Weekend Reading

  • Sharia Does Not Mean What Newt Gingrich Thinks It Means
    One country that officially endorses the Muslim legal system is one of the politician’s favorites—Israel.
    I’m no expert, but then I don’t need to be. Senior politicians need to be better than this.
  • Falling for sleep
    In Evelyn De Morgan’s numinous painting, Night and Sleep (1878), Nyx, the mighty Greek goddess of night, hovers across a dusky sky with her beloved son Hypnos, the sweet-natured god of sleep.
    I’m increasingly focusing on my sleep, and this article backs up my lay hypothesis that bad sleep = bad Gordon.
  • Researchers have finally discovered the key to naturally stripping sugar from all our foods
    The global sugar-industrial complex is about to face a serious challenge—from a mushroom. A young start-up based out of Aurora, Colorado is poised to disrupt how sugar is used in packaged goods.
    Yeah but who wants a mushroom flavoured Mars bar?!
  • The perfect breakfast for people with depression
    Antidepressants and therapy, while both effective, are not the only means available to combat depression. Exercise has been described as a “wonder drug” for reducing symptoms, walking in nature reduces negative thoughts, and meditation can have a powerful positive effect.
    Breakfasters of the world rejoice! In other news, I’m now depressed that I’m hungry again…
  • Inside The Playlist Factory
    When he’s choosing your music for you, Carl Chery, 37, is in Culver City, California, sitting at his desk in an office with no signage, trying to decide whether Drake and Future’s “Jumpman” (jumpman, jumpman, jumpman) has jumped the shark.
    Curated playlists intrigue me, are they adding value, or just adding volume?
  • How Mr. Robot’s creator took the reins of season two
    It’s a strange coincidence, hearing two different cast members of Mr. Robot describe Sam Esmail in these near-identically enigmatic terms.
    Not started season 2, yet, but if you haven’t, season 1 is well worth a watch! GEEK-TASTIC!
  • ‘Hope is a​n embrace of the unknown​’: Rebecca Solnit on living in dark times
    We may be living through times of unprecedented change, but in uncertainty lies the power to influence the future. Now is not the time to despair, but to act. Your opponents would love you to believe that it’s hopeless, that you have no power, that there’s no reason to act, that you can’t win.
    More and more this simple message compels me, it’s easy to hide away but that is how fear wins.
  • Looking Back at Marvel’s Wonderfully Weird Comic Adaptation of the First Star Wars Movie
    Marvel recently released the first issue of its The Force Awakens comic adaptation, and it is weird. It is weird in 2016 to see a straight adaptation of a movie in comic form, months after the movie came out.
    Star Wars wasn’t a thing when they did this, it’s weird to look at it through this telescope.
  • The science of serving draft beer at 35,000 feet
    Some airlines will stop at nothing to lure travelers on their planes. They’ve managed to fit sleeping pods, private apartments, and even an in-flight bar on board. But one nut they haven’t cracked? Serving draft beer high in the sky.
    File under: Good idea, bad idea.
  • Derided at the time as “slacktivism,” the social-media campaign has had surprisingly long-lasting benefits.
    Out of nowhere, a huge fad sweeps the country. It dominates social media and leads to a blizzard of think pieces, which are followed almost immediately by a backlash, as critics warn of the fad’s baleful consequences. Eventually, people get bored and move on to something new.
    Did you do the ice bucket challenge?
  • Repeat After Me: Cold Does Not Increase Odds of Catching Cold
    I’ve become somewhat known for medical myth-busting (having been a co-author of three books on the subject), so a fairly large number of emails sent to me are from people with articles or studies that they think prove me wrong.
    Yes, yes, yes, Yes, YES!! *achooooo* dammit!
  • Fred saga : ‘A small town with a big heart’
    Officers responded to a call on July 9 concerning a pitched tent near a Gordon State College parking area not knowing this call would once again be one to bring Barnesville’s community together and deem the city as one of compassion.
    More stories like this place. MOST people are nice.
  • Reign, Supreme
    Supreme is the most influential streetwear brand in the world. You might have seen its white-on-red rectangular logo on Drake, Kanye West, or Tyler the Creator. Or noticed the lines that form outside its stores on Thursdays.
    I include this article purely because I was so blissfully unaware of this in any way, shapre or form.
  • Beneath An Ugly Outside, Marred Fruit May Pack More Nutrition
    When orchardist Eliza Greenman walks through a field of apple trees and gazes upon a pocked array of blemished and buckled fruits — scarred from fighting fungus, heat and pests — she feels a little thrill of joy.
    Hooray for ugly ducklings! Tasty tasty ducklings…
  • The new science of cute
    On 14 April 2016, a 6.2-magnitude earthquake hit Japan’s southernmost island of Kyushu, toppling buildings and sending residents rushing into the streets. Hundreds of aftershocks – one an even stronger 7.
    I think we can all agree that Japan wins at ‘cute’, but who knew they put so much work into it.
  • Master Plan, Part Deux
    The first master plan that I wrote 10 years ago is now in the final stages of completion. It wasn’t all that complicated and basically consisted of: The reason we had to start off with step 1 was that it was all I could afford to do with what I made from PayPal.
    Elon Musk – history will either view him as a saviour or a madman. Either way, applaudable!
  • The Bicycle Problem That Nearly Broke Mathematics
    Seven bikes lean against the wall of Jim Papadopoulos’s basement in Boston, Massachusetts. Their paint is scratched, their tyres flat. The handmade frame that he got as a wedding present is coated in fine dust. “I got rid of most of my research bikes when I moved,” he says.
    Ahhh mathematics and physics, they boggle my brain! *falls over*
  • First Lady Michelle Obama Carpool Karaoke
    James Corden’s White House tour takes an unthinkable turn when First Lady Michelle Obama joins him for a drive around the grounds singing Stevie Wonder and Beyonce. Surprise guest Missy Elliott drops in to sing “This Is For My Girls.”
    Not quite as fun as some of the others (yes, this is a guilty pleasure, check out Adele’s!) but still, First Lady rapping?
  • I’m With The Banned
    This is a story about how trolls took the wheel of the clown car of modern politics. It’s a story about the insider traders of the attention economy. It’s a story about fear and loathing and Donald Trump and you and me.
    Horribly fascinating. But mostly horrible.
  • Why Do We Haggle For Cars?
    Even if you’ve never purchased a car, you know the script. You stroll onto the car lot feigning indifference. The salesman sizes you up and asks what you’re looking for. You point to a red sedan. And then the dance begins.
    Not sure I should post this one, when I start charging for these posts I just KNOW I’ll get haggled down…