On the Arts
Are wind turbines ugly? Could they be beautiful?
How to make ugly things appear less ugly – or appear like something else entirely.
a year ago
How to make ugly things appear less ugly – or appear like something else entirely.
Seth's Blog
Benign vs. normal
We evolved to be wary of change. Our attention is limited, new things can be a threat and the status...
11 months ago
We evolved to be wary of change. Our attention is limited, new things can be a threat and the status quo feels comfortable. As a result, we spend a lot of time and energy being afraid (and arguing about) the upcoming changes in our lives, but almost no time at all thinking about...
Open Culture
The World’s First Medieval Electronic Instrument: The EP-1320 Lets You Play the Sounds of...
At this time of the year, the Swedish island of Gotland puts on Medeltidsveckan, or “Medieval Week,”...
4 months ago
At this time of the year, the Swedish island of Gotland puts on Medeltidsveckan, or “Medieval Week,” the country’s largest historical festival. According to its official About page, it offers its visitors the chance to “watch knights on horseback, drink something cold, take a...
Seth's Blog
The power of expectations
When we raise our expectations for a student, a friend or a co-worker, we open the door to...
a year ago
When we raise our expectations for a student, a friend or a co-worker, we open the door to possibility. We offer them dignity and a chance to grow. We are offering them trust. But if we become attached to those expectations, if the expectation unmet leads us to distress or...
Open Culture
Every Frame a Painting Returns to YouTube & Explores Why the Sustained Two-Shot Vanished from Movies
Video essayists don’t normally retire; in most cases, they just drift into inactivity. Hence the...
3 months ago
Video essayists don’t normally retire; in most cases, they just drift into inactivity. Hence the surprise and even dismay of the internet’s cinephiles when Tony Zhou and Taylor Ramos declared the end of their respected channel Every Frame a Painting in 2016. We here at Open...
Open Culture
When the Grateful Dead Played at the Egyptian Pyramids, in the Shadow of the Sphinx (1978)
In September of 1978, the Grateful Dead traveled to Egypt and played three shows at the Great...
5 months ago
In September of 1978, the Grateful Dead traveled to Egypt and played three shows at the Great Pyramid of Giza, with the Great Sphinx looking over their shoulders. It wasn’t the first time a rock band played in an ancient setting. Pink Floyd performed songs in the middle of the...
Anarchy Unfolds
To change everything, start anywhere
Letters to an anarchist - Part 2
a month ago
Letters to an anarchist - Part 2
Seth's Blog
Retreat!
We’ve managed to lionize, celebrate and elevate the mindset of “CHARGE!” Even when better judgment...
5 months ago
We’ve managed to lionize, celebrate and elevate the mindset of “CHARGE!” Even when better judgment and experience would indicate that we’re often more likely to succeed with a strategic re-evaluation of the situation. Making a new decision based on new information isn’t weakness....
Blog - Amy Goodchild
Curved Line Jellyfish
I had pictured something quite bold, graphical and geometric but I ended
with gradients and...
over a year ago
I had pictured something quite bold, graphical and geometric but I ended
with gradients and floatiness.
Handprinted - Blog
Meet the Maker: Keith A. Pettit
I am Keith A. Pettit an artist, printmaker and sculptor, born and bred in a small corner of Sussex....
a month ago
I am Keith A. Pettit an artist, printmaker and sculptor, born and bred in a small corner of Sussex. I left school and started work with a signwriter. I thought I was learning a trade for life - alas I was unaware of the digital revolution that was sweeping all before it.
I've...
Seth's Blog
The best possible use
I walked by a psychic’s storefront studio. The window said that this person had been reading palms...
10 months ago
I walked by a psychic’s storefront studio. The window said that this person had been reading palms and predicting the future since 1989. It was a large space on a vibrant New York City corner. The rent must be astronomical. Or else the purveyor owns the building. Given that this...
Seth's Blog
ChatGPT is dumber than it looks
That’s not true for a screwdriver. Or a table saw or even a spatula. These are useful tools, but...
8 months ago
That’s not true for a screwdriver. Or a table saw or even a spatula. These are useful tools, but they don’t pretend to be well-informed or wise. They’re dumb, and they look dumb too. That’s one reason that tools are effective. We use them to leverage our effort, but we don’t...
Seth's Blog
Willfully uninformed
Access to information used to be scarce. We ranked college libraries on how many books they had, and...
9 months ago
Access to information used to be scarce. We ranked college libraries on how many books they had, and time at the microfilm reader was booked in advance. Today, if there’s something I don’t know, it’s almost certainly because I haven’t cared enough to find out. I don’t understand...
Seth's Blog
The tooth fairy
Make a list of things you used to believe. Fervently, certainly, completely. Things that you were...
4 months ago
Make a list of things you used to believe. Fervently, certainly, completely. Things that you were sure of, but now, with the passage of time and the benefit of experience, you know to be incorrect or incomplete. Of course, it’s not just mythical creatures beloved by children....
On the Arts
How to Write a Proper Haiku
A Starter's Guide to the Deceptively Simple Poetic Form
a year ago
A Starter's Guide to the Deceptively Simple Poetic Form
Seth's Blog
Living in hyperbole
In the pre-media world, we bumped into fables, or news from across the village, but mostly, our role...
a year ago
In the pre-media world, we bumped into fables, or news from across the village, but mostly, our role models and experiences were based on reality. Now, when it’s not unusual to spend eight hours a day surrounded by media fueled by greatest hits (worst offender, breaking news,...
Marian's Blog
Faster Than Life – Global Game Jam 2019 Project
Like in the previous year, I took part in the Global Game Jam.
I joined a team of six programmers,...
over a year ago
Like in the previous year, I took part in the Global Game Jam.
I joined a team of six programmers, unfortunately there was a shortage of artists this year.
During the 48 hour jam, we made a space game that is inspired by Faster Than Light.
You travel through...
Seth's Blog
The Big-O conundrum
In computer science, Big-O notation is a way of talking about what happens to a solution method when...
a year ago
In computer science, Big-O notation is a way of talking about what happens to a solution method when the inputs start to increase. For example, sorting numbers is an easy problem when there are only five or six, but when you have to sort 5,000, a totally different algorithm is...
Seth's Blog
The catfight and the construction site
We’re quick to stop to see the car wreck, the billionaire having a meltdown, or the professional...
a year ago
We’re quick to stop to see the car wreck, the billionaire having a meltdown, or the professional wrestlers pretending to be political leaders. But it often seems more difficult to take a moment to watch people building something that matters instead. We’ll probably spend billions...
Handprinted - Blog
Meet The Maker: Fabiola Knowles
Originally from Sicily, I grew up in Australia; however, having settled in the UK in 1996, it has...
5 months ago
Originally from Sicily, I grew up in Australia; however, having settled in the UK in 1996, it has been my home for the largest part of my life. I love the outdoors and I am drawn to open landscapes with big skies.
I am an artist working mainly with various forms of printmaking. I...
Seth's Blog
What does the world owe us?
This question is a trap. It’s based on scarcity and entitlement, and most of all, the world isn’t...
6 months ago
This question is a trap. It’s based on scarcity and entitlement, and most of all, the world isn’t listening. When more and more people focus on this question, it simply pushes us apart. On the other hand, “what do I owe the world?” opens the door for endless opportunity. When...
Open Culture
Harvard Removes the Human Skin Binding from a Book in Its Collection Since 1934
In June of 2014, Harvard University’s Houghton Library put up a blog post titled “Caveat Lecter,”...
6 months ago
In June of 2014, Harvard University’s Houghton Library put up a blog post titled “Caveat Lecter,” announcing “good news for fans of anthropodermic bibliopegy, bibliomaniacs, and cannibals alike.” The occasion was the scientific determination that a book in the Houghton’s...
Anarchy Unfolds
May '24 Myths & Recs
Biden, Kurzgesagt, 90s Christian bands, and more
6 months ago
Biden, Kurzgesagt, 90s Christian bands, and more
The Last...
No Self-Respecting Woman Would Go Out Without Make Up
For some reason, one of the most emailed articles from the NYT was an article about whether women...
over a year ago
For some reason, one of the most emailed articles from the NYT was an article about whether women should or should not wear make up. "New York Times? Sounds progressive." Yes.
Seven
people were asked their opinion in a column called "Room For Debate,"
liars, there was no...
Seth's Blog
The blank page
Sometimes, we’re so afraid of creation that we don’t even leave blank pages around. If your...
8 months ago
Sometimes, we’re so afraid of creation that we don’t even leave blank pages around. If your workspace has a hole exactly the size of a creative idea in it, you’re more likely to fill the hole. When we decrease the number of steps to begin creating, and increase the expectation...
Seth's Blog
My Big Fat Greek Wedding
Among the top 500 grossing Hollywood movies of all time, this movie is the most profitable in return...
a year ago
Among the top 500 grossing Hollywood movies of all time, this movie is the most profitable in return on investment. And among all Hollywood movies in the top 1,500 at the box office, Paranormal Activity is far and away the highest return, outperforming almost any investment the...
Seth's Blog
The hard part first
If you’re trying to reduce risk, do the hard part first. That way, if it fails, you’ll have...
a year ago
If you’re trying to reduce risk, do the hard part first. That way, if it fails, you’ll have minimized your time and effort. On the other hand, if you’re looking for buy-in and commitment so you can through the hard part, do it last. People are terrible at ignoring sunk costs, and...
Seth's Blog
Manipulation, indoctrination and addiction
They’re often related. It’s not unusual for someone to have more experience or knowledge than we do....
7 months ago
They’re often related. It’s not unusual for someone to have more experience or knowledge than we do. If they use that knowledge to their benefit, not ours, they might be manipulating us. If we knew what they knew, we wouldn’t have gone along. This is the difference between a...
Seth's Blog
Drama at work
A divo (or diva) is an opera singer with skill. Sometimes, though, that skill comes in a package...
a year ago
A divo (or diva) is an opera singer with skill. Sometimes, though, that skill comes in a package that also includes imperiousness, skittishness and a fair amount of unpredictable drama. It’s tempting to imagine that CEOs, painters or poets that bring the noise must also have...
Open Culture
Learn Data Analytics & AI with Google, and Fast-Track Your Career
?si=azZbGLEr_9EFWypL We’re living in the age of data and artificial intelligence (AI). Every second,...
2 months ago
?si=azZbGLEr_9EFWypL We’re living in the age of data and artificial intelligence (AI). Every second, vast amounts of data are being generated, processed, and analyzed. And increasingly AI plays a central role in how that data gets managed. For companies, governments, and...
Marian's Blog
Agent V – Global Game Jam 2018 Project
This year I participated in my first game jam, the Global Game Jam 2018. With a team of artists,...
over a year ago
This year I participated in my first game jam, the Global Game Jam 2018. With a team of artists, programmers and a sound designer, we made a video game within 48 hours. You play the game as a virus that infiltrates a company’s headquarters. The virus can not move on its own, it...
Handprinted - Blog
Collagraph Printing
Collagraphy is a really versatile printing process in which a textured plate is inked up and put...
a year ago
Collagraphy is a really versatile printing process in which a textured plate is inked up and put through a press. Different textures hold varying amounts of ink and print different tones. Anything with a low relief texture can be stuck down and used: wallpaper, leaves, fabrics,...
Seth's Blog
Putting up the big numbers
Some people go to the gym for health and energy. Some go to lift more weight than they did yesterday...
8 months ago
Some people go to the gym for health and energy. Some go to lift more weight than they did yesterday (or more than the person next to them). You can start a company to make an impact and surround yourself with people on a similar journey, or you can seek to maximize the stock...
Seth's Blog
The obligation of “none of the above”
As we continue to face difficult choices and work to make things better, it’s quite likely that the...
a year ago
As we continue to face difficult choices and work to make things better, it’s quite likely that the alternatives being presented aren’t ideal or even appealing. Many organizations and communities are stuck because “none of the above” is the majority’s opinion, or perhaps the...
Infinite Scroll
Weekly Scroll: Something Wicked This Way Comes
Theater Kids, BlueSky momentum, and Kai Cenat's big month
3 weeks ago
Theater Kids, BlueSky momentum, and Kai Cenat's big month
escape the algorithm
The New Turing Test
Changing the AI conversation
a year ago
Changing the AI conversation
Prolost
Red Giant VFX Suite
Today Red Giant has released a brand-new collection of plug-ins for visual effects compositing. It’s...
over a year ago
Today Red Giant has released a brand-new collection of plug-ins for visual effects compositing. It’s called VFX Suite, and some of these tools are things I’ve been dreaming about since computers were beige.
There are nine plug-ins in the suite. You can learn about all of them at...
Anarchy Unfolds
Queer Folk Don't Need Orientation
How decade-old discourse shows us a way out
2 months ago
How decade-old discourse shows us a way out
Open Culture
RIP David Sanborn: See Him Play Alongside Miles Davis, Randy Newman, Sun Ra, Leonard Cohen and...
It’s late in the evening of Saturday, October 28th, 1989. You flip on the television and the...
7 months ago
It’s late in the evening of Saturday, October 28th, 1989. You flip on the television and the saxophonist David Sanborn appears onscreen, instrument in hand, introducing the eclectic blues icon Taj Mahal, who in turn declares his intent to play a number with “rural humor” and...
Seth's Blog
Peak infrastructure
Community resources are easy to take for granted. Unevenly distributed, they’re the sort of thing we...
10 months ago
Community resources are easy to take for granted. Unevenly distributed, they’re the sort of thing we miss only when they’re gone. Invisible things are easy to ignore. I was stunned to see a sign in Connecticut that listed the names of dozens of highway workers who had been killed...
