Wall-E
We cannot go home.
Hi again, I’m Steve Makofsky and this is a semi-whenever list of interesting articles, podcasts and videos that I come across during the week. Hopefully you’ll enjoy it, have something new to think about, and share it with your friends. In case you forgot, this is in your inbox because you asked me to send it to you. You can unsubscribe by clicking the link at the bottom of this email.
The first 20 minutes has no spoken dialog, and from what I've been able to find online, Wall-E only has 17 lines of dialogue and 862 words in the entire movie. While many may consider it a classic children's movie, it really is a movie for adults. The visual storytelling is the core of the film where the little things you see and feel through the journey of a small robot who endlessly cleans up the mess on a future consumption overrun Earth is a gut punch. It's Pixar's finest work to date.
While Wall-E starts out highlighting a bleak future, the story unfolds by rewarding us with a glimmer of hope, something we all need right now in 2020, with a simple message that actions are louder than words.
Finally, as a long time Pixar fan, I've always enjoyed the little 'in-jokes' that pop up all over their films. While you can search online for the meaning behind many of them, A113 (the secret directive of AUTO), was a classroom at Cal Arts where Pixar animators learned their skills.
If you need a good, uplifting film to watch with the family, make it this one.
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This weeks "Deep Links"
Since it's introduction, I've been excited about the Apple Watch, AirPods Pro and the entire platform that is evolving around 'personal networks' and augmented audio. This week, M.G. Siegler takes a look at Marsbot for AirPods, a concept that is not a walking tour of a city, but 'a running commentary about interesting places you walk by on the street' - More
Kurt Vonnegut (so it goes) is one of my favorite authors due his dark, satirical nature. In his autobiography, his response to his prettiest contribution to culture was 'his master’s thesis which was rejected because it was so simple and looked like too much fun'. The idea: stories have shapes that can be drawn. You should spend 5 minutes and watch his presentation of this in "The Shapes of Stories" - Watch
Bethanys Table is one of the local restaurants here in Portland, and I love how they are re-inventing themselves and pivoting as they face 'the pandemic business model'. A fascinating view on how small businesses (and, please support them!) are focusing on 'why our core customers choose us' - More
I discovered the writing of OMD with his popular post Apple Inc: A Pre-Mortem back in 2017. Last week he returned with a detailed take on Google's shortcomings (and strengths) in 'Diagnosing Google' - More
Storytelling is one of the most effective and powerful skills you can learn (side note: Pixar has a free online course!). It doesn't matter what you do for a living; building this muscle will help you give better presentations, feel more at ease in conversations, and perhaps even entertain your kids a bit more - More
Hivemapper is taking a fresh approach on making maps by leveraging off the shelf drone and dashcams to create a global 3d map at a fraction of the cost (up to 60% less) of traditional mapping companies. The have tech that 'can take nearly anysource video of the physical world and convert it into an accurate 3D map'; wild stuff - More
Great ideas in here to talk to your kids about other than 'what did you do in school today?' - More
The three types of 'jumping to conclusions' and how to shift yourself into a growth mindsetinstead of educated guessing - More
Brett Sutton, an Australian triathlon coach, is an endless source of quality wisdom around training. This week, in 'squad note that can help you!', he talks about a runner of his who's secret was in that he never timed anything. The reason why is worth the read - More
While most of us are still in the health data "gathering" stage using Apple Watches and FitBits (and personally, I'm still trying to correlate the data to actionable effects), it looks like there are several Silicon Valley companies have been dipping their toes in and obsessing over 'anti-aging' drugs in attempts to prolong life - More
This weeks 'interesting read' is a story from The New Yorker in which 'The F.B.I. tried to recruit an Iranian scientist as an informant; and when he balked, the payback was brutal.' - More
End Thoughts
Well, good morning, everybody, and welcome to day 255,642 aboard the Axiom.
As always, the weather is a balmy 72 degrees and sunny, and, uh... Oh, I see the ship's log is showing that today is the 700th anniversary of our five year cruise.
Well, I'm sure our forefathers would be proud to know that 700 years later we'd be... doing the exact same thing they were doing.
So, be sure next mealtime to ask for your free sep-tua-centennial cupcake in a cup. Wow, look at that.