Great short film about the Grand Canyon, which is of course lovely, and some things going on very nearby, which are less lovely (video)
If you only have time to click on one thing in this newsletter, please make it this 10-second video that will deliver joy to your day, with or without the sound on.
Part of the reason I write this newsletter every Friday is because I think the algorithm/algorithms are not that great at sending us interesting things. So this Ted Gioia piece, How to Know If You’re Living in a Doom Loop, really hit home, especially this bit:
“The algorithm is, by definition, a repeating pattern that always looks backward. It does something in the future based on what worked in the past.
So the algorithm that recommends music or videos on a web platform will never deliver a totally fresh and new experience for you. It always gives you something similar to what you consumed last week—or last month, or last year. And, as the cycle repeats, the results get less interesting and more predictable.
This is a simple example of a cultural doom loop. In this doom loop, anything exciting or fresh or different is punished—or sometimes eliminated completely. You aren’t even allowed to consider it as an option.”
If you know someone from the Midwest, please share this article about the linguistics of “ope” with them and see what they think of it. If you are from the Midwest, please enjoy it for yourself. (via Kottke.org)
When I first visited Missoula in 2002, a few things made me fall in love with it, including the drive-through espresso stands that seemed to pop up every few blocks. They seemed novel to me at the time, and I guess they kind of were, as they’d only been around for a little more than a decade at that point, as this wonderful Eater piece on the history of roadside espresso stands points out.
Sometimes something happens with my laptop and I lose a dozen or so open tabs. I know there are lots of options to restore all my previously opened tabs, but most of the time I just shrug and thank fate or whatever for giving me a fresh start. Not so for this Firefox “power user” who kept 7,470 tabs open for two years. (Thanks, Mike)
Every time I see something that’s “a good deal,” my friend Nick’s voice pops up in my head, reminding me that it’s only a good deal if I would 100% buy the item anyway—because not buying it at all would save even more money. I feel like this Substack piece is a way more hilarious illustration of that concept.
—
