Hi All,
Here is your weekly guide of things I’m reading, doing, and experimenting with. Enjoy.
What I’m Reading
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies – Jared Diamond
Rightfully so, I’m usually scared to read books recommended by Bill Gates since I know they are likely going to be way over my head. But I’m about 100 pages in so far and it’s thankfully manageable. The main question raised in the book is why did certain geographic areas of the world progress at such an accelerated pace versus other areas. Put another way, why were empires like ancient Greece or Rome able to develop food production, technology, art, and governmental systems so much faster and smarter than say, areas in Eastern Africa?
The answer mainly comes down to how diverse and flexible the area inhabited is. Does the climate promote proper shelter, food production, hunting, and traversing. Are the plant and animal species diverse? Is it easy to trade by land or sea?
The cover looks like it’s your sophomore year History textbook, but the title is self-explanatory. The human societies that were able to develop guns, be immune to certain germs or diseases, and produce steel were ultimately the most successful in conquering and thriving.
What I’m Watching
I always see the clips from this show on Instagram but I finally sat down and watched all 3 episodes (plus the two unedited bonus clips called Uninterrupted). The format is much like a podcast with either Lebron, or someone else like John Stewart, loosely moderating. Each episode features top athletes, musicians, or icons like Odell Beckham Jr., Snoop Dogg, Drake, Don Cheadle, Pharrell, Jimmy Iovine, and Anthony Davis. They speak about both broad, funny topics like childhood memories or iconic sports moments, as well as important subjects like being black in today’s America, the struggle of being constantly in the limelight, and parenting. I don’t know if there is a podcast version available on the iTunes app, but I would definitely listen to it if so.
Article that’s Making Me Nostalgic
‘Somebody Once Told Me’: An Oral History of Smash Mouth’s ‘All Star’
The year is 1999. I’m on my school bus. The entire bus, grades K through 8, is belting “Hey now! You’re an all-star!’ It unified everyone. Shrek was the greatest movie we had ever seen at that point. The shape of an L on your forehead was the sickest burn in the book. Everyone wanted to wear sports sunglasses and spike their hel with as much gel as possible. Smash Mouth was the coolest band in the world.
Boy how times have changed… Except for the Shrek part.
I knew it the second I heard it. The second I heard the first lyric, I said, ‘This song is going to change music forever.’
Golf is Hard
Patrick Cantlay (my pick to win this week) shows how ridiculously thick the rough at this year’s U.S. Open is in Pebble Beach.
Great Reads Across the Internet
- The 25 Cities with the Most Days of Pleasant Weather per Year, Visualized: Fuck California, man. Hogging literally all the good weather
- AI Listened to People’s Voices, then Generated Their Faces: This is creepy, and really cool
- Spotify Mashes Music and Short Podcasts into a New Playlist for your Miserable Commute: If I drove to work I would definitely love this
My favorite song off Avicii’s album. Only a matter of time until this is featured in an awesome movie trailer this summer
-KB