Seth's Blog
Judgment
AI pushes us to do what we actually get paid to do: make decisions. Craft used to drive our hours or...
a year ago
AI pushes us to do what we actually get paid to do: make decisions. Craft used to drive our hours or even days. Get the pen lines just right. Source the Letraset. Get your instrument in tune. Sweat the details, because the details are everything. Now, I can choose from 1,000...
Seth's Blog
Stumbling in the dark
Learning is complicated. While we’re doing it, it’s easy to imagine that those around us are...
11 months ago
Learning is complicated. While we’re doing it, it’s easy to imagine that those around us are completely sure of themselves, moving forward in a well-lit space. In fact, if you visit a growing company, a useful school or anywhere that growth is happening, you’ll quickly see that...
Open Culture
The Fake Buildings of New York: What Happens Inside Their Mysterious Walls
You can’t go on a walk with a serious enthusiast of New York history without hearing the stories...
2 months ago
You can’t go on a walk with a serious enthusiast of New York history without hearing the stories behind at least a few notable, beautiful, or downright strange buildings. Yet most longtime New Yorkers, famed for tuning out their surroundings to better strive for their goals of...
Seth's Blog
Speaking up
For many, the imagined cost of speaking up is almost always higher than the actual cost. And we live...
a year ago
For many, the imagined cost of speaking up is almost always higher than the actual cost. And we live with the cost in our imagination daily, dying a little bit over time as we keep our insights to ourselves. Speaking up is a skill, and we can only improve it with practice.
Seth's Blog
The bitterness loop
Spoiled leads to bitter. A sense of entitlement is a trap, because bitterness demands more evidence...
3 months ago
Spoiled leads to bitter. A sense of entitlement is a trap, because bitterness demands more evidence and seeks to maintain dominance over the other emotions. When we’re busy looking for more reasons to be bitter, we’re not taking the time to do generative work, to connect and to...
Open Culture
How Ancient Romans Traveled Without Maps
In an age when many of us could hardly make our way to an unfamiliar grocery store without relying...
a month ago
In an age when many of us could hardly make our way to an unfamiliar grocery store without relying on a GPS navigation system, we might well wonder how the Romans could establish and sustain their mighty empire without so much as a proper map. That’s the question addressed by the...
Seth's Blog
They will lose your data
The rules are pretty consistent: We’re all creators now. Podcasting, videoing, photographing,...
a year ago
The rules are pretty consistent: We’re all creators now. Podcasting, videoing, photographing, spreadsheeting… and we’re building a foundation of valuable data as we go. The software companies that produce the tools we use push their engineers in many ways, but not to create...
Seth's Blog
When the media is ready (Bongo part 2)
Media isn’t a magazine or a website. It’s a system. We can learn to see the system and contribute to...
a month ago
Media isn’t a magazine or a website. It’s a system. We can learn to see the system and contribute to it with leverage. There are three elements to consider in a media system that’s worth a professional creator’s time: Systems are changed by technology. When desktop publishing...
Seth's Blog
Kinds of courage
Courage is a generous act that involves risk. It’s not courageous to hang out with friends and make...
8 months ago
Courage is a generous act that involves risk. It’s not courageous to hang out with friends and make a crank phone call. The risk involved might be actual risk (it took courage to go to the moon) or it might feel risky (raising your hand at a meeting to ask a useful question...
Seth's Blog
Hungry (vs. not full)
If consumption is the point (the engine of the economy, the focus of our marketing, the driver of...
5 months ago
If consumption is the point (the engine of the economy, the focus of our marketing, the driver of our status) then it’s easy to get confused about the difference between something that’s nearly empty (and must be refilled to ensure we keep going) and something that’s not quite...
Seth's Blog
Inconvenient!
That’s great news. The thing you need, the road ahead, the element that will transform your...
a year ago
That’s great news. The thing you need, the road ahead, the element that will transform your project–it appears to be inconvenient. That’s terrific, because it means that most other people can’t be bothered. It’s valuable because the very inconvenience of it makes it scarce. The...
Seth's Blog
Facing the future
The Tofflers explained that Future Shock kicks in when the world changes faster than we’re ready...
2 months ago
The Tofflers explained that Future Shock kicks in when the world changes faster than we’re ready for. We react instead of respond, and often shut down in the face of too much of the new. When our world changes (and it always does, more now than ever) we have four choices. And...
Seth's Blog
“Home is wherever my cello is”
Ben Zander is bringing the Boston Philharmonic and Beethoven to New York in a few weeks. I’m excited...
a year ago
Ben Zander is bringing the Boston Philharmonic and Beethoven to New York in a few weeks. I’m excited to seem them in person, but it’s also streaming live. I hope you’re able to come. While his impact on the musical canon is legendary, Ben’s ruckus extends far into how we lead,...
Seth's Blog
Promo creep
Hustle harder. Run more ads. Spam people. Interrupt. Make the logo bigger. Post again. Post again....
a year ago
Hustle harder. Run more ads. Spam people. Interrupt. Make the logo bigger. Post again. Post again. Add more blurbs. Push the press release to irrelevant people. Do one more ad. Use AI to create faux intimacy. Get the word out. Burn trust. Get more attention. In the last forty...
Open Culture
The Wisdom of Alan Watts in 4 Mind-Expanding Animations
Perhaps no single person did more to popularize Zen Buddhism in the West than Alan Watts. In a...
2 months ago
Perhaps no single person did more to popularize Zen Buddhism in the West than Alan Watts. In a sense, Watts prepared U.S. culture for more traditionally Zen teachers like Soto priest Suzuki Roshi, whose lineage continues today, but Watts did not consider himself a Zen Buddhist....
Seth's Blog
I’ve been doing it wrong all along
This is one of the great benefits of learning. It’s also a common challenge. When we get better at...
a year ago
This is one of the great benefits of learning. It’s also a common challenge. When we get better at something, it is preceded by a moment of incompetence. In that moment, we’re not exactly sure how to do it better, but we realize that the way we’d been doing it wasn’t nearly as...
Open Culture
Gustave Doré’s Macabre Illustrations of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven” (1884)
One of the busiest, most in-demand artists of the 19th century, Gustave Doré made his name...
6 months ago
One of the busiest, most in-demand artists of the 19th century, Gustave Doré made his name illustrating works by such authors as Rabelais, Balzac, Milton, and Dante. In the 1860s, he created one of the most memorable and popular illustrated editions of Cervantes’ Don Quixote,...
Seth's Blog
Avoiding the trap questions
A trick question is designed to fool us into proposing the wrong answer (example below). A trap...
5 months ago
A trick question is designed to fool us into proposing the wrong answer (example below). A trap question, on the other hand, stops the train completely. A trap question demands an answer, and the answer will paralyze us and keep us from the work at hand. “Yes, but how many...
Open Culture
The Doctor Who Theme Reimagined as a Jacques Brel-esque Jazz Tune
?si=tyjBCsSNLIAgh7SM Written by Ron Grainer, and then famously arranged and recorded by Delia...
2 months ago
?si=tyjBCsSNLIAgh7SM Written by Ron Grainer, and then famously arranged and recorded by Delia Derbyshire in 1963, the Doctor Who theme song has been adapted and covered many times, and even referenced by Pink Floyd. In the hands of comedian Bill Bailey, the song comes out a...
escape the algorithm
Gift interfaces, an interview, and how you found me
Some updates on things that have happened and that are coming in the escape the algorithm cinematic...
a month ago
Some updates on things that have happened and that are coming in the escape the algorithm cinematic universe:
Open Culture
This 392-Year-Old Bonsai Tree Survived the Hiroshima Atomic Blast & Still Flourishes Today: The...
Image by Sage Ross, via Wikimedia Commons The beautiful bonsai tree pictured above–let’s call it the...
6 months ago
Image by Sage Ross, via Wikimedia Commons The beautiful bonsai tree pictured above–let’s call it the Yamaki Pine Bonsai–began its journey through the world back in 1625. That’s when the Yamaki family first began to train the tree, working patiently, generation after generation,...
Seth's Blog
Mediocrity and perfectionism
It’s surprising to realize that they’re the same. They are both places to hide. When we ship average...
4 months ago
It’s surprising to realize that they’re the same. They are both places to hide. When we ship average work, it’s not our fault. We’re simply doing what the manual says, and if you don’t like it, blame the culture and the system. And when we hold back on shipping because it isn’t...
Handprinted - Blog
The Endless Possibilities of a Square Block Repeat
Using a simple square block can create a myriad of possibilities of pattern.
We have used Speedy...
a year ago
Using a simple square block can create a myriad of possibilities of pattern.
We have used Speedy Carve and Versafine inks for this project.
Cut a square from the Speedy Carve using a scalpel.
Draw a quarter circle curve on the block using a pencil. Above the curve draw some...
The Last...
How Does The Shutdown Relate To Me?
is Obama there?
Everyone knows ads are propaganda, but what happens
when you have an ad...
over a year ago
is Obama there?
Everyone knows ads are propaganda, but what happens
when you have an ad for propaganda? While
you sip your first Guinness and try to figure out why China's
government can only ever shut down once, you can ponder this ad:
The
only reason you...
Marian's Blog
Lego Part Designer
I made a web app that lets you design your own Lego Technic parts and save them as printable STL...
over a year ago
I made a web app that lets you design your own Lego Technic parts and save them as printable STL files.
You can check it out here.
I got the idea for this project when I was building with Lego parts and wondered how many of the common parts can be described with a simple rule...
Seth's Blog
Purchase decisions
All purchases involve a decision. Yes or no, this or that, now or later… But it’s helpful to realize...
9 months ago
All purchases involve a decision. Yes or no, this or that, now or later… But it’s helpful to realize that all decisions involve a purchase. When we decide to spend time or take a risk or make a commitment, our brains act in a way very similar to how we choose to make a purchase....
Open Culture
James Earl Jones (RIP) Reads Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven” and Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself”
Note: With the sad passing of James Earl Jones, at age 93, we’re bringing back a post from our...
3 months ago
Note: With the sad passing of James Earl Jones, at age 93, we’re bringing back a post from our archive–one featuring Jones reading two great American poets, Edgar Allan Poe and Walt Whitman. These readings first appeared on our site in 2014. For all its many flaws the original...
Anarchy Unfolds
Age of Empires but make it Solarpunk
My favorite strategy game re-imagined
2 hours ago
My favorite strategy game re-imagined
Open Culture
Watch James Earl Jones Read Kurt Vonnegut’s Letter Urging High-School Students to Create Art & Make...
As cultural figures, the late James Earl Jones and Kurt Vonnegut would seem to have had little in...
3 months ago
As cultural figures, the late James Earl Jones and Kurt Vonnegut would seem to have had little in common, but each could easily be recognized by his voice. Jones’ will come to mind as soon as you think of Darth Vader, Simba’s father, or “This is CNN.” Vonnegut’s distinction was...
The Great Discontent...
Sheyam Ghieth
Sheyam Ghieth (she/they) is an artist and queer Egyptian-American abolitionist known for her work on...
a year ago
Sheyam Ghieth (she/they) is an artist and queer Egyptian-American abolitionist known for her work on the comedy-drama television series Ramy, FX’s The Americans, and the web series BROTHERS. They now live in Portland, OR, where they are prioritizing queer joy as a radical act of...
Seth's Blog
Amplifying the fringes
Culture is: “People like us do things like this.” We might even have a chance to choose our group....
2 months ago
Culture is: “People like us do things like this.” We might even have a chance to choose our group. Hipsters do this, hippies do that. People in this town wear this outfit, students at this school hang out here on Saturdays… We might be born into a culture. Less agency, but just...
Seth's Blog
Misunderstanding bigness
IBM spent a fortune fighting calls for them to be broken up. So did AT&T and Microsoft. In all three...
4 months ago
IBM spent a fortune fighting calls for them to be broken up. So did AT&T and Microsoft. In all three cases, there’s plenty of evidence that they would have been better off if they had simply broken themselves up. Microsoft is still recovering and IBM never will. One computer...
Seth's Blog
But what if we’re wrong?
Of course, we think we’re right. That’s why we’re sharing our opinion. But when there’s a...
a year ago
Of course, we think we’re right. That’s why we’re sharing our opinion. But when there’s a disagreement, or we’re predicting the future, it’s likely that someone will turn out to be incorrect. Sometimes, being wrong is a minor embarrassment, with very little real cost. And...
Seth's Blog
There’s always a placebo switch
The trick is knowing where it is and using it well. Wanting control doesn’t always mean needing to...
a year ago
The trick is knowing where it is and using it well. Wanting control doesn’t always mean needing to have control. Sometimes it is simply a desire to be acknowledged. HT to Brian.
Seth's Blog
Catastrophizing toward action
A friend found a knobby growth near his knee. After a few doctor visits, it was diagnosed as cancer....
a month ago
A friend found a knobby growth near his knee. After a few doctor visits, it was diagnosed as cancer. A cancer diagnosis is a self-sufficient catastrophe–few people need more than that to start taking immediate action. At the same time, we live in a media culture where catastrophe...
Seth's Blog
The new way of work
Amazon is the last one. They are probably the last huge company where hundreds of thousands of...
a year ago
Amazon is the last one. They are probably the last huge company where hundreds of thousands of people will be surveilled, measured and ordered to follow the rule book. The pandemic didn’t create distributed work, the laptop did. Human interaction is critical, but the office isn’t...
Seth's Blog
The thought that counts
Well, maybe not. In 2024, worldwide gift card sales will pass a trillion dollars for the first time....
