Oddly enough, it’s been about three months since the last 3IT, and three major events that occurred during that time have occupied my attention and time. But the dust has cleared, so to speak, and I look forward once again to connecting with you regularly.
I also realized that I had unthinkingly over-engineered 3IT. Each version became a bit prisoner to a specific them versus supplying some interesting things to people who are themselves interesting and interested in learning more. So moving forward, there will be less stress on cohesion and more serving our collective curiosity.
1) What we don’t know about how our brain works has filled bookshelves. In this short article, author and psychology professor Lisa Feldman Barrett dispels three myths that I’ve certainly believed over the years. Short story: Our gray cells constitute a multi-tasking, networked, always-on, holistic system, one that is not separate from the rest of your body, nor organized into discrete departments like a Wes Anderson cut-away of a 60’s era corporate headquarters. To what end this information? A better understanding of how our brain works can help us develop a deeper connection to our thoughts, and thus to consciousness itself.
2) Ever since I read Kim Stanley Robinson’s 2312, in which people can chose to fuse quantum devices to their brains1, I’ve tried to grasp what a quantum computer actual is. Let’s just say it’s been a long road. Scott Aaronson, writing for Quanta Magazine, does a nice job of explaining why it’s hard to understand2 and what quantum devices are not. Unfortunately, they won’t allow us to crack the meaning of the universe…nor will they develop consciousness and turn us into memes. There’s still a ton of potential to developing deeper programming, but we seem to be a ways away from that…or on the cusp of an unforeseen watershed discovery.
3) In my humble opinion, thinking about how the brain operates and how we translate that into thoughts—or musing about the nature of quantum computing w/out a CS degree and some serious theoretical flexibility—require a strong cup of Joe. Though the fable of coffee’s rise (and potential role in both political and philosophical revolutions) have been told many times, I still find it interesting how so many of us got hooked on the stuff. Michael Pollan has recently written about the nature of addiction, and here’s a fun 20-odd minutes of him talking with Rachel Humphrey of The Guardian about coffee. (Extra credit for the long read here.)
BONUS LINKS!!!
B1) Discussion of NFTs3 must happen soon in 3IT. Along similar lines (meaning “Um…that’s not REALLY a thing is it?”) I stumbled across the phenomena of digital fashion, as in clothes that do not physically exist. Given the increasing virtual nature of how people connect, it does seem rather obvious in retrospect…but still.
B2) Gaming, gamification, game-like, etc. Playing vids has swallowed the world. But can playing/watching actually replicate 3D/real-space learning? (My household discusses this quite often, along with “Why reading a book IS/ISN’T better than listening to one”.) Bonus Link Number 2 will not answer this question, but it does present a surprisingly informative explanation of the Cambrian Explosion via game-speak, in the video “When Earth Was In Beta”.
B3) Most of us…may all of us…struggle with focus.4 I’ve read a little bit about it, and like most things there’s no single answer or cause or even way to consider why our brains lead us astray so easily. But as tantalizing as that topic may be, it’s equally interesting to simply go the other way, and accept that wandering attention, procrastination and doodling represent necessary cognitive functions5 As an example, read Rubi Gory interview Rob Walker and notice how much time he spends between or adjacent to his primary task of writing aka “strategic goofing off”. And also check out their newsletters, Iridescent Ordinary and The Art of Noticing, respectively.
B4) Here’s help getting your post-Labor Day week started from all-around all-star Anderson Paak. [NSFW]
B5) More help, this time from the British Jazz Duo Yussef Kamaal.
This choice being on of so many he envisions in this fascinating novel.
You need some pretty deep math and an understanding of theoretical computer science.
Non Fungible Tokens, which seem to be an inevitable market artifact fueled by pandemic boredom.
For those of us working from home, it’s an hourly occurrence.
If only my kids read my newsletter…