2022 Summer Link Review
I want to give more attention to this site, but my work, gym, and pickleball schedules are unforgiving. I won’t be doing any extensive research and analysis, so sharing a few reads and listens from the month is my compromise. I've considered something like this for a while and almost did it for July, but I couldn't decide on a format. The one below is an experiment with brevity. For September’s, I might include more summary or analysis.
Bilkent: Medieval Europe (500-1500) | CosmoLearning History
David E. Thornton & Bilkent University
In my YouTube recommended. This lecture series is very good. As the title suggests, Dr. Thornton is lecturing on Medieval Europe. I have not finished the course, but I felt that this playlist deserved a spot. You'll find insights on historical and archaeological research methods, but also an entertaining presentation on foundational developments in European history.
The material is more digestible compared to Dr. Freedman's Yale lectures, owing largely to Thornton's breaks to engage the class.
The Early Middle Ages, 284--1000 with Paul Freedman
Paul Freedman & Yale University
In my YouTube recommended. I enjoyed these even more than the Bilkent lectures. Juxtaposed against Dr. Thornton's lecture style, this series is more cerebral and to the point. Dr. Freedman doesn't engage students nearly as much, opening up time for information and analysis.
It is much shorter, however. He begins with Rome during its third century troubles – events that preface many of Europe's future developments and institutions, and ends with the last of the Carolingians and the Viking Age – convenient culminations that leave you with the foundation of modern Europe.
Slaughterhouse-Five
Kurt Vonnegut
I was strolling through a bookstore in King of Prussia and I came across this book. My friend was hyping Vonnegut a few months back, so I made the investment and was more than pleased.
Vonnegut uses a natural voice to tell the story of World War II veteran. This veteran, Billy Pilgrim, is not honorable or heroic, inspiring or invidious, but a guy embattled in a life that he never wanted. While the structure of the story ought to jerk you around, Vonnegut does an excellent job of keeping you attuned to the bigger picture. You hardly notice the radical jumps between plot lines, but looking back some are as deluded as mid-age Billy Pilgrim. So it goes.
Skills Plateau Because Of Decay And Interference
Scott Alexander (Astral Codex Ten)
In my Feedly feed. ACX presents two hypotheses for not seeing indefinite improvement in any skill or knowledge domain: decay and interference.
Decay suggests that we only retain information for a certain period, so the rate at which we learn and the rate at which we forget will eventually taper off.
Interference says that similar information is harder to retain. The more detailed and nuanced, the more difficult to distinguish. Scott uses 20 Spanish words and 20 Chinese words as an example of two very different groups that can be remembered simultaneously, but 40 of one is much harder. It crossed my mind that this could be an example of decay in action: the nuances fade first and the coarser description remains.
Also, there is a digit memorization strategy called the Dominic System; I will keep this in mind as I forget the gate code for the umpteenth time.
A Cyclic Theory of Subcultures
Scott Alexander (Astral Codex Ten)
In my Feedly feed. Here's an paraphrase of the process:
"People start a movement around a weird thing, with no hope of payoff, for sheer love of the thing."
"The zeitgeist changes. The thing catches on. Because it’s so new, there is a vast frontier, waiting to be explored."
"... a talented status-hungry young person who joins the movement is likely to expect status but not get it. The frontier is closed; there’s no virgin territory to go homesteading in. The only source of status is to seize someone else’s - ie to start a fight."
"At some point, everyone realizes you can’t get easy status from the subculture anymore. The people who want easy status stop joining, and the movement stabilizes in a low-growth state."
About summarizes my experiences with obscure, trending, belabored, or antiquated topics. On that note, I am still seeking advice for my shitcoin investments.
"All manpower, no metal" - Ukrainian mobilisation, equipment shortages, and training
Perun
In my YouTube feed. Managing military operations from recruitment and planning through deployment and resupply is a complex duty. Ukraine was extremely unprepared for this war on the equipment front and its early mobilization was chaotic. Yet they were still able to soften Russia's early blows. Perun draws on dozens of reports and data sources to describe the state of Ukraine's military personnel and equipment.
Running Neural Networks on Meshes of Light
Asianometry
In my YouTube feed. The energy cost of sending electrons through metals is extremely high. This makes computation a fairly inefficient process. Asianometry (with research assistance by Alex Sludds) reports on a novel, photon-based strategy for performing matrix computations.
China's Shifting Economy and Politics with Kevin Rudd
Kevin Rudd & University of California
In my YouTube recommended. Dr. Rudd casts a wide net to contextualize and conceptualize China's domestic affairs for foreign observers of the upcoming 20th National Congress. The CCP's Mandate of Heaven with the Chinese population is ostensibly undergirded by economic growth. Or so it was. Rudd discusses China's economic and geopolitical realities, Xi's rhetoric, Party dynamics, and more.
Worryingly, there is no discussion of Winnie the Poo.