8 hours ago
Well, maybe not. In 2024, worldwide gift card sales will pass a trillion dollars for the first time. It’s a good grift. Surveys show that the buyer spends about 21% less per gift than they do when they actually buy something, while the recipients of the gift find themselves...
Marian's Blog
LED Matrix Materials Guide
I built an LED matrix out of 256 WS2812 LEDs. This post will describe which materials I used and...
over a year ago
I built an LED matrix out of 256 WS2812 LEDs. This post will describe which materials I used and which I tried with no success so you don’t have to.
Case
For the case, I used a custom made photo frame. The main purpose of the case is to look good, which is...
Seth's Blog
Confusion and certainty
When facing a complex problem, it’s easy to become confused. Lately, it’s become socially acceptable...
a year ago
When facing a complex problem, it’s easy to become confused. Lately, it’s become socially acceptable to express your confusion with certainty. Untrained in the field, make a pronouncement that makes it clear that you have not just an understanding of what’s going on, but also...
Open Culture
How Sci-Fi Writers Isaac Asimov & Robert Heinlein Contributed to the War Effort During World War II
Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov and L. Sprague De Camp at the Navy Yard in 1944 Robert Heinlein was...
6 months ago
Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov and L. Sprague De Camp at the Navy Yard in 1944 Robert Heinlein was born in 1907, which put him on the mature side by the time of the United States’ entry into World War II. Isaac Asimov, his younger colleague in science fiction, was born in 1920 (or...
Open Culture
Richard Feynman Creates a Simple Method for Telling Science From Pseudoscience (1966)
Photo by Tamiko Thiel via Wikimedia Commons How can we know whether a claim someone makes is...
3 months ago
Photo by Tamiko Thiel via Wikimedia Commons How can we know whether a claim someone makes is scientific or not? The question is of the utmost consequence, as we are surrounded on all sides by claims that sound credible, that use the language of science—and often do so in attempts...
Handprinted - Blog
Screen Printing a Repeat Pattern
Printing a length of your own designed fabric is so exciting but most of us do not have the luxury...
a year ago
Printing a length of your own designed fabric is so exciting but most of us do not have the luxury of a fabric registration table. Here's an easy step by step guide to printing a repeat pattern on a length of fabric using an A4 43T screen.
Draw the design motifs onto...
Open Culture
See Albert Camus’ Historic Lecture, “The Human Crisis,” Performed by Actor Viggo Mortensen
Back in 2016, New York City staged a month-long festival celebrating Albert Camus’ historic visit to...
5 months ago
Back in 2016, New York City staged a month-long festival celebrating Albert Camus’ historic visit to NYC in 1946. One event in the festival featured actor Viggo Mortensen giving a reading of Camus’ lecture,“La Crise de l’homme” (“The Human Crisis”) at Columbia University–the very...
Seth's Blog
Different kinds of people
It’s a tempting shortcut. Different kinds of people prefer pop tarts to pizza, or prefer expensive...
a year ago
It’s a tempting shortcut. Different kinds of people prefer pop tarts to pizza, or prefer expensive wine to beer, or prefer amusement parks to bowling. Except everyone is the same and everyone is different. What’s actually useful is to realize that in this moment, under these...
Seth's Blog
Spam 3.0
Any fully open system of digital communication will corrode over time. Bad messages will crowd out...
6 months ago
Any fully open system of digital communication will corrode over time. Bad messages will crowd out the good ones. The new normal: Someone finds a database of every residential property, then another of cell phones. An AI is trained to call every homeowner, every day, asking if...
Seth's Blog
Discovery and invention
Isaac Newton didn’t invent gravity. It was there all along. He simply named and explained it. The...
2 months ago
Isaac Newton didn’t invent gravity. It was there all along. He simply named and explained it. The same is true for planets, continents and obscure species. They’re discovered, not invented. Michelangelo talked about removing all the parts of the marble that weren’t the statue on...
Open Culture
Explore the World’s First 3D Replica of St. Peter’s Basilica, Made with AI
In the trailer below for the world’s first 3D replica of St. Peter’s Basilica, Yves Ubelmann speaks...
a month ago
In the trailer below for the world’s first 3D replica of St. Peter’s Basilica, Yves Ubelmann speaks of using “AI for Good,” which isn’t just an ideal, but also the name of a lab at Microsoft. Microsoft and Ubelman’s digital-preservation company Iconem were two of the participants...
Seth's Blog
Commonplace technology
Not all tech is new tech. The ballpoint pen was a revelation, and a bit controversial. Now, it’s...
a year ago
Not all tech is new tech. The ballpoint pen was a revelation, and a bit controversial. Now, it’s disposable and obvious. Different industries go through tech spurts. My desk is covered with items I use every day (a mouse, headphones, a solid-state drive, transparent tape, and...
Seth's Blog
“I didn’t get in”
There are two ways to process this: The selection committee saw me, understood me, and then decided...
11 months ago
There are two ways to process this: The selection committee saw me, understood me, and then decided to reject me. or The selection committee didn’t get what I had to offer. I wasn’t rejected, my application was. It’s not that I didn’t get in, it’s that they didn’t engage with the...
Seth's Blog
What comes after trust?
Walk into a bank with a stocking on your head and you’re probably going to get arrested. Civil...
a year ago
Walk into a bank with a stocking on your head and you’re probably going to get arrested. Civil society as we know it is dependent on identity and responsibility. A person does something and owns the consequences. This requirement of identity leads to the dynamic of the free...
Seth's Blog
Market pressure
Every competitor faces pressure, and it varies by industry, consumer/investor segment and geography....
8 months ago
Every competitor faces pressure, and it varies by industry, consumer/investor segment and geography. This applies to services, products, ideas, organizations, jobs… whenever there’s a choice and a market. The pressure might push you to be: But it’s also possible to choose a...
Open Culture
Download Issues of “Weird Tales” (1923–1954): The Pioneering Pulp Horror Magazine Features Original...
We live in an era of genre. Browse through TV shows of the last decade to see what I mean: Horror,...
6 months ago
We live in an era of genre. Browse through TV shows of the last decade to see what I mean: Horror, sci-fi, fantasy, superheroes, futuristic dystopias…. Take a casual glance at the burgeoning global film franchises or merchandising empires. Where in earlier decades, horror and...
Seth's Blog
PW 4: Productivity and tools
Adam Smith and Karl Marx both wrote about the pin-making machine. Not too long ago, pins (for hats,...
11 months ago
Adam Smith and Karl Marx both wrote about the pin-making machine. Not too long ago, pins (for hats, to hold shirts in place, etc.) were incredibly expensive. They were a luxury item, and a handmade pin might cost more than buying lunch. The pin-making machine changed this. It...
Seth's Blog
Early next week…
It’s going to get busy around here. I wanted to share some upcoming events (online and in person) so...
2 months ago
It’s going to get busy around here. I wanted to share some upcoming events (online and in person) so you can plan ahead… there are five more for the end of the week, but here we go: Linda Rottenberg is joining me on LinkedIn on Monday. She’s built an extraordinary organization...
Open Culture
Sex and Alcohol in Medieval Times: A Look into the Pleasures of the Middle Ages
Playing video games, road-tripping across America, binge-listening to podcasts, chatting with...
5 months ago
Playing video games, road-tripping across America, binge-listening to podcasts, chatting with artificial intelligence: these are a few of our modern pleasures not just unknown to, but unimaginable by, humanity in the Middle Ages. Yet medieval people were, after all, people, and...
Seth's Blog
The seduction of false promises
Why do we buy the pitch of the snake oil salesman, the flim-flam man, the con artist, the demagogue...
6 months ago
Why do we buy the pitch of the snake oil salesman, the flim-flam man, the con artist, the demagogue or the trickster? As our modern world becomes more informed and more rational, we see an increase (not the expected decrease) in scams, hustles, and chaos. There are Jokers and...
Seth's Blog
Convenience and scams
The scam era is upon us. Aided by AI, borderless currency and the internet of things, there are more...
a year ago
The scam era is upon us. Aided by AI, borderless currency and the internet of things, there are more people than ever before making a living hustling to steal, impersonate, defraud and otherwise violate our trust. When the world was inconvenient, this was difficult. The banker...
Seth's Blog
Empathy at a distance
… is almost as difficult as empathy up close. That person that’s not like you, from way over there,...
3 months ago
… is almost as difficult as empathy up close. That person that’s not like you, from way over there, the one that’s on the other team–it’s hard to imagine what they’re dealing with. They don’t believe what you believe, they haven’t experienced what you’ve experienced. And the...
Open Culture
Isaac Newton Creates a List of His 57 Sins (Circa 1662)
Sir Isaac Newton, arguably the most important and influential scientist in history, discovered the...
3 weeks ago
Sir Isaac Newton, arguably the most important and influential scientist in history, discovered the laws of motion and the universal force of gravity. For the first time ever, the rules of the universe could be described with the supremely rational language of mathematics....
Anarchy Unfolds
Is Sexual Orientation Obsolete?
Not yet, but maybe it can (and should) be soon
5 months ago
Not yet, but maybe it can (and should) be soon
Anarchy Unfolds
Genshin Impact & the appeal of open-world games
I’ve been playing a lot of Genshin Impact lately.
2 months ago
I’ve been playing a lot of Genshin Impact lately.
Seth's Blog
Your preference is not universal
You’re entitled to it, and we will do our best to help you find what you want. But it’s unlikely...
a year ago
You’re entitled to it, and we will do our best to help you find what you want. But it’s unlikely that what you want is what everyone wants. It’s hard to believe that there is only one appropriate standard for value, observance, speed or performance. The easiest way for us to help...
Open Culture
“The Virtues of Coffee” Explained in 1690 Ad: The Cure for Lethargy, Scurvy, Dropsy, Gout & More
According to many historians, the English Enlightenment may never have happened were it not for...
7 months ago
According to many historians, the English Enlightenment may never have happened were it not for coffeehouses, the public sphere where poets, critics, philosophers, legal minds, and other intellectual gadflies regularly met to chatter about the pressing concerns of the day. And...
Open Culture
Orson Welles Narrates an Animated Parable About How Xenophobia & Greed Will Put America Into Decline...
More than 50 years and 10 presidential administrations have passed since Orson Welles narrated...
2 months ago
More than 50 years and 10 presidential administrations have passed since Orson Welles narrated Freedom River. And while it shows signs of age, the animated film, a parable about the role of immigration, race, and wealth in America, still resonates today. Actually, given the...
Seth's Blog
Nothing to ad
A recent discussion about the challenges of direct-to-consumer marketing of a skincare product ended...
a year ago
A recent discussion about the challenges of direct-to-consumer marketing of a skincare product ended with one participant describing the hard part with, “nothing to ad.” She was referring to how much the thread had covered, but the pun wasn’t lost on us. Social media offered an...
Seth's Blog
What are you thinking about?
A philosopher can spend a month, a year or a career thinking about one knotty problem. Making...
4 months ago
A philosopher can spend a month, a year or a career thinking about one knotty problem. Making assertions, testing theories, understanding how others are thinking about it as well. But this exercise shouldn’t be reserved for academics. What are you working on? When will you change...
Seth's Blog
Unintended consequences
…are still consequences. We’re all participants in the systems around us, and complicit in their...
2 months ago
…are still consequences. We’re all participants in the systems around us, and complicit in their consequences even if we didn’t intend them. First, we need to see the systems, and then we have the opportunity to work to change them.
Seth's Blog
When did we lose consciousness?
In medical TV dramas, losing consciousness is something that happens suddenly and dramatically. We...
3 months ago
In medical TV dramas, losing consciousness is something that happens suddenly and dramatically. We can all tell… the body is still there, but the mind is gone, at least for now. Unfortunately, this happens in real life. At work. In our personal lives. For a few minutes or even a...
Seth's Blog
Pay what you want
It’s a fascinating payment model. For digital goods and other transactions where the marginal cost...
a year ago
It’s a fascinating payment model. For digital goods and other transactions where the marginal cost of one more sale approaches zero, “pay what you want” exposes how complicated the story we tell about money can be. When we add in the charity component, it becomes even more...
Stat Significant
How Have Song Lyrics Changed Since the 1960s? A Statistical Analysis
How have song lyrics evolved over time?
2 months ago
How have song lyrics evolved over time?
Seth's Blog
What are the defaults?
Perhaps they were chosen a very long time ago. Or with very little thought. It could be that the...
a year ago
Perhaps they were chosen a very long time ago. Or with very little thought. It could be that the constraints that led to the default are long gone. They might be perpetuating bad choices, injustice or sub-optimal outputs. The best way to fix something is to look at what we assume...
The Last...
Who Can Know How Much Randi Zuckerberg Is Worth?
cue hatred
Part 1 here
IV.
Off topic: Randi strongly believes Facebook has a legitimate place in...
over a year ago
cue hatred
Part 1 here
IV.
Off topic: Randi strongly believes Facebook has a legitimate place in the business world, and this makes me think Facebook is finished. I realize this is a speculative trade to make. The usual anxiety about Facebook's future is that teenagers aren't...
Open Culture
Why You Do Your Best Thinking In The Shower: Creativity & the “Incubation Period”
Image via Wikimedia Commons “The great Tao fades away.” So begins one translation of the Tao Te...
5 months ago
Image via Wikimedia Commons “The great Tao fades away.” So begins one translation of the Tao Te Ching’s 18th Chapter. The sentence captures the frustration that comes with a lost epiphany. Whether it’s a profound realization when you just wake up, or moment of clarity in the...
