Espresso Shots 2-8-25

Here's my weekly update with a few interesting random findings that I came across the last week or two. I am going to try to make sure they're here in time for you to enjoy with your morning coffee (or beverage of choice) every Saturday or Sunday, and include some of my thoughts around them.

The Latest Drippings ☕️

• The Snacks & Cereals of 2024. What a wonderful post to lead off this week from Cabel Sasser of the legendary Panic Software. Here's a ton of new snacks and treats that hit the shelves in 2024, along with his reviews. I need to try a few of these to shake things up, though I'm currently addicted to these Ferrero chocolate covered 'coffee shots'.
• The Nature of Human Stupidity. Robert Greene has written some of the best books out there on power dynamics, so I was certainly interested about his thoughts on what makes people stupid. The concept is straightforward - it's 'their certainty that they have all the answers.' Watch the full interview with him on YouTube.
• Rule #4: Be amazed by everything. Huh, I love this idea: Be amazed by everything. I appreciate that Scott Berkun wrote this piece; I'm in a better mood by just reading it. A simple reminder that 'Isn't it wonderful there is anything at all?' was enough for me to go out and buy the book he recommended, Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder.
• I Ditched the Algorithm for RSS — and You Should Too. I have been returning to a place where reading content via feeds is the primary form of 'social' media. I'm done with Threads, Instagram, X, etc., and all the algorithm-driven slop. Side note: Highly recommend Kagi's "Small Web" project as a source of new, interesting content.
• What's Taking Up Your Mental Bandwidth Right Now?. As you've probably been able to gander reading my latest posts on Holes and the Dichotomy of Control, there's been a lot on my mind as of late. I enjoyed this one, in which the author asserts that 'the contents of your mind drive the contents of your life' and that being aware of the influence of external factors on mental bandwidth is a key part of starting to shape your worldview.
• Running Doom On An Apple Lightning To HDMI Adapter. I've always been amused/amazed at what hacks people accomplish to get some piece of software running on another thing that it wasn't intended to. However, this one takes the cake - someone got Doom running on an Apple Lightning to HDMI Adapter!
• Everyone knows your location. Big sigh.. but it's a good reminder that privacy is just an illusion. The last time I wrote about this was about how video games spy on you; this piece dives into how apps are trying to eat up your geolocation data and the various ways data brokers grab and trade all sorts of information about you- even your battery levels. It's just gross.
• Every "should" is a burden. I liked the framing of this one that every 'should' (such as 'I should exercise more often') is a burden. You have to 'let those go to make real progress in your life.'
• The Safest Places In The World If World War III Broke Out. Where are the locations with 'low strategic priority in potential conflicts and benefit from natural isolation and neutral international policies?' Well, in case you haven't, this map shows you some of the most theoretically safest places if World War 3 were to happen.
• Fix Three Broken Things. Ever have a bunch of tasks that you just put off and sit on the couch and doom scroll, as the sum of all of them seems too great to bear? Enter the concept of 'relief through repair' - a simple yet powerful way to relieve some of your cognitive load. The high return on minor fixes can lead to significant improvements in daily life and your mood.
• The Theseus Paradox. When Wandavision concluded, I wrote a bit about the 'rot of memory' and Theseus. I liked this post, though, on creating resilient cultures in an age when people come and go from organizations. 'Everyone knows, everything is reinforced at all levels, everyone is aligned. They don't protect the planks. They protect the idea.'
• A computer can never be held accountable. A legendary page from an internal 1979 IBM training manual states, 'A computer must never make a management decision.' It seems apropos for 2025 in the age of AI.
• The Phones of Normal People. This post was an excellent reminder for me; I have so many wild things going on in my home lab between servers and local AI; I sometimes forget normal people don't do this type (or even want) this type of computing. The general population 'do not want to learn how to do new things with their already too complicated tech. They are the baseline. We are the outliers.'
• We Don't Need More Cynics. We Need More Builders.. Criticizing is often easier than creating is an important lesson Joan discusses in this post about the 'cost of perpetual skepticism' and how crucial it is to remain hopeful and committed to creating better systems and solutions.

Amor Fati ✌🏻