Kickoff For March 11, 2019
Welcome to this week’s edition of the Monday Kickoff, a collection of what I’ve found interesting, informative, and insightful on the web over the last seven days.
This week, I’ve done something I try to avoid: I’ve doubled up on articles from certain publications. Why? What I’ve read stuck with me and I couldn’t wait to share it with you.
And speaking of sharing, if you haven’t already done so, why not subscribe to my weekly newsletter? Or if you have subscribed, please feel free to recommend it to a friend or a colleague.
Let’s get this Monday started with these links:
Science
The Brain Maps Out Ideas and Memories Like Spaces, wherein we learn about grid cells, which help our brains map space and aid us in navigating better and improve our spatial awareness, and which may help us learn faster, process information better, and more.
The Magnetic North Pole’s Mysterious Journey Across the Arctic, wherein we’re shown how and why Earth’s magnetic pole is shifting, and the effect that shift can have.
Foundations Built for a General Theory of Neural Networks, wherein we discover that teaching a machine neural network is a trial and error process, and how researchers are trying to make it less so.
Writing
My Year of Writing Anonymously, wherein Stacey D’Erasmo descirbes how writing under a pseudonym changed her as a writer, while she explains why people write under false names.
American Ghostwriter, wherein journalist Sean Patrick Cooper delves into the new world of vanity ghostwriting, and examines the effect that mini literary industries like that will have on writing and journalism.
Is Line Editing Dead?, whherein we’re introduced to a type of editing that seems to be fading away, and learn how it can be the most important edit a writer gets.
Odds and Ends
Exxon Had Some Insane Visions for Saving the Planet, wherein Asaf Shalev briefly examines the handful of ideas that the petroleum company concocted in the late 1990s to combat climate change (something the firm was officially skeptical about).
The Plot Against the Principality of Sealand, wherein we learn a bit about the history of the (in)famous micronation, about some machinations against it, and about the government in exile (and global scams) that those machinations spawned.
The Mysterious Life (and Death) of Africa’s Oldest Trees, wherein we’re introduced to the life-giving and revered baobab tree, how they seem to be dying, and how that loss will effect the people who rely upon and revere those trees.
And that’s it for this Monday. Come back in seven days for another set of links to start off your week.