Seth's Blog
The strategy sessions
I’m workshopping a new book. For the last few months, I’ve been feverishly writing a book about...
7 months ago
I’m workshopping a new book. For the last few months, I’ve been feverishly writing a book about strategy. Strategy for individuals, small organizations and large ones as well. Strategy for someone seeking to make a difference, and strategy for people who do projects. Starting...
Handprinted - Blog
Meet The Maker: Ian Burke
Ian Burke is a Painter Printmaker based in the North Yorkshire Moors. He was born in Saltburn and...
11 months ago
Ian Burke is a Painter Printmaker based in the North Yorkshire Moors. He was born in Saltburn and grew up in Redcar before studying Fine Art at Newcastle University. Having completed a Master's at Goldsmith's College, London he established a career in teaching art.
Ian now...
Seth's Blog
The commonweal
Thanks to everyone who has read, talked about and taken action around my new book, The Song of...
a year ago
Thanks to everyone who has read, talked about and taken action around my new book, The Song of Signficance. If you have a chance to post a review, that would be great. And you can find the podcasts here. The first step in making things better is talking about it.
Seth's Blog
Evenly distributed
For the first time, the only time, everyone on Earth was in the same boat at the same time. We’ve...
a year ago
For the first time, the only time, everyone on Earth was in the same boat at the same time. We’ve long been divided by privilege, by caste, by accidents of birth or by organized hierarchies. Sure, there have been events that struck us all at once. Landing on the moon caused us...
Stat Significant
Unpacking Vinyl's Remarkable Revival: A Statistical Analysis
The fall and rise of vinyl and record stores.
3 months ago
The fall and rise of vinyl and record stores.
Handprinted - Blog
Meet the Maker: Rosanna Morris
I am an illustrator and printmaker, working mainly with relief. I work from my large studio on the...
8 months ago
I am an illustrator and printmaker, working mainly with relief. I work from my large studio on the top floor of an creative warehouse in east Bristol. I also run a courses, workshops and printmaking events.
Describe your printmaking process.
I usually start with a pencil...
The Last...
Product Review: Panasonic PT AX200U (Hipsters On Food Stamps Part 3)
but how will you afford a steak?
Part 2 here
Three questions, open book:
1. Did Hipster...
over a year ago
but how will you afford a steak?
Part 2 here
Three questions, open book:
1. Did Hipster Gerry get his money's worth from the University of Chicago, either $100k in future income or knowledge? No.
2. Did society get their money's worth in sending him, i.e. by...
Seth's Blog
Valuable contributions
We actually don’t really know. Netflix just released their first-ever detailed analysis of how many...
a year ago
We actually don’t really know. Netflix just released their first-ever detailed analysis of how many hours of engagement the top 15,000+ most watched shows on the network received over a six month period. Here’s the file. Who won? That question is actually the lesson here. The...
Seth's Blog
On reading it in a book
Mike Schur, co-creator of Parks and Recreation, said of his career, “This is not stuff you can read...
a year ago
Mike Schur, co-creator of Parks and Recreation, said of his career, “This is not stuff you can read in a book,” he said. “This is stuff that you have to experience.” I think it’s also useful to flip it around. There are things you will have trouble experiencing until you read...
Blog - Amy Goodchild
Using ChatGPT to implement Sol LeWitt’s Wall Drawings
Sol LeWitt‘s Wall Drawings aren’t actually drawings but, rather,
instructions for drawings. I...
a year ago
Sol LeWitt‘s Wall Drawings aren’t actually drawings but, rather,
instructions for drawings. I asked ChatGPT to implement them in p5js
Open Culture
The Evolution of Hokusai’s Great Wave: A Study of 113 Known Copies of the Iconic Woodblock Print
The most widely known work by the eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Japanese artist Hokusai,...
6 months ago
The most widely known work by the eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Japanese artist Hokusai, 神奈川沖浪裏, is usually translated into English as The Great Wave off Kanagawa. That version of the title reflects the iconic scene depicted in the image well enough, though I can’t help but...
Stat Significant
Is Music Stardom in Decline? A Statistical Analysis
Is music stardom dying?
a month ago
The Great Discontent...
Rick Griffith
Rick Griffith is a British-West-Indian designer, collagist, writer, educator, letterpress printer,...
a year ago
Rick Griffith is a British-West-Indian designer, collagist, writer, educator, letterpress printer, and optimist futurist based in Denver, Colorado. He works at the intersection of programming, policy, and production. He co-founded MATTER—a design consultancy,...
Prolost
What I Want to Do in Apple Vision Pro
Still frame from Hello! by Goro Fujita, created in VR using Quill
Today’s the day to pre-order Apple...
11 months ago
Still frame from Hello! by Goro Fujita, created in VR using Quill
Today’s the day to pre-order Apple Vision Pro, Apple’s first “spatial computing” device. It’s an expensive VR headset that either represents an opportunity to beta-test the future, or double down on past failings...
Seth's Blog
Avoiding technology
Robert Caro never learned to type. He pecks out his books two fingers at a time on an electric...
11 months ago
Robert Caro never learned to type. He pecks out his books two fingers at a time on an electric typewriter. There are two reasons to avoid learning a proven new technology: You know what it can do and how it will change your life and you don’t want it. You don’t know what it can...
Seth's Blog
A really good reason
Do you see the defaults? The question, “What are things like around here?” has two possible answers....
2 months ago
Do you see the defaults? The question, “What are things like around here?” has two possible answers. When a new idea or opportunity arrives, your organization says yes, unless there’s a really good reason to say no. Or your organization says no, unless someone makes a powerful...
Seth's Blog
If “no” is not an option…
Then neither is “yes.” Enrollment requires choice. PS one of my all-time favorite encore episodes of...
a year ago
Then neither is “yes.” Enrollment requires choice. PS one of my all-time favorite encore episodes of Akimbo is out this week: How to get into a famous college.
Seth's Blog
Widespread resistance
Steve Pressfield defines Resistance as the inertia, stories and excuses we manage to create to avoid...
a year ago
Steve Pressfield defines Resistance as the inertia, stories and excuses we manage to create to avoid powerful or creative work. Writer’s block, procrastination, overconfidence, or a belief in un-delivered talent are all symptoms of resistance. Knowing that it has a name helps us...
Handprinted - Blog
Meet the Maker: Angie Lewin
I'm a printmaker working in linocut, wood engraving and silk screen. I also exhibit my watercolours...
a year ago
I'm a printmaker working in linocut, wood engraving and silk screen. I also exhibit my watercolours and create collages of printed Japanese papers applied to objects collected on walking and sketching trips. In 2005, I set up St Jude's, along with my husband Simon, to produce...
Open Culture
Watch an Enthusiast Drive the First Car Ever Made, the 1885 Mercedes Benz
In 1885, Karl Benz built what’s now considered the first modern automobile. According to the...
7 months ago
In 1885, Karl Benz built what’s now considered the first modern automobile. According to the Mercedes Benz website, the car featured a “compact high-speed single-cylinder four-stroke engine installed horizontally at the rear, a tubular steel frame … and three wire-spoked wheels....
Seth's Blog
Understanding pricing
The money we exchange for a service or item isn’t based on how much it cost to make, how hard it was...
3 weeks ago
The money we exchange for a service or item isn’t based on how much it cost to make, how hard it was to produce or how much the producer likes it. That’s hard to hear, because when we make something, we spend most of our time thinking about those very things. Price is based on...
Seth's Blog
Nihil hic deest
This page intentionally left blank has a long history. I thought it was an IBM thing from the 1960s,...
a year ago
This page intentionally left blank has a long history. I thought it was an IBM thing from the 1960s, but I was off by a thousand or more years. There are good reasons for a page to be blank. Folding signatures, printing processes, having chapters start on the right or the left…...
Blog - Amy Goodchild
Generating The Alphabet
My current generative artwork-in-progress includes text, but I don’t want to use a font. In browser...
9 months ago
My current generative artwork-in-progress includes text, but I don’t want to use a font. In browser based art work, using a “web safe” font could produce inconsistent results, while including a font file would mean a large file size. Additionally, I don’t want a visual element of...
Seth's Blog
The half apology
What a waste. Something went wrong, and the other person cared enough about the relationship to let...
6 months ago
What a waste. Something went wrong, and the other person cared enough about the relationship to let you know. Perhaps they’re hoping that you can rebuild a bridge. That you can see what they see and care enough to do something about it. A half apology is a little like half a...
Seth's Blog
“But what if it doesn’t work?”
The best way to win a short-term game is to bet it all on one strategy. Someone is going to get...
a year ago
The best way to win a short-term game is to bet it all on one strategy. Someone is going to get lucky and it might be you. But we rarely thrive in the long run if we persist in playing a series of short-term games. Instead, organizations, individuals and teams do better when they...
Open Culture
RIP Paul Auster: Hear the Master of the Postmodern Page-Turner Discuss How He Became a Writer
In the Louisiana Channel interview clip from 2017 above, the late Paul Auster tells the story of how...
7 months ago
In the Louisiana Channel interview clip from 2017 above, the late Paul Auster tells the story of how he became a writer. Its first episode had appeared more than twenty years earlier, in a New Yorker piece titled “Why Write?”: “I was eight years old. At that moment in my life,...
Open Culture
Coursera Offers $120 Off of Coursera Plus (Until September 30), Giving You Unlimited Access to...
A quick reminder: As the new school year gets underway, millions of students are heading back to...
3 months ago
A quick reminder: As the new school year gets underway, millions of students are heading back to classrooms. And you can too. From now until September 30, 2024, Coursera is offering a 30% discount on its annual subscription plan called “Coursera Plus.” Normally priced at $399,...
Seth's Blog
When the sun is shining
Our job as professionals is to show up and do the work. Not simply respond to incoming or do the...
a year ago
Our job as professionals is to show up and do the work. Not simply respond to incoming or do the chores, but to create and innovate. And yet, some days feel more conducive than others. There are moments when it simply flows. When the surf’s up, cancel everything else. Don’t waste...
Seth's Blog
Lost on purpose
…of course, if you’re lost on purpose, you’re not lost. Lost is only possible if you are fixed on...
a year ago
…of course, if you’re lost on purpose, you’re not lost. Lost is only possible if you are fixed on getting somewhere specific.
Seth's Blog
Practical philosophy
Engineering is the powerful practice of being able to deliver artifacts that do what they’re...
a year ago
Engineering is the powerful practice of being able to deliver artifacts that do what they’re supposed to. Bridges that don’t fall down, software that runs, IV leads that don’t get infected. But if we want to create something, it helps to know what it’s for. That simple question,...
Seth's Blog
Projects and the long haul
Rome was built in a day. It wasn’t finished in a day. In fact, it’s still not finished. But the day...
5 months ago
Rome was built in a day. It wasn’t finished in a day. In fact, it’s still not finished. But the day someone said, “this is Rome,” and announced the project, it was there. Sometimes we get hung up on the beginning, unwilling to start Rome unless we’re sure we can finish it without...
Open Culture
Carl Jung Offers an Introduction to His Psychological Thought in a 3‑Hour Interview (1957)
In the 1950s, it was fashionable to drop Freud’s name — often as not in pseudo-intellectual sex...
4 months ago
In the 1950s, it was fashionable to drop Freud’s name — often as not in pseudo-intellectual sex jokes. Freud’s preoccupations had as much to do with his fame as the actual practice of psychotherapy, and it was assumed — and still is to a great degree — that Freud had “won” the...
Open Culture
Watch The Cure Perform a Three-Hour Concert in London, Celebrating the Release of Their New Album
httpv://www.youtube.com/live/_aWDlaxvEZo Last Friday, The Cure celebrated the release of their new...
a month ago
httpv://www.youtube.com/live/_aWDlaxvEZo Last Friday, The Cure celebrated the release of their new album, Songs of a Lost World, with a three-hour set at the Troxy in London. The band kicked off the show by performing all eight tracks from the album, before then playing another...
Seth's Blog
Compounding head starts
When a six-year-old kid beats the other kids at tennis, that kid is more likely to be encouraged to...
a year ago
When a six-year-old kid beats the other kids at tennis, that kid is more likely to be encouraged to play more, or to get a coach, and pretty soon, they’re much better at tennis than the others. When a musical group has a single that gets some buzz on Spotify, they’re more likely...
Seth's Blog
Everything costs
But not all costs are the same. There are three kinds of costs that people get confused about, but...
2 months ago
But not all costs are the same. There are three kinds of costs that people get confused about, but understanding them, really understanding them–in your bones–unlocks opportunity. Opportunity cost: If you eat the cupcakes, you can’t also eat the brownies. Every time we choose to...
Seth's Blog
I fixed it for you
Creativity is about hope and possibility. It gives us a chance to make things better. Plenty has...
7 months ago
Creativity is about hope and possibility. It gives us a chance to make things better. Plenty has been written about the sad iPad ad that Apple just apologized for. It wasn’t just out of character for the story Apple tells, it was a cheap hack, taking the nihilism and helplessness...
Handprinted - Blog
Meet The Maker: Strangford (Jo Pearson)
Hi! I’m Jo, working as a printmaker under the name 'Strangford' in Northern Ireland - though I’m...
6 months ago
Hi! I’m Jo, working as a printmaker under the name 'Strangford' in Northern Ireland - though I’m originally from South London.
Describe your printmaking process.
I make large, bright, unusual relief prints from my home studio; mostly of animals. I carve into flooring lino - it’s...
Seth's Blog
Choose your customers
…choose your future. It’s an odd way to think about your project, your job, your startup, but...
a year ago
…choose your future. It’s an odd way to think about your project, your job, your startup, but there’s little that matters more. There are two key elements: At one extreme is the first few years of Google’s growth. The salesforce didn’t matter–the customers showed up on their own,...
