The author says there are unwritten principles beneath everything, and these principles move people along like a current: You spend years trying to learn new stuff but then look back and realize that maybe like 10 big ideas truly changed how you think and drive most of what you believe. This is related toContinue reading “The big ideas that shape your reality”
Author Archives: Melville
Five incredible artists
Art is a meritocracy. It amazes me how good some people are. Here are some of my favorites: Otto Schmidt Rudy Nebres Phillippe Druillet Xi Zhang Hiroshi Yoshida
What do executives do?
Executives set culture, and that’s important enough. An executive with 8,000 indirect reports and 2000 hours of work in a year can afford to spend, at most, 15 minutes per year per person in their reporting hierarchy… even if they work on nothing else. That job seems impossible. How can anyone make any important decisionContinue reading “What do executives do?”
Why we draw
Because it’s basic to humans. Some like it and are drawn to it more. That’s what I gained from this terrific article, which tells the story of the illustrator Robert Fawcett and ties it into what motivates the artist. I think every artist that has spent time developing their work has a specific look tooContinue reading “Why we draw”
What large trends help us understand the world today?
I visited Europe for the first time when I was twenty-eight, and left with an observation: The remains of World War II were everywhere. It seemed to me, as an American, that studying World War II would be a productive way to understand the modern world. If you don’t spend a little time understanding WorldContinue reading “What large trends help us understand the world today?”
How to recognize a werewolf
Werewolves are elusive creatures, hard to spot. Lycanthropy is a kind of melancholy making the affected persons wander at night-time, visiting the tombs and the deserts like wolves Fortunately, these instructions from the Therapeutike Methodos, written in 1340, explain the tell-tale signs. Learn how to spot a werewolf.
Should you worry about your work surviving 200 years from now?
No, because doing so is counterproductive. But I like the way this author puts it, in an essay about having perspective on one’s contributions: At some point in life, we come to realize that we exist in a context. If you are a scientist, you might make a small but useful contribution in your subfield,Continue reading “Should you worry about your work surviving 200 years from now?”
Five RPG links of the day
Disco Elysium RPG. Navigate the secrets of Revachol West. A review of Storm King’s Thunder. Classic D&D Modules Ranked. Everyone has their favorite list like this, this one is mine. Tom Moldvay comes out on top, with a lot of modules. Best supplements for city design. (should include heartwizardgames.com!) The business of Dungeons & DragonsContinue reading “Five RPG links of the day”
Predicting Gen X behavior
There are no shortages of movies about Baby Boomers passing through midlife crises and getting older. It’s practically a genre. But what about Gen X? In 2013, Salon predicted how Gen X would handle midlife crisis: For many of us, who waited to prepare things just so before we started a family, the idea ofContinue reading “Predicting Gen X behavior”
A review of “The Secret History”
A lovingly-crafted review of The Secret History, a book about a group of intellectuals bound by a secret. I liked the book a lot because the characters were believable, there is a touch of the weird, and a heavy dose of the remote. From the review: The Secret History is my personal Platonic ideal ofContinue reading “A review of “The Secret History””
Basement Whatever 