Five Links for January 2024
Every month, I share the most mind-expanding links to read/watch/listen. If you find these interesting, please do share with your friends.
Here are five links worth reading…
The Case Against Travel by Agnes Callard
An argument we might all be more open to after experiencing an airport around the holidays … Especially in an age of online booking and Instagram, travel shouldn’t be considered an achievement or a hobby.
An Extraordinary Introduction to the Birth of Israel and the Arab-Israeli Conflict (with Haviv Rettig Gur) by EconTalk Podcast
A much broader perspective on the foundation of Israel that goes well beyond 1948 and puts Zionism in a wider historical context in Europe.
Bonus (Listen): Sam Lessin of SlowVC: The End of Factory-Farmed Unicorns on World of DaaS pod
Everyone is afraid to make predictions, except Sam Lessin. Sam gives an in depth breakdown of the last five years of VC, and where it’s heading in the next five.
listen on Spotify / Apple Podcasts or watch on YouTube
Why The Age of American Progress Ended by Derek Thompson
“Invention alone can’t change the world; what matters is what happens next.” The US has more Nobel prizes for science than most of Europe combined, but if there were a Nobel prize for deployment and adoption of new technologies, we certainly wouldn’t be the leading recipients.
The Secret Life of the 500+ Cables That Run the Internet by Stephen Shankland
Some of the facts about the several hundred cables that connect the global internet are unbelievable: They’re only about the width of a garden hose, and they carry 99% of intercontinental internet traffic.
Bonus (Reflective): What do you actually want? by Raffi Grinberg
For the season of goal setting, a practical, replicable exercise to understand more about what you actually want and why, with grounding in modern psychology.
Bonus (Listen): Brian Halligan: Founder of Hubspot on Navigating Startup Boards on World of DaaS Pod
Brian is an amazing founder and one of the most articulate out there. We discuss some of his insights on healthy startup boards vs failing ones and what he sees for the future of marketing under AI.
More reading links at https://twitter.com/AurenReads
Books I read last month:
Same as Ever by Morgan Housel (highly recommend)
Poor Charlie’s Almanack by Charlie Munger
Invert … always Invert
HT: John Collison, Chris Barber, Blas Moros
Morality by Jonathan Sacks
HT: David Wolpe
Advil consumption by age.
How accurate is this?
Auren Hoffman is CEO of SafeGraph (geospatial data on physical places) and GP at Flex Capital ($200M Series A and B VC firm). Engage on Twitter: @auren
and please share Five Links with your friends.
would love your suggestions of other things to read!