Open Culture
Stephen King Names His Five Favorite Works by Stephen King
Stephen King has no doubt forgotten writing more books than most of us will ever publish. But even...
6 months ago
Stephen King has no doubt forgotten writing more books than most of us will ever publish. But even now, in his prolific “late career,” if you ask him to name his own most favored works, he can do it without hesitation. Stephen Colbert tried that out a few years ago on The Late...
Seth's Blog
Hope and expectations
They’re not the same thing. Hope can fuel us. Hope can be refilled. Hope opens the door to...
a year ago
They’re not the same thing. Hope can fuel us. Hope can be refilled. Hope opens the door to possibility. Expectations, on the other hand, are a trap. They make us brittle and lead to disappointment. When we raise our hopes and lower our expectations, we establish a resilient way...
Seth's Blog
The opposite of insubordination
“Do as I say.” That’s industrial management in four words. If you don’t follow the instructions to...
11 months ago
“Do as I say.” That’s industrial management in four words. If you don’t follow the instructions to the letter, you’re insubordinate. Not subordinate. Complete subordination might have been the goal in an industrial setting. But now, it’s dangerous, expensive and inefficent....
Seth's Blog
The challenge of nonprofit fundraising
When someone starts a business, they spend a bunch of time with a business plan, working to raise...
8 months ago
When someone starts a business, they spend a bunch of time with a business plan, working to raise funds and get it off the ground. After that, though, the purpose of the business is completely aligned with the idea of not running out of money. We run a business to make money, not...
Seth's Blog
A new cooperative workshop
My colleague Ava Morris is running her Song of Significance Workshop on Friday, October 6. It’s...
a year ago
My colleague Ava Morris is running her Song of Significance Workshop on Friday, October 6. It’s powerful, effective and personal. It runs worldwide, in Zoom, and it’s completely interactive–every participant participates. This will be the third session… the first two got rave...
Open Culture
How Georges Méliès A Trip to the Moon Became the First Sci-Fi Film & Changed Cinema Forever (1902)
If you happen to visit the Cinémathèque Française in Paris, do take the time to see the Musée Méliès...
3 weeks ago
If you happen to visit the Cinémathèque Française in Paris, do take the time to see the Musée Méliès located inside it. Dedicated to la Magie du cinéma, it contains artifacts from throughout the history of film-as-spectacle, which includes such pictures as 2001: A Space Odyssey...
Open Culture
Bringing Tsarist Russia to Life: Vivid Color Images from 1905–1915
History escapes us. Events that changed the world forever, or should have, slide out of collective...
3 months ago
History escapes us. Events that changed the world forever, or should have, slide out of collective memory. If we’re pointing fingers, we might point at educational systems that fail to educate, or at huge historical blind spots in mass media. Maybe another reason the recent past...
Blog - Mac Pierce
Creating art out of a weapon. Using the Stuxnet Virus.
How and why I made Portrait of a Digital Weapon, a piece of electronic art
made from the Stuxnet...
over a year ago
How and why I made Portrait of a Digital Weapon, a piece of electronic art
made from the Stuxnet Virus.
Open Culture
Get Unlimited Access to Courses & Certificates: Coursera Is Offering 40% (or $159) Off of Coursera...
A heads up on a deal: Between today and June 23, 2024, Coursera is offering a 40% discount on its...
6 months ago
A heads up on a deal: Between today and June 23, 2024, Coursera is offering a 40% discount on its annual subscription plan called “Coursera Plus.” Normally priced at $399, Coursera Plus (now available for $239.40) gives you access to 7,000+ courses for one all-inclusive...
Seth's Blog
Two chicken jokes
“Why did the chicken cross the road” tells us a bit about jokes. It’s a joke about jokes. The first...
10 months ago
“Why did the chicken cross the road” tells us a bit about jokes. It’s a joke about jokes. The first half is a setup, reminding us that an absurd question creates tension, which is then relieved by the punchline. But the second half undoes this by refusing to release the tension....
Open Culture
The BBC Creates Step-by-Step Instructions for Knitting the Iconic Dr. Who Scarf: A Document from the...
When Jon Pertwee reincarnated into Tom Baker in 1974, the Fourth Doctor of the popular sci-fi show...
2 weeks ago
When Jon Pertwee reincarnated into Tom Baker in 1974, the Fourth Doctor of the popular sci-fi show Doctor Who ditched the foppish look of velvet jackets and frilly shirts, and went for the “Romantic adventurer” style, with floppy felt hat, long overcoats and, most iconically, his...
Infinite Scroll
Get a Discount on Infinite Scroll
Limited time! 30% off paid access to Infinite Scroll
a month ago
Limited time! 30% off paid access to Infinite Scroll
Seth's Blog
Hope and truth
The candidate running for re-election offers truth. This is what I did, I would like to do it again....
a year ago
The candidate running for re-election offers truth. This is what I did, I would like to do it again. The candidate coming out of nowhere offers hope. We can’t know but we can imagine. Kickstarter offers hope. No reviews, no tests, simply a promise of what might be. Book...
Seth's Blog
Kazoo lessons
Knowledge and technique used to be closely guarded secrets. Admission to the guild was reserved for...
5 months ago
Knowledge and technique used to be closely guarded secrets. Admission to the guild was reserved for a few, and crafts like typesetting, plumbing and medicine were off limits to most folks. One of the reasons for the explosion in productivity and innovation in the last century is...
Blog - Mac Pierce
Fort Emplacements and FDM: making Castle Doctrine
How I made Castle Doctrine, a 1:1 scale fully 3D-Printed American
Revolutionary War era cannon.
a year ago
How I made Castle Doctrine, a 1:1 scale fully 3D-Printed American
Revolutionary War era cannon.
Seth's Blog
Software done well
There are a few tools I use regularly that make me smile, because the craftspeople who made them...
5 months ago
There are a few tools I use regularly that make me smile, because the craftspeople who made them decided to build something with extra magic and care. By using and paying for well crafted software, we often get far more than we pay for… Ecamm is the tool I use for all my online...
Open Culture
20 Mesmerizing Videos of Japanese Artisans Creating Traditional Handicrafts
In Japanese “tewaza” means “hand technique” or “handcraft” and, in this YouTube playlist of 20 short...
3 months ago
In Japanese “tewaza” means “hand technique” or “handcraft” and, in this YouTube playlist of 20 short films, various artisanal techniques are explored and demonstrated by Japanese masters in the field. For those who are both obsessed with Japanese art and watching things get made,...
Handprinted - Blog
Using Schmincke Water-Based Inks to Create a Jigsaw Linocut
We love the range of colours that are available in Schmincke water-based inks. We’re creating a...
over a year ago
We love the range of colours that are available in Schmincke water-based inks. We’re creating a jigsaw linocut to allow us to use multiple colours of Schmincke ink in just one block!
We are using Easy Carve Blue as it’s soft to cut up with a scalpel, making it ideal for a jigsaw...
Handprinted - Blog
Using Hawthorn Process Colours
We've been stocking Hawthorn Stay Open Inks for 6 years now! These inks are oil based inks and work...
a year ago
We've been stocking Hawthorn Stay Open Inks for 6 years now! These inks are oil based inks and work beautifully for relief printing. We have a fantastic range of colours including the process range. Process colours are inks specially formulated to create a full spectrum of...
Seth's Blog
Headwinds
When it’s tough going and it feels fraught, it’s easy to imagine that the headwinds will never end....
9 months ago
When it’s tough going and it feels fraught, it’s easy to imagine that the headwinds will never end. And yet, when all is going well and the wind is at our back, it’s tempting to imagine that this is the way it’s going to stay. Neither is true. The reason we see them as headwinds...
Seth's Blog
After the meteorite
When it slams into your house and destroys it, we’re likely to pursue one of two lines of thinking:...
a year ago
When it slams into your house and destroys it, we’re likely to pursue one of two lines of thinking: –How did I cause this? What choices did I make, what mistakes did I permit, why did I deserve to have this damage, or who can I blame? –Well, that happened, now what should I do?...
Blog - Amy Goodchild
Pretty much all I want in life…
… is to make things and then have other people look at those things and be
like “woah, cool”
over a year ago
… is to make things and then have other people look at those things and be
like “woah, cool”
Ian Betteridge
Ten Blue Links, “rapid evolution of form” edition
1. Why should Trump deliver for anyone but Trump? This Bloomberg piece forgets one important fact:...
2 weeks ago
1. Why should Trump deliver for anyone but Trump? This Bloomberg piece forgets one important fact: Donald Trump is not going to be on the ticket next time. He doesn’t have to deliver a dime for ordinary voters, and will act accordingly. 2. You can now sync Apple Passwords with...
Handprinted - Blog
Meet the Maker: Moïra Swann
Bonjour everyone! Moïra Swann is an English and Proustian adaptation from my real name Anne-Marie:...
over a year ago
Bonjour everyone! Moïra Swann is an English and Proustian adaptation from my real name Anne-Marie: while Anne-Marie lives in France and works full-time in a wonderful museum dedicated to the French painter Anne-Louis Girodet, Moïra Swann does lino printing whenever she can, as an...
Seth's Blog
The problem with the movie version
There are lights, camera and action, but mostly there’s the unreality of making it fit. Happily ever...
a month ago
There are lights, camera and action, but mostly there’s the unreality of making it fit. Happily ever after, a climax at just the right moment, perfect heroes, tension, resolution and a swelling soundtrack. Every element is amplified and things happen right on schedule. Consume...
Seth's Blog
Niching up
Along the way, folks have talked about “niching down” as a way to help a project find focus. But...
10 months ago
Along the way, folks have talked about “niching down” as a way to help a project find focus. But that’s backward. When we identify and embrace the smallest viable audience, we’re moving up. Up the quality hierarchy. Up in responsibility. Up in the likelihood that we’ll make an...
Handprinted - Blog
Meet the Maker: Rach Lloyd
Hello, my name is Rach and I'm a printmaker from Shropshire. I go by the name Rach Lloyd Press, and...
2 months ago
Hello, my name is Rach and I'm a printmaker from Shropshire. I go by the name Rach Lloyd Press, and pride myself on making all of my print-runs and editions in very small numbers, so people can own a unique piece of artwork at an affordable price.
I am a multidisciplinary artist,...
On the Arts
What is the Demoscene?
An Interview with Filipe Cruz on the Influential but Obscure Art Form
a year ago
An Interview with Filipe Cruz on the Influential but Obscure Art Form
Infinite Scroll
Weekly Scroll: Dead CEOs and Conservative Progressives
Plus! Hawk Tuah crypto scandal, gift guide season, and a good Spotify Wrapped
a week ago
Plus! Hawk Tuah crypto scandal, gift guide season, and a good Spotify Wrapped
Seth's Blog
The grid of inquiry
Expertise and firmly held beliefs don’t always go together. Here’s a simple XY grid to help us...
8 months ago
Expertise and firmly held beliefs don’t always go together. Here’s a simple XY grid to help us choose where to sit at whatever table we’re invited to: Plenty of well-trained professionals have earned the right to have strongly held beliefs. These convictions save them time and...
Seth's Blog
Confusion and delay
Marketing is generally about action. Marketers seek to create the conditions for a change to happen,...
a year ago
Marketing is generally about action. Marketers seek to create the conditions for a change to happen, for people to accomplish their goals and to satisfy their needs. But since 1950, some marketers have worked in a different direction. To sow confusion and doubt, and most of all,...
Open Culture
Is Reality Real?: 8 Scientists Explain Whether We Can Ever Know What Objectively Exists
Ask aloud whether reality is real, and you’re liable to be regarded as never truly having left the...
6 months ago
Ask aloud whether reality is real, and you’re liable to be regarded as never truly having left the freshman dorm. But that question has received, and continues to receive, consideration from actual scientists. The Big Think video above assembles seven of them to explain how they...
Anarchy Unfolds
Pride, noise, and fear
Sleep deprivation is a social justice and public health issue
3 months ago
Sleep deprivation is a social justice and public health issue
Seth's Blog
Shields up
Years and years ago, I helped the Weekly World News make a book. While their periodical was weekly,...
a year ago
Years and years ago, I helped the Weekly World News make a book. While their periodical was weekly, it certainly wasn’t news. They were just four people in a small office in Florida. They gleefully made stuff up every week. They had a few filing cabinets of stock photos, and they...
Open Culture
Artificial Intelligence & Drones Uncover 303 New Nazca Lines in Peru
If you visit one tourist site in Peru, it will almost certainly be the ruined Incan city of Machu...
2 months ago
If you visit one tourist site in Peru, it will almost certainly be the ruined Incan city of Machu Picchu. If you visit another, it’ll probably be the Nazca Desert, home to many large-scale geoglyphs made by pre-Inca peoples between 500 BC and 500 AD. Many of these “Nazca lines”...
Seth's Blog
The seduction of “why”
It’s classic linkbait. Headlines that explain why something is happening. Questions to AI about why...
a year ago
It’s classic linkbait. Headlines that explain why something is happening. Questions to AI about why something happens. Even kids, asking their parents. Why is easy to sell. Why is hard to deliver. Consultants make a good living explaining the why. And media companies try to. But...
Seth's Blog
And it can also do that
If you were around when the Model T was first announced, you could have built the organizations that...
10 months ago
If you were around when the Model T was first announced, you could have built the organizations that became Disney, McDonald’s and Holiday Inn, all of which were powered by cheap, plentiful cars. You could have become a major developer of suburbs, mortgage banking and even pop...
