@agwp thinks

A collection of thoughts, articles and items of interest. Assembled in a hodge-podge fashion. An eclectic salmagundi of things that cross my mind, minus any gherkins. Read about me here.

[agwpthinks]

  Excerpt: There are two ways you can talk about newspapers. You can talk about the ‘fourth estate’, and newspapers’ role in culture, politics, governance, the exchange of ideas and civil society. (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: Why have Republican leaders abandoned their principles in support of an immoral and dangerous president? (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: Kim will admit she procrastinates. She has Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD), and for as long as she can remember has always been the kid doing the science the night before it was due, now turning in the needed report at work at the very last minute. (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: A couple of weeks ago Venkatesh challenged his followers to brainstorm at least 100 tweets on a topic via live responses. Since I’m not an expert on anything in particular, I decided to simply see if I can come up with 100 discrete pieces of life advice in a day. (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: Subscribe to our mailing list for weekly content. Modernism and beehive design: In 1852, Pennsylvania (USA), the clergyman Reverend Lorenzo Lorraine Langstroth patented a beehive design. (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: Twelve years have passed since the world record for rail speed was set. (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: The family structure we’ve held up as the cultural ideal for the past half century has been a catastrophe for many. It’s time to figure out better ways to live together. (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: Two questions sparked this: 1) why did Europe only adopt the Euro & the Single Market after its Cold War-era existential challenge was over, and 2) how has Germany maintained an export-oriented Industrial Manufacturing Powerhouse while every other developed nation is going post-Industrial? (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: Until the 1980s, it was possible to ignore the fact that Centralia was on fire. By then, the mines in this Pennsylvania coal town had been burning underground for nearly twenty years, but there was no roaring blaze, no Biblical conflagration. (I shared this via Pocket.)

[agwpthinks]

  Excerpt: Water rushes into Venice’s city council chamber just minutes after the local government rejects measures to combat climate change. Wildfires consume eastern Australia as fire danger soars past “severe” and “extreme” to “catastrophic” in parts of New South Wales. (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: In the midst of the Second World War, the famous Austrian-born economist Joseph A. Schumpeter (1883-1950), published his famous book, Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy (1942). He asked the question, “Can Capitalism Survive?” He answered, “No. (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: Buying Christmas gifts for you friends, family, and loved ones is always hard—and after yet another turbulent year it looked like maybe it was finally time to just cancel the holidays! But things are finally looking up, and we can’t think of a better reason to celebrate. (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: Most of my work experience has had something to do with charts. I spent a couple years as a data journalist at a business magazine, Bloomberg Businessweek, illustrating stories in one way or another. (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: An executive with 8,000 indirect reports and 2000 hours of work in a year can afford to spend, at most, 15 minutes per year per person in their reporting hierarchy... even if they work on nothing else. That job seems impossible. (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: On November 19, 1948, the two most enthusiastic and prolific lobotomists in the Western world faced off against each other in the operating theater at the Institute of Living in Hartford, Connecticut. (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: Existentialism has a reputation for being angst-ridden and gloomy mostly because of its emphasis on pondering the meaninglessness of existence, but two of the best-known existentialists knew how to have fun in the face of absurdity. (I shared this via Pocket.)

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  Excerpt: British anthropologist Richard Wrangham believes our humanity began with the murder of a tyrant. In an interview with DER SPIEGEL, he explains why homo sapiens are so murderous, while also being among the most peaceful species. DER SPIEGEL: Professor Wrangham, you're interested in aggression. (I shared this via Pocket.)