Here’s your weekly dose of timeless ideas to sharpen your mind, make smarter decisions, and live better.
Quotes
I.
Feeling sorry for yourself, and your present condition, is not only a waste of energy but the worst habit you could possibly have.
― Dale Carnegie
II.
Experience is making the same mistake over and over again, only with greater confidence.
― Michael Lewis
III.
Recognize that ultimate success comes from opportunistic, bold moves which, by definition, cannot be planned.
― Bryan Burrough
Ideas
I.
The risk models developed by private firms, whether hedge funds, rating agencies, or banks, are not reliable guides to the future. Even when these models are applied by government regulators, their application is flawed, because they look to past market history as received truth. But markets, we must emphasize, are imperfect; they are the agglomeration of myriad investors, most of whom usually act rationally – usually, as history has shown, but not always. Even perfectly logical investors will panic, as will theatergoers at the mere possibility of fire, so as not to be last to the exit; this threat of contagion renders financial markets inherently unstable.
Roger Lowenstein in When Genius Failed: The Rise and Fall of Long-Term Capital Management
II.
Paradoxically, it is in resolving what sometimes seems an intolerable opposition between parental or professional responsibilities and personal exploration that people often find out more fully who they are. They come to know themselves moment by moment by the decisions they make, trying to reconcile their care for others with their responsibility to themselves. Maturity comes with that curious mixture of taking responsibility for our prior choices while being as imaginative as possible in finding ways to continue our journeys.
Carol S. Pearson in Hero Within: Six Archetypes We Live By
III.
The most difficult subjects can be explained to the most slow-witted man if he has not formed any idea of them already; but the simplest thing cannot be made clear to the most intelligent man if he is firmly persuaded that he knows already, without a shadow of doubt, what is laid before him.
Leo Tolstoy
Articles Worth Reading
I.
Why Are Gamers So Much Better Than Scientists at Catching Fraud?
Stuart Ritchie | The Atlantic
Does it strike you as odd that so many people tuned in to hear about a doctored speedrun of a children’s video game, while barely a ripple was made—even among scientists—by the discovery of more than 80 fake scientific papers? The entire purpose of the scientific endeavor is brought into question if its gatekeepers—the reviewers and editors and others who are supposed to be the custodians of scientific probity—are so often presented with evidence of fraud and so often fail to take action.
II.
The Revival of Stoicism
Shayla Love | Vice
Over the last 10 years, Stoicism has gone from a topic confined to philosophy lectures to one consumed by the masses. Sometimes referred to as Modern Stoicism, Stoic ideas and texts are now found in dedicated podcasts, newsletters, Instagram accounts, self-help books, personal coaching, and in-person events, like the well-attended annual event Stoicon.
III.
IQ tests can’t measure it, but ‘cognitive flexibility’ is key to learning and creativity
Barbara Jacquelyn Sahakian, Christelle Langley & Victoria Leong | The Conversation
Cognitive flexibility is essential for society to flourish. It can help maximise the potential of individuals to create innovative ideas and creative inventions. Ultimately, it is such qualities we need to solve the big challenges of today, including global warming, preservation of the natural world, clean and sustainable energy and food security.