Handprinted - Blog
Making a Copper Sulphate Mordant Solution
Copper sulphate is a non-toxic mordant used to etch aluminium, zinc and steel plates for intaglio...
a year ago
Copper sulphate is a non-toxic mordant used to etch aluminium, zinc and steel plates for intaglio printmaking. Copper sulphate is a safer alternative to acids - and we always opt for safer solutions here at the Handprinted studio!
Metal plates are traditionally etched using...
Open Culture
A New 3D Scan, Created from 25,000 High-Resolution Images, Reveals the Remarkably Well-Preserved...
Photos on this page courtesy of the Falklands Maritime Heritage Few who hear the story of the...
a month ago
Photos on this page courtesy of the Falklands Maritime Heritage Few who hear the story of the Endurance could avoid reflecting on the aptness of the ship’s name. A year after setting out on the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition in 1914, it got stuck in a mass of drifting ice...
Marian's Blog
Raspberry Pi powered fishtank
My fishtank is now internet-connected. It is run by a Raspberry Pi that can do three things: Feed...
over a year ago
My fishtank is now internet-connected. It is run by a Raspberry Pi that can do three things: Feed the fish, switch the lights and take pictures.
To feed the fish, the Raspberry Pi sends commands to an automatic fishfeeder that I modified. It can empty any container in any order....
Open Culture
Soviet Inventor Léon Theremin Shows Off the Theremin, the Early Electronic Instrument That Could Be...
You know the sound of the theremin, that weird, warbly whine that signals mystery, danger, and...
4 months ago
You know the sound of the theremin, that weird, warbly whine that signals mystery, danger, and otherworldly portent in many classic sci-fi films. It has the distinction of being not only the very first electronic instrument but also the only instrument in history one plays...
Seth's Blog
Exceed or maintain?
In just about every group, people decide in advance how they’ll show up when it comes to learning,...
6 months ago
In just about every group, people decide in advance how they’ll show up when it comes to learning, to winning and to responding to opportunities. They’re wearing a hat with a label, and over time, it’s not hard to recognize. This can change based on pedagogy, social conditions...
Seth's Blog
Ideas shared are exponential
If everyone visits a factory and takes a sample, it goes out of business. But if everyone in the...
a year ago
If everyone visits a factory and takes a sample, it goes out of business. But if everyone in the community takes an idea, that idea goes up in value. The best marketing advice I have for someone writing a book is simple: Write a book that people want to share with others. And...
Handprinted - Blog
Meet the Maker: Caroline Whitehead
I’m a printmaker based in East London. For about eight years now, I’ve been obsessed with...
a year ago
I’m a printmaker based in East London. For about eight years now, I’ve been obsessed with alternative forms of lithography (mokulito (wood litho), kitchen litho, prontoplate litho, waterless litho, gum transfer). I also make prints on clay. As well as making my own prints, I also...
Seth's Blog
Fire inspectors
Running into a burning building is heroic work. Keeping buildings from burning down in the first...
4 months ago
Running into a burning building is heroic work. Keeping buildings from burning down in the first place is actually just as important. And it scales more reliably.
Open Culture
The Hand: An Anti-Totalitarian Animation, Banned for Two Decades & Now Considered One of the...
For obvious reasons, most art produced under oppressive regimes comes off as painstakingly...
a month ago
For obvious reasons, most art produced under oppressive regimes comes off as painstakingly inoffensive. For equally obvious reasons, the rare works that criticize the regime tend to do so rather obliquely. This wasn’t so much the case with The Hand, the most famous short by Czech...
The Great Discontent...
Sofía Gallisá Muriente
Emergence Issue: TGD’s fifth issue features a dynamic group of 15 creators who are deeply committed...
over a year ago
Emergence Issue: TGD’s fifth issue features a dynamic group of 15 creators who are deeply committed to addressing systematic challenges in their communities through creativity and emerging ideologies. Buy Now ¿Puedes compartir un poco sobre dónde y cómo creciste y qué influencia...
Seth's Blog
Should we assume rational goodwill?
There’s often a choice between following the cultural dictates of a given group or seeking out...
a year ago
There’s often a choice between following the cultural dictates of a given group or seeking out demonstrable facts and the scientific method. Which do you expect most people would choose? Which would you choose? When we revert to a testable analysis of what works, we’re relying on...
cabel.com
Thank Goodness I’ve Written Some Ad Music
This summer, a new video game came out that changed the way we think about comedy in games, becoming...
3 months ago
This summer, a new video game came out that changed the way we think about comedy in games, becoming an instant smash hit in the process. That’s right, I’m talking about Thank Goodness You’re Here! from Coal Supper. Ok, yeah, sure, I work for Panic and we published the game, so I...
Marian's Blog
BTduino documentation
The BTduino app sends data using the serial interface of a microcontroller and a bluetooth...
over a year ago
The BTduino app sends data using the serial interface of a microcontroller and a bluetooth connection. The concept of the protocol is to send all data in text form. Each set of data consists of the name and the value, seperated by a colon. This way of communication is not the...
Seth's Blog
At all costs
Principles have a priority. Isaac Asimov’s three rules of robotics were: First LawA robot may not...
a month ago
Principles have a priority. Isaac Asimov’s three rules of robotics were: First LawA robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. Second LawA robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would...
The Great Discontent...
Earlonne Woods and Nigel Poor
When Earlonne Woods and Nigel Poor came up with the idea for Ear Hustle, the podcast they’ve hosted...
7 months ago
When Earlonne Woods and Nigel Poor came up with the idea for Ear Hustle, the podcast they’ve hosted together since 2017, Earlonne was serving a prison sentence of 31 years to life—the result of California’s three-strikes law. The two met at San Quentin State Prison where Nigel, a...
Seth's Blog
The gap between impossible and normal
It keeps getting shorter and shorter. This video couldn’t have been made, at any price, 18 months...
a year ago
It keeps getting shorter and shorter. This video couldn’t have been made, at any price, 18 months ago. 18 weeks ago, it would have required a thousand hours of work. Now, here it is. This impossible is going to happen faster and faster and faster.
Open Culture
Coursera Offers 30% Off of Coursera Plus (Until September 30), Giving You Unlimited Access to...
As the new school year gets underway, millions of students are heading back to classrooms. And you...
3 months ago
As the new school year gets underway, millions of students are heading back to classrooms. And you can too. From now until September 30, 2024, Coursera is offering a 30% discount on its annual subscription plan called “Coursera Plus.” Normally priced at $399, Coursera Plus...
Handprinted - Blog
Easy Christmas Cards Six Ways
We’ve had a lot of fun this week working on easy, quick and fun ways to print your own Christmas...
a year ago
We’ve had a lot of fun this week working on easy, quick and fun ways to print your own Christmas cards! We’ve come up with six simple ways for you to try. Take a look at our instructions below and have a go yourself.
Bah Humbug Lino Printed Card
This two-layered lino card is...
Seth's Blog
Scaffolds and talent
Kindergarten teachers matter more than you think. Chess isn’t a talent, it’s a learned practice....
a year ago
Kindergarten teachers matter more than you think. Chess isn’t a talent, it’s a learned practice. We’re sorting for head starts, not growth. And that’s just the first chapter. I think Hidden Potential is the most important book in Adam Grant’s career. The indoctrination around...
Seth's Blog
“But what if I’m wrong?
If we’re going to come together and invest the time in conversation, in research or in analysis, we...
8 months ago
If we’re going to come together and invest the time in conversation, in research or in analysis, we should begin by understanding what would be required for you or I to change our minds. If you’re not willing to consider that you’re wrong, then, in the words of a Dan Dennett,...
Seth's Blog
Ice sculpture
There are very few activities that are fully reversible. Ice sculpture might be one of them. Once...
a month ago
There are very few activities that are fully reversible. Ice sculpture might be one of them. Once the ice melts, all the effort and information is lost, and refreezing lets you begin again with a new, fresh block of ice. Of course, it’s not completely gone. The thing you made...
Open Culture
A Playlist of the 3,300 Best Films & Documentaries on Youtube, Including Works by Hitchcock,...
?si=yCx1pqpcATHND90L Once upon a time, the most convenient means of discovering movies was cable...
7 months ago
?si=yCx1pqpcATHND90L Once upon a time, the most convenient means of discovering movies was cable television. This held especially true for those of us who happened to be adolescents on a break from school, ready and willing morning, midday, or night to sit through the...
Seth's Blog
Choose your fuel wisely
If worrying about paying the mortgage gets you motivated to lean hard into the next project, don’t...
a month ago
If worrying about paying the mortgage gets you motivated to lean hard into the next project, don’t be surprised if that sort of fear arises every time you have hard work to do. If your goal is to teach the naysayers a lesson, remember that you’ll need to find people who you want...
Seth's Blog
Success is not an option
In any creative endeavor, it’s possible to define success as the big win, the moment when your...
7 months ago
In any creative endeavor, it’s possible to define success as the big win, the moment when your dreams match reality. Success is the end of imposter syndrome, stability and finally making it to the other side. By this definition, it’s clear that success isn’t going to happen. It’s...
Stat Significant
The Rise of Nicole Kidman, Pop Culture Folk Hero: A Statistical Analysis
Charting Nicole Kidman's recent career renaissance and rejection of industry norms.
a month ago
Charting Nicole Kidman's recent career renaissance and rejection of industry norms.
The Last...
Ten Extra Seconds Would Have Saved True Detective's Finale
what could it mean?
You just watched a historical TV moment: never before has the audience for a...
over a year ago
what could it mean?
You just watched a historical TV moment: never before has the audience for a show been smarter than its writer. I submit as second evidence the season finale for The Bachelor that was on yesterday, for three hours, drawing ten million "people". Just...
Seth's Blog
Bought or sold?
Most things that consumers acquire are bought, not sold. We decide we’re interested in something and...
a year ago
Most things that consumers acquire are bought, not sold. We decide we’re interested in something and we go shopping to get it. Potato chips, wedding venues and cars are all purchased by people who set out to get them. Selling is a special sort of marketing. It’s interactive,...
Seth's Blog
A protest or a project?
Protests let off steam. They organize people who might not show up by creating a moment in time...
a year ago
Protests let off steam. They organize people who might not show up by creating a moment in time where there’s enough opportunity and social pressure that they participate. A protest sends a message. But almost every time, the very things that made a protest appealing mean that it...
Seth's Blog
Leverage is brittle
Debt is a financial miracle. If you buy a property for 20% down, with the bank financing the rest,...
a year ago
Debt is a financial miracle. If you buy a property for 20% down, with the bank financing the rest, and it goes up in value by just 10%, your profit is 50%. (I’ll wait while you do the math.) If you have a factory and can buy a machine that increases productivity, the money you...
Seth's Blog
Late-stage technocrats
Water flows downhill, and tech solves the easy problems first. After the launch of Amazon and...
a year ago
Water flows downhill, and tech solves the easy problems first. After the launch of Amazon and Google, when smartphones reached critical mass, an easy problem to solve involved bridging information with stuff. So you could use your phone to summon a car, a case of beer, a dog...
Handprinted - Blog
Using Pearl Ex Metallic Pigments to Enhance Linocuts
Pearl Ex Powdered Pigments are metallic pigments that can be mixed into printing inks, acrylics,...
9 months ago
Pearl Ex Powdered Pigments are metallic pigments that can be mixed into printing inks, acrylics, oils, encaustics and loads more. As printmakers we were keen to see how they could be used in various printmaking applications, starting with linocut.
We began by mixing Apple...
Handprinted - Blog
Meet the Maker: Jo Muriel
Describe your printmaking process.
My prints are all one of a kind, mixed-media studies which...
a year ago
Describe your printmaking process.
My prints are all one of a kind, mixed-media studies which combine gestural marks and mainly abstract shape formations. Sometimes, I include figurative elements, sometimes not. I’m mainly concerned with conveying instinctive reactions to natural...
Seth's Blog
Turtleneck confusion
Apple didn’t succeed because of the way Steve Jobs dressed. Just like SBF’s hair didn’t put him in...
a year ago
Apple didn’t succeed because of the way Steve Jobs dressed. Just like SBF’s hair didn’t put him in jail. We can look at the outré behavior of various Silicon Valley overlords and come to the conclusion that it’s not only a necessary part of the job but actually the cause of their...
Handprinted - Blog
Choosing Printmaking Paper
Choosing the paper for your printmaking project can have a significant impact on the way the print...
11 months ago
Choosing the paper for your printmaking project can have a significant impact on the way the print turns out. Changing the colour, thickness or texture of a paper can alter the mood, style or success of a print - it can be great fun to experiment.
Although there are no rules...
Seth's Blog
Bongo is here
And you can be the first on your block to play it. It’s free. Click here to see today’s game. Over...
a month ago
And you can be the first on your block to play it. It’s free. Click here to see today’s game. Over the next week, I’m going to do a few bonus posts to explain how we thought about the creation and game design and marketing of this new project. The last eighteen months of...
Open Culture
Behold the Oldest Written Text in the World: The Kish Tablet, Circa 3500 BC
Image by José-Manuel Benito, via Wikimedia Commons Some refer to the written Chinese language as...
a month ago
Image by José-Manuel Benito, via Wikimedia Commons Some refer to the written Chinese language as ideographic: that is, structured according to a system in which each symbol represents a particular idea or concept, whether abstract or concrete. That’s true of certain Chinese...
