hollywoodreporter.com)
Work
- An excerpt from “The Search: Finding Meaningful Work in a Post-Career World" by Bruce Feiler. (wsj.com)
- A Q&A with Rainesford Stauffer author of the new book, "All the Gold Stars: Reimagining Ambition and the Ways We Strive." (annehelen.substack.com)
Technology
- Why does everybody think AI will end the world? (pmarca.substack.com)
- A first-hand account of using the new Vision Pro. (daringfireball.net)
Environment
- California needs to be 're-plumbed' for future weather. (nytimes.com)
- Is it possible to make health care greener? (politico.com)
Sports
- 14 attributes of sporting greats including a 'High tolerance for discomfort.' (artofmanliness.com)
- Can pickleball's noise problem be solved? (thehustle.co)
Longreads
- Blackstone ($BLK) perfectly timed its purchase of urban warehouses. (bloomberg.com)
- Once you notice the problem with ample, free parking you can't unsee it. (msn.com)
- A firsthand account of how Wegovy helped this writer lose 40 pounds. (wapo.st)
- More extreme amusement park rides make for more extreme motion sickness. (longreads.com)
- How the Marvel Cinematic Universe ate Hollywood. (newyorker.com)
- A history of Snopes.com. (fastcompany.com)