Quote of the day
Keep only those things that speak to your heart. Then take the plunge and discard all the rest. By doing this, you can reset your life and embark on a new lifestyle.
~MARIE KONDO, author of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing
THE BRAIN
How does consuming glucose affect your memory?, Big Think | Tweet
It makes logical sense that sugar could cause hyperactivity due to the fact that glucose is the brain’s number one source of fuel.
NEUROSCIENCE
The neurological pleasures of fast fashion, The Atlantic | Tweet
Research shows that the brain finds pleasure in the pursuit of inexpensive things, and high-street chains and online retailers sites alike are cashing in.
→The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing
HAPPINESS
The one word key to happiness, Barking up the wrong tree | Tweet
We all want to be happy. That’s obvious. But how much would people pay for a moment of happiness? Researchers did a survey — and the answer was about $80.
ECONOMICS
The pricing paradox: when diamonds aren’t on tap, FT | Tweet
‘Diamonds are costly because we desire them. But what if that isn’t true? What if they are desirable because they are costly?’
→The Undercover Economist Strikes Back
SOCIAL MEDIA
Social sharing habits: New research reveals what people like to share, Social Media Examiner | Tweet
Are you curious about which type of social content gets the most shares? Are social shares part of how you measure social marketing return on investment (ROI)? Do you wonder which social channels’ users share most frequently?
→The Art of Social Media: Power Tips for Power Users
BOOKS
Houellebecq in the Flesh, The NY Review of books | Tweet
For a few moments near the beginning of The Kidnapping of Michel Houellebecq, the novelist (starring as himself) sits glumly passive with a strip of duct tape over his mouth while his three kidnappers get ready to spirit him out of his apartment
→The Kidnapping of Michel Houellebecq: The Novelization
PHILOSOPHY
Once and future sins, Aeon | Tweet
In 2115, when our descendants look back at our society, what will they condemn as our greatest moral failing?
→Immortality: The Quest to Live Forever and How It Drives Civilization
ENTERTAINMENT
The shock of the pretty, London Review of Books | Tweet
Reflections on watching seven seasons of Mad Men. A triumph of style. But things that matter are deliberately swamped by things that look good. The serious issues of the 1960s — racism, sexism, homophobia, war — are made to seem an organic part of America’s growing-up.
WRITING
My uneasy relationship with metaphors, Darcy Pattison | Tweet
There’s an apocryphal story about a writer who worked hard all day. In the morning, he inserted a semi-colon; in the afternoon, he removed a semi-colon. This morning, I inserted a metaphor; this afternoon, I removed the metaphor.
1st-person POV vs 3rd-person POV: Which POV is right for your book?, Helping Writers Become Authors | Tweet
Few decisions are more crucial to your story than that of point of view (or POV). This is a multi-faceted decision, involving the questions: Who’s going to narrate? How many narrators will you have? What the narrator’s voice sound like? And, Will it be a 1st-person POV or a 3rd-person POV?