Open Culture
How Magician David Copperfield Made the Statue of Liberty Disappear (1983)
In April, 1983, 50 million television viewers watched the illusionist David Copperfield make the...
a month ago
In April, 1983, 50 million television viewers watched the illusionist David Copperfield make the Statue of Liberty disappear, straight into thin air. If you’re north of 50, you perhaps remember the spectacle. How did he do it? 40 years later, the YouTube channel Mind Blown Magic...
Anarchy Unfolds
3 Pieces for Rethinking Identity Politics
Mental health, neurodivergence, orientation, and the path ahead
a month ago
Mental health, neurodivergence, orientation, and the path ahead
Open Culture
What is Electronic Music?: Pioneering Electronic Musician Daphne Oram Explains (1969)
Survey the British public about the most important institution to arise in their country after World...
4 months ago
Survey the British public about the most important institution to arise in their country after World War II, and a lot of respondents are going to say the National Health Service. But keep asking around, and you’ll sooner or later encounter a few serious electronic-music...
Open Culture
The World’s First Mobile Phone Shown in 1922 Vintage Film
A number of years ago, British Pathé uncovered some striking footage from 1922 showing two women...
3 months ago
A number of years ago, British Pathé uncovered some striking footage from 1922 showing two women experimenting with the first mobile phone. A spokesman for the archive said: ”It’s amazing that 90 years ago mobile phone technology and music … was not only being thought of but...
Seth's Blog
The paradox of insular language
We often develop slang or codewords to keep the others from understanding what we’re saying. Here’s...
a year ago
We often develop slang or codewords to keep the others from understanding what we’re saying. Here’s an example (thanks BK) of the lengths that some are going to be able to take about Chinese politics. Of course, if you come up with a concealed enough code, the people you’re...
Open Culture
Behold Gustave Doré’s Dramatic Illustrations of the Bible (1866)
One occasionally hears it said that, thanks to the internet, all the books truly worth reading are...
5 months ago
One occasionally hears it said that, thanks to the internet, all the books truly worth reading are free: Shakespeare, Don Quixote, the stories of Edgar Allan Poe, the Divine Comedy, the Bible. Can it be a coincidence that all of these works inspired illustrations by Gustave Doré?...
Seth's Blog
The inevitable meeting
When the person you could have been meets the person you are becoming, is it going to be a cause for...
2 months ago
When the person you could have been meets the person you are becoming, is it going to be a cause for celebration or heartbreak? This is something we must work on right now, and tomorrow, and every single day until the meeting happens.
Seth's Blog
When we get to where we’re going
…perhaps we should stop. Unless the going was the point.
a year ago
…perhaps we should stop. Unless the going was the point.
Seth's Blog
What to do with firm footing
If we’ve got tenure, a lifetime appointment or simply a really secure gig, what should we do with...
10 months ago
If we’ve got tenure, a lifetime appointment or simply a really secure gig, what should we do with it? One option is to race to the bottom, to chase short-term self-focused outcomes and to see how much we can get away with. (Probably, quite a bit). The other is to take this rare...
Seth's Blog
Long form AI
The new version of Claude can read a document of up to 400 pages in about three minutes. You can...
a year ago
The new version of Claude can read a document of up to 400 pages in about three minutes. You can then ask it for criticism, summaries or other insights. I wouldn’t use it on a piece of literature, but if you’re reading for work (aren’t we all), it will dramatically increase how...
Prolost
Apple’s “EDR” Brings High Dynamic Range to Non-HDR Displays
Was it worth buying a Pro Display XDR just for this joke? Yes.
Apple caused quite a stir with the...
over a year ago
Was it worth buying a Pro Display XDR just for this joke? Yes.
Apple caused quite a stir with the announcement of their Pro Display XDR, a High Dynamic Range display that occupies a convoluted space in the market. It seeks to be both a Very Nice Computer Display, and a reference...
Open Culture
Behold James Sowerby’s Strikingly Illustrated New Elucidation of Colours (1809)
James Sowerby was an artist dedicated to the natural world. It thus comes as no surprise that he was...
5 months ago
James Sowerby was an artist dedicated to the natural world. It thus comes as no surprise that he was also enormously interested in color, especially given the era in which he lived. Born in 1757, he made his professional start as a painter of flowers: a viable career path in...
Seth's Blog
The illusion of concern
When organizations reach scale, digital interactions belie our expectation that someone in charge...
10 months ago
When organizations reach scale, digital interactions belie our expectation that someone in charge actually gives a damn. Once there’s math to do, the CFO does the math. It quickly reveals that no, the search engine shouldn’t bother having a customer support team. That UPS or...
Open Culture
The Rocky Horror Picture Show Is Now a Retro Video Game
The Rocky Horror Picture Show–it started first as a musical stage production in 1973, then became a...
2 months ago
The Rocky Horror Picture Show–it started first as a musical stage production in 1973, then became a cult classic film in 1975. Now, a half-century later, it gets reborn as a retro video game. Scheduled to be released by Halloween, the game features “8‑bit chiptune renditions of...
Seth's Blog
Glib
One of the valid complaints about some AI systems is that they make stuff up, with confidence, and...
5 months ago
One of the valid complaints about some AI systems is that they make stuff up, with confidence, and without sourcing, and then argue when challenged. Unsurprisingly, this sounds a lot like people. We often end up with what we are willing to tolerate. Show your work and ask for...
Seth's Blog
Goals and expectations
[a note to a frustrated friend, just starting out on a long career] There are three reasons that our...
a year ago
[a note to a frustrated friend, just starting out on a long career] There are three reasons that our goals might not be achieved. In order of palatability, they are: Perhaps the goals are too lofty, too based on chance, unlikely for anyone to achieve, surrounded by barriers that...
Open Culture
Watch a Japanese Artisan Hand-Craft a Cello in 6 Months
Cellists unwilling to settle for any but the finest instrument must, sooner or later, make a...
5 months ago
Cellists unwilling to settle for any but the finest instrument must, sooner or later, make a pilgrimage to Cremona — or rather, to the Cremonas. One is, of course, the city in Lombardy that was home to numerous pioneering master luthiers, up to and including Antonio Stradivari....
Seth's Blog
Moving toward ease
“Ease” isn’t the same as “easy.” In fact, they’re often at odds. Easy work is hardly worth our...
2 months ago
“Ease” isn’t the same as “easy.” In fact, they’re often at odds. Easy work is hardly worth our effort. It can deaden us instead of giving us the chance to bring our best selves to life. Ease, on the other hand, is the feeling of doing something worthwhile, and doing it well. When...
Seth's Blog
Getting the word out
“How do you get the word out?” I’ve heard this from presidential candidates, from small business...
8 months ago
“How do you get the word out?” I’ve heard this from presidential candidates, from small business leaders and nonprofits as well. It’s easy to believe that the goal of marketing is to shout, hype, hustle and otherwise promote. It’s tempting to focus on your story as the top of the...
Handprinted - Blog
Meet The Maker: Fiona Black
My name is Fiona Black and I am an artist, folk musician, writer, history geek and lover of stories....
6 months ago
My name is Fiona Black and I am an artist, folk musician, writer, history geek and lover of stories. Home for me is the Highland village of Evanton, just north of Inverness on the shore of the Cromarty Firth. I am happy to have returned to live and create in the Highlands, and I...
Stat Significant
Who's the Greatest Actor in Movie History? A Statistical Analysis
Who's the greatest movie actor of all time, and why?
4 months ago
Who's the greatest movie actor of all time, and why?
Seth's Blog
Looking for a handle
What if your boots don’t have any straps? Bootstrapping is logically impossible. You can’t pick...
11 months ago
What if your boots don’t have any straps? Bootstrapping is logically impossible. You can’t pick yourself up into the air by lifting on your boots, no matter how hard you try, because gravity isn’t just a good idea, it’s the law. But it’s significantly more difficult if your boots...
Seth's Blog
Childish or childlike?
Childlike involves wonder. It’s the ability to see the world with fresh eyes and create magic....
a year ago
Childlike involves wonder. It’s the ability to see the world with fresh eyes and create magic. Childish, on the other hand, is living as if there are no consequences. Over time, we’ve gotten very good at meauring the long and short-term consequences of our actions. And good at...
Handprinted - Blog
Meet the Maker: Rosanna Reade
I am a printmaker and illustrator from Northern Ireland, living and working in Edinburgh. I studied...
over a year ago
I am a printmaker and illustrator from Northern Ireland, living and working in Edinburgh. I studied History of Art at University but have reverted back to creating art rather than talking or writing about it!
As a self-taught printmaker, there is quite a lot of trial and error...
Seth's Blog
The unsurprising confusion about ‘per capita’
A car cut me off on the highway the other day. The car was going nearly 100 mph. Was the car a new...
a year ago
A car cut me off on the highway the other day. The car was going nearly 100 mph. Was the car a new Porsche 911 GT3 or a used Toyota Camry? The thing is, there are more than 1,000 times as many Camrys on the road. But our instinct is to pick the vivid and […]
Open Culture
9‑Year-Old Edward Hopper Draws a Picture on the Back of His 3rd Grade Report Card
In a 2017 press release, the Edward Hopper House announced that it would receive over 1,000...
7 months ago
In a 2017 press release, the Edward Hopper House announced that it would receive over 1,000 artifacts and memorabilia documenting Edward Hopper’s family life and early years. The collection “consists of juvenilia and other materials from the formative years of Hopper’s life and...
Seth's Blog
The nuanced challenge of “The Regular Kind”
In a breakthrough study by Alex Berke at MIT, she and her team showed that labeling a menu item as...
a year ago
In a breakthrough study by Alex Berke at MIT, she and her team showed that labeling a menu item as vegan significantly decreased how many people would order it. In similar conditions, it turns out that more people choose exactly the same item if it doesn’t carry that label. One...
Seth's Blog
Projects and the red zone
Many projects are never finished. There are countless broken and not-quite-fixed cars in garages....
a year ago
Many projects are never finished. There are countless broken and not-quite-fixed cars in garages. There are crafts projects, massive redevelopments and everything in between. They sit unfinished because of bad planning, lack of resources, and most of all, a lack of resolve and...
Open Culture
Édouard Manet Illustrates Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven, in a French Edition Translated by Stephane...
Edgar Allan Poe achieved almost instant fame during his lifetime after the publication of The...
2 weeks ago
Edgar Allan Poe achieved almost instant fame during his lifetime after the publication of The Raven (1845), but he never felt that he received the recognition he deserved. In some respects, he was right. He was, after all, paid only nine dollars for the poem, and he struggled...
Seth's Blog
The community orchestra
There are people who get paid to play the flute or bassoon. There are far more people who volunteer...
a year ago
There are people who get paid to play the flute or bassoon. There are far more people who volunteer to participate in a community orchestra. For many, rehearsals or performances are the high points of their day. The metaphor is powerful, because it teaches us that we all benefit...
Seth's Blog
Useful assumptions for teachers
Not simply in the classroom, but anywhere we hope to inform, inspire or educate: Assume enrollment....
a year ago
Not simply in the classroom, but anywhere we hope to inform, inspire or educate: Assume enrollment. Either someone is committed to learning or they’re not. While many situations place people into a spot where they are compelled to show up (exhibit A: learning arithmetic in grade...
Seth's Blog
It goes without saying
A phrase that’s been showing up recently is, “no pressure.” It usually comes in a pitch letter of...
a year ago
A phrase that’s been showing up recently is, “no pressure.” It usually comes in a pitch letter of some sort, written by someone who isn’t in a position to exert any pressure. So why say it? It’s a bit like, “while supplies last.” And “to be honest…” which is perhaps the most...
Seth's Blog
The long walk
Before buying a house, it makes sense to spend a day on foot, walking around the neighborhood....
3 weeks ago
Before buying a house, it makes sense to spend a day on foot, walking around the neighborhood. You’ll notice things you might have missed in a car. Before starting a business, spend a few shifts working the cash register at a similar establishment. And before going into...
Seth's Blog
Twelve days until the first worldwide strategy meetup
There are now 280 cities being organized. You can find the list and all the details by clicking...
2 months ago
There are now 280 cities being organized. You can find the list and all the details by clicking here. It’s free, and it works better when you become a part of it. Find the others. Connect, inspire and lead. It’s a great excuse to organize some friends and colleagues and have a...
Seth's Blog
Project resistance
In Steven Pressfield’s classic The War of Art, he introduces the idea of Resistance. It’s the...
a year ago
In Steven Pressfield’s classic The War of Art, he introduces the idea of Resistance. It’s the internal force that keeps us from doing our most important creative work. If an instinct, a habit or a feeling gets in the way of the work, it’s Pressfield’s Resistance. Things we would...
Marian's Blog
Arduino-Wetterstation mit Bluetooth, Datalogging und Android-App
Die Wetterdaten für die Wetterstation werden von einem Board gesammelt, das ich für einen...
over a year ago
Die Wetterdaten für die Wetterstation werden von einem Board gesammelt, das ich für einen Schülerwettbewerb (ILC) bekommen und zusammengesetzt habe. Auf dem Board rechnet ein ATxmega128A3U. Temperatur, Luftfeuchte, Luftdruck, Helligkeit, Regenmenge und Windgeschwindigkeit werden...
Handprinted - Blog
Mark Making - Using Resists
Using tools on your plate isn’t the only way you can create marks within an etching. You can also...
a year ago
Using tools on your plate isn’t the only way you can create marks within an etching. You can also use resists to stop the mordant from reaching the surface of your plate. Resists can help achieve more subtle marks and washes, and they can also be applied using a brush to control...
