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Welcome to our second “Life” letter. Another great batch of articles. Ever wondered whether multi-tasking works? Or how Ernest Hemingway would teach you to write? Or even whether smart drugs work? Well, you’ll find answers in our curated list.
On the tech side, we have something on the deep tech trends you may have missed, how Facebook could be spying on your through iPhones and a new electric car that’s worth looking at.
Then on a lighter note, we list the 15 most expensive homes on sale in the world, what gifts to buy and the ten best translated novels of the decade.
And we have much, much more.
Enjoy!
Bilal
Busy Is A Choice, Productive Is A Skill (Seth’s Blog) Multitasking worked for no one. Don’t try to look busy and you will be amazed at how much more you can get done.
Ernest Hemingway’s Top 5 Tips for Writing Well (Copy Blogger) Write in short, positive sentences and use vigorous English.
Podcast #559: How to Handle Difficult Conversations (Art of manliness) Don’t avoid having them, confront the issue and never assume you are right.
The Average Age of Successful Entrepreneurs Is Actually 45 (Wharton) The average age of founders of US companies who went on to hire at least one employee is 42 – and to achieve high growth – 45.
How to Prepare Your Relationship for Military Deployment (The Gottman Institute) Doing as much homework as you possible can about the Deployment and bonding with people in the same community may help relieve the stress over having your S.O. on their mission.
What Was It Like to Be Edited by Barack Obama? (Literary Hub) Former speechwriter Adam Frankel details his experience being edited by one of the most recognized orators of our time, in a fascinating interview that shows just how breezy Obama was with his staff.
The Coach Behind Many of the World’s Greatest Runners (Ozy) A little-known coach in Ethiopia stands behind most of Ethiopia’s record-breaking runners. His philosophy is structured around the athletes maintaining excitement in the training.
Even Endurance Athletes Need to Sprint (Outside) The properties that improve sprint performance, like stiffer tendons, longer bundles of muscle fibres, and better neuromuscular signalling, are also associated with more efficient running at slower speeds.
The Stressful Discovery of Type A Personality (Scientific American) Type A personalities, or those time-pressured, hostile and always in a joyless strive have more risk of cardiovascular disease than those who smoke or are overweight.
Do Smart Drugs Work? (Gizmodo) Working out, a healthy diet and sleeping are so last year – the new way to supposedly look after your brain is pills with long, scary names, such as dextroamphetamine. But they have side-effects, notably they are addictive.
I Tried to Hack My Insomnia With Technology. Here’s What Worked. (MIT Technology Review) After trying out wearable devices, sunrise simulation alarm clocks and “unwinding” robots, insomnia veteran Charlotte Jee says CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) is the best non-medical solution to her sleeping problems.
It’s Official: Mercedes-Benz Is Developing an Electric G-Wagen (Robb Report) Six months after the debut of its first electric SUV, the ECQ, Mercedes Benz is releasing an electrified version of its biggest and heftiest vehicle, the beloved G-Wagen.
Deep Tech Trends 2019 (Slide Share) See how home fitness is killing the gym, smart appliances are transforming homes and VR is used in therapy.
E-Conomy SEA 2019: Swipe Up And To The Right: Southeast Asia’s $100 Billion Internet Economy (Think with Google) In 2019, SEA’s internet economy reached $100bn for the first time and growth will continue surging, especially in digital payments.
What Would an AI Text Generator Do with The First Lines of Literature’s Greatest Novels? (LitHub) An AI text generator tries to create the openings of some famous novels. Some are surprisingly good.
Facebook Is Secretly Using Your iPhone’s Camera as You Scroll Your Feed (The next web) Facebook now comes back to justify it as a bug – but will people really buy that given Facebook’s track record with user privacy?
Facebook Machine Learning Aims to Modify Faces, Hands And… Outfits (TechCrunch) Facebook uses its machine learning expertise to help people preserve anonymity and give out constructive #OOTD (outfit of the day) ideas based on user data.
AT&T Exec Predicted the Smartphone in 1953 (Kottke) An entertaining snippet of a 1953 newspaper, describing the future of the phone.
Google Maps Is Becoming A Location-Ad Juggernaut (Digiday) Google maps now promotes local businesses en route when you travel from point A to point B.
Dali’s Paintings Weren’t His Only Surrealist Works. He Also Created These Tarot Cards (Robb Report) A James Bond producer once commissioned Salvador Dali to create customised surrealist packs of cards as props in the spy movie Live and Let Die.
15 of the Most Expensive Homes in the World for Sale (Robb Report) As bankers’ bonus season is just around the corner, why not take a look at your potential future home away from home?
Incredible Video Shows What We Would See if Planets Replaced The Moon (Business Insider) A resurfaced Youtube video shows an incredible animation of different planets rotating around the Earth in the place of the moon, published by amateur astronomer Nicholas Holmes.
The World’s Largest Starbucks Is a Coffee Theme Park in the Middle of Chicago (Eater Chicago) Even for non-Starbucks fans, it’s hard not to appreciate the scale and excess of this new Reserve Roastery venue in Chicago. It offers five floors and 35,000 square feet of all the limited-time favourites you could possibly want.
GQ Best Stuff 2019: 62 Luxury Gifts for Men (GQ) A wide-ranging list of fancy (read: overpriced) year-end gifts including a barware collection from Tiffany & Co.
Only in Tokyo: Two Chefs, 24 Hours, The Ultimate Food City (Cool Hunting) Two Australian chefs reflect on their food exploration and cultural experience through Tokyo.
The 10 Best Translated Novels of the Decade (Lit Hub) Amongst an ocean of translated literature works, Emily Temple hand-picks 10 specific versions that accurately express the rationale and emotions behind the native languages in which these works were written.
The Most Expensive Watch Ever: Inside the Record-Obliterating $31 Million Patek Philippe (GQ) Having 20 you’ll-never-use-in-a-lifetime complications within one single watch seems to justify the huge price tag attached to the latest child of the Geneva watchmaking giant.