Seth's Blog
Design has a language
And it changes over time. You and I know what to do when we see a revolving door, or to speak...
a year ago
And it changes over time. You and I know what to do when we see a revolving door, or to speak quietly in a library. We have expectations of how the world works and what designers are saying with their work. Here’s a photo of a device with two controls. We’ve been taught our whole...
Seth's Blog
“No photos”
That’s what it said at the florist shop. I’m guessing because ‘taking’ a photo sometimes feels like...
a year ago
That’s what it said at the florist shop. I’m guessing because ‘taking’ a photo sometimes feels like a taking. The creativity, skill and effort that goes into making a distinctive arrangement might feel uncompensated when someone simply takes the work and posts it. This misses the...
Seth's Blog
Tricked (again)
If you knew then what you know now, would you have made the same decision? In the last fifty years,...
a year ago
If you knew then what you know now, would you have made the same decision? In the last fifty years, more than 25,000,000 Americans have died prematurely due to cigarette smoking. Worldwide, it’s significantly higher. That’s fifty times as many U.S. citizens as died in World War...
Seth's Blog
Ride your own bike
I was happily pedaling along on the rail trail when three spandex speedsters blew by me on their...
a year ago
I was happily pedaling along on the rail trail when three spandex speedsters blew by me on their handmade carbon bikes. For a moment, I was disheartened. What’s the point–they’re speedy, I’m not. Then I realize that it’s not a bike race, it’s a bike ride. There is no winning,...
The Great Discontent...
The Legacy of Corita Kent
Corita Kent was an artist with an innovative approach to design and education. She worked in the...
over a year ago
Corita Kent was an artist with an innovative approach to design and education. She worked in the Immaculate Heart College Art Department, above, c. 1955. (Photo/Fred Swartz, courtesy of the Corita Art Center) “Sometimes you can take the whole of the world in, and sometimes you...
Marian's Blog
Quadcopter Lightpainting
Die Fotos wurden mit einem beleuchteten Quadrocopter, einem Stativ und 15 Sekunden Belichtung...
over a year ago
Die Fotos wurden mit einem beleuchteten Quadrocopter, einem Stativ und 15 Sekunden Belichtung aufgenommen.
Bei diesen Fotos stimmte die Einstellung noch nicht, sodass sie zu dunkel sind:
...
Seth's Blog
Patience
It’s worth the most when it’s the most difficult to find.
a year ago
It’s worth the most when it’s the most difficult to find.
Seth's Blog
The empathy of magic
Magicians know where the trapdoors are, what’s up their sleeves and how to hide the ball. And yet,...
a year ago
Magicians know where the trapdoors are, what’s up their sleeves and how to hide the ball. And yet, mechanical skill is just the first step in being actually good at magic. The real skill is in finding the empathy to imagine that someone else might believe. To do the trick for...
Seth's Blog
On to the next thing
Vitally important, rarely taught, easily messed up. In order to go onto the next thing, which we all...
a year ago
Vitally important, rarely taught, easily messed up. In order to go onto the next thing, which we all do (unless you’re still wearing pajamas with feet and taking ballet lessons), we need to walk away from the last thing. Wrap it up, learn from it, leave it in good hands. And we...
Seth's Blog
It’s Mac Day (#40)
A lot shifted when the Apple Macintosh was introduced, and it wasn’t about the RAM, the chips or the...
11 months ago
A lot shifted when the Apple Macintosh was introduced, and it wasn’t about the RAM, the chips or the processor speed. Our world changed forty years ago today. Marketing, technology, commerce, luxury brands, communities, communication and our expectations for how we might spend...
Seth's Blog
Which team?
Culture seeks shortcuts. The oldest shortcut is: “Friend or foe?” If we know the answer to that, a...
a year ago
Culture seeks shortcuts. The oldest shortcut is: “Friend or foe?” If we know the answer to that, a whole bunch of time gets saved, and fear is reduced as well. The labeling goes beyond which team, cadre, tribe or village someone is part of. It extends to the ways we demonstrate...
Open Culture
The Golden Guide to Hallucinogenic Plants: Explore the 1977 Illustrated Guide Created by Harvard’s...
I mean, the idea that you would give a psychedelic—in this case, magic mushrooms or the chemical...
2 weeks ago
I mean, the idea that you would give a psychedelic—in this case, magic mushrooms or the chemical called psilocybin that’s derived from magic mushrooms—to people dying of cancer, people with terminal diagnoses, to help them deal with their — what’s called existential distress. And...
Infinite Scroll
Infinite Scroll Podcast: Worst Tweets ft. Andrew Heaton
It's possible that we might be too online
4 days ago
It's possible that we might be too online
Stat Significant
The Business of the Olympics: Rising Revenues, Diminishing Cultural Reach. A Statistical Analysis
How does the Olympics remain relevant (and make money) in a world full of digital distractions?
5 months ago
How does the Olympics remain relevant (and make money) in a world full of digital distractions?
Open Culture
Hokusai’s The Great Wave off Kanagawa Now Appears on Japanese Banknotes
If you’ve lived or traveled in Japan, you know full well how much of daily life in that...
5 months ago
If you’ve lived or traveled in Japan, you know full well how much of daily life in that cash-intensive society involves the use of thousand-yen bills. Once considered the equivalent of the American ten-spot, the yen’s lately having fallen to its lowest value in decades means that...
Seth's Blog
Giving up vs. quitting
Shrug your shoulders, care less, phone it in. One software company I used to depend on has sort of...
5 months ago
Shrug your shoulders, care less, phone it in. One software company I used to depend on has sort of given up. They have plenty of cash in the bank, but they simply stopped trying. You can feel it in their updates, their customer service, their approach to the future. Giving up is...
Seth's Blog
Captives of memetic desire
How much of what we want, really want, is due to the ideas that culture has given us, and how much...
a year ago
How much of what we want, really want, is due to the ideas that culture has given us, and how much is truly what we need? If memetic desire isn’t making us happy, perhaps we can find some new ideas.
Handprinted - Blog
Meet the Maker: Grace Gillespie
Hello! I’m Grace Gillespie, a printmaker specialising in reduction linocuts and based in Bristol....
a year ago
Hello! I’m Grace Gillespie, a printmaker specialising in reduction linocuts and based in Bristol. Most days you will find me in my teeny home studio, adding layers of colour to my prints, thinking about future designs or working on the never-ending administration side of running...
Marian's Blog
What I learned from building autonomous model race cars for a year
I was part of a university project group that develops autonomous model race cars.
We are a group of...
over a year ago
I was part of a university project group that develops autonomous model race cars.
We are a group of twelve students working on the project in part time for year.
We were provided with a car that meets the requirements for the F1/10th competition.
Even though competing in F1/10th...
Handprinted - Blog
Meet The Maker: Ariana Martin
Hi, I’m Ariana - a pattern designer and printmaker from leafy Sheffield. I create joyful patterns...
11 months ago
Hi, I’m Ariana - a pattern designer and printmaker from leafy Sheffield. I create joyful patterns and illustrations, which are particularly inspired by 20th century design, and I produce my own range of stationery and homewares.
Describe your printmaking process.
Screen...
Seth's Blog
The weird math of halfway
6 times 1/2 doesn’t equal 3. It equals zero. We’re tempted to do a little less than we need to....
9 months ago
6 times 1/2 doesn’t equal 3. It equals zero. We’re tempted to do a little less than we need to. Perhaps we’re busy, with too many options. Perhaps it’s resistance, pushing us to hold a little bit back. Whatever the reason, when we show up just a little, we get zero credit. The...
Seth's Blog
Listening to organizational decline
Great companies and teams often get stale and then fade away. Here’s what we hear as it happens:...
a week ago
Great companies and teams often get stale and then fade away. Here’s what we hear as it happens: “I’m way too important to listen to customers. Send them to the call center.” “It wasn’t a bad idea when we implemented it, so it’s not a bad idea now.” “My boss won’t let me.” “The...
Open Culture
Discover Hannah Arendt’s Syllabus for Her 1974 Course on “Thinking”
If you’ve read one work of Hannah Arendt’s, it’s probably Eichmann in Jerusalem, her account of the...
2 weeks ago
If you’ve read one work of Hannah Arendt’s, it’s probably Eichmann in Jerusalem, her account of the trial of the eponymous Nazi official — and the source of her much-quoted phrase “the banality of evil.” That book came out in 1963, at which time Arendt still had a dozen...
Open Culture
Private Snafu: The World War II Propaganda Cartoons Created by Dr. Seuss, Frank Capra & Mel Blanc
Private Snafu was the U.S. Army’s worst soldier. He was sloppy, lazy and prone to shooting off his...
2 months ago
Private Snafu was the U.S. Army’s worst soldier. He was sloppy, lazy and prone to shooting off his mouth to Nazi agents. And he was hugely popular with his fellow GIs. Private Snafu was, of course, an animated cartoon character designed for the military recruits. He was an...
Seth's Blog
Kash’s garden
She doesn’t grow plants. The plants grow themselves. Her job is to create conditions for the plants...
11 months ago
She doesn’t grow plants. The plants grow themselves. Her job is to create conditions for the plants to grow. The soil, the water, the light, the weeds… these are the conditions. But none of it happens if the plants don’t do the thing they want to do in the first place. This is...
escape the algorithm
I did retail theft at an Apple Store
I hope Jane Appleseed is okay
6 months ago
I hope Jane Appleseed is okay
Seth's Blog
Culture, care and typography
I’ve been fascinated by the way we set type since I did my first packaging forty years ago. It’s a...
a year ago
I’ve been fascinated by the way we set type since I did my first packaging forty years ago. It’s a combination of tech, art, systems, culture and most of all, deciding to put in the effort to get it right. [This is a long post, it would have been a podcast, but it doesn’t really...
Seth's Blog
The paradox of points
Points aren’t just for games. Points are how we keep score and decide what to do next. Pick your...
a month ago
Points aren’t just for games. Points are how we keep score and decide what to do next. Pick your scorekeeping wisely. Too much focus on the score can bend us or break us, pushing us to engage with too much focus and without regard for balance. And our attachment to obvious points...
Seth's Blog
The first person
“I” is first person. “You” is second person. “She” “They” “It” are all third person. So far, so...
a year ago
“I” is first person. “You” is second person. “She” “They” “It” are all third person. So far, so good. But how can ChatGPT use the word “I”? And when we talk about ChatGPT, is it “he” or “she” or “they” or “it”? Because anything that is an “it” shouldn’t be able to say “I”. We […]
Seth's Blog
What do we owe the future?
You are someone’s ancestor. Most immediately, you are the ancestor of the you of tomorrow. That’s...
a month ago
You are someone’s ancestor. Most immediately, you are the ancestor of the you of tomorrow. That’s why we don’t spend every penny in our bank account, why we put leftovers in the fridge, why we earn a degree–it’s a gift to the you of tomorrow. Each of us have a way of thinking...
Seth's Blog
“I changed my mind”
Who is “I” and how does that “I” have the power to change the mind in question? What actually...
a month ago
Who is “I” and how does that “I” have the power to change the mind in question? What actually happens is this: If you are brave enough to have your mind changed, experience can do that. But it’s rarely as conscious an intentional act as we give ourselves credit for.
Open Culture
The Longest Drivable Distance in the World: Discover the Ultimate Road Trip
No matter what country we live in, we’ve all fantasized about taking our own great American road...
3 months ago
No matter what country we live in, we’ve all fantasized about taking our own great American road trip, considering a variety of the infinitely many possible routes. The most obvious would be driving between Los Angeles and New York, a distance of 2,800 miles that would take a bit...
Handprinted - Blog
Meet the Maker: Lucy Gell
Hi, I'm Lucy. I studied graphic design and illustration at Staffordshire University and later began...
a year ago
Hi, I'm Lucy. I studied graphic design and illustration at Staffordshire University and later began a career in animation. During this fun and exciting time I was responsible for fabricating the Martians in the Tim Burton film ‘Mars Attacks’. I made many foam latex and silicone...
Open Culture
Beautiful 19th Century Maps of Dante’s Divine Comedy: Inferno, Purgatory, Paradise & More
Even the least religious among us speak, at least on occasion, of the circles of hell. When we do...
2 weeks ago
Even the least religious among us speak, at least on occasion, of the circles of hell. When we do so, we may or may not be thinking of where the concept originated: Dante’s Divina Commedia, or Divine Comedy. We each imagine the circles in our own way — usually filling them with...
Open Culture
How the 13th-Century Sufi Poet Rumi Became One of the World’s Most Popular Writers
The Middle East is hardly the world’s most harmonious region, and it only gets more fractious if you...
6 months ago
The Middle East is hardly the world’s most harmonious region, and it only gets more fractious if you add in South Asia and the Mediterranean. But there’s one thing on which many residents of that wide geographical span can agree: Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī. One might at first...
Open Culture
B.B. King Changes a Broken Guitar String Mid-Song at Farm Aid, and Doesn’t Miss a Beat (1985)
The scene is Farm Aid, 1985, attended by a crowd of 80,000 people. The song is “How Blue Can You...
a month ago
The scene is Farm Aid, 1985, attended by a crowd of 80,000 people. The song is “How Blue Can You Get.” And the key moment comes at the 3:10 mark, when the blues legend B.B. King breaks a guitar string, then manages to replace it before the song finishes minutes later. All the...
Seth's Blog
Pavlonian coincidence
There are two kinds of coincidences. The first is the one that we often talk about. It’s the...
a year ago
There are two kinds of coincidences. The first is the one that we often talk about. It’s the make-believe magic of two things occurring that we didn’t expect to occur. When you and your long-lost college roommate end up randomly sharing adjacent bowling lanes when you’re...
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