• Billionaires Mapped, Shenzhen Trees & Confessions of a Data Scientists

    All the World’s Billionaires in a Single Map Where do these people live, how big are their fortunes, and what does it tell us about the global economy? Shenzhen is building a mile-long superhighway for trees What happens when you combine skyscraper sensibilities with the High Line? Confessions of a data scientist: ‘Marketers don’t know…


  • Saskia Sassen, Gig Workers & Human Migration

    In Contrast #33 The Global City – Saskia Sassen Saskia Sassen is known for her analysis of globalization and human migration. Amongst her books are: A Sociology of Globalization, and Cities in a World Economy. Gig workers are forced to educate themselves to survive Independent knowledge workers will find themselves under increasing pressure to upskill and build…


  • Benjamin Franklin, Robert Greene & Data Science

     Franklin as the social network genius of his time? Yes, says one Stanford scholar Stanford American historian Caroline Winterer examined thousands of Benjamin Franklin’s letters as part of her research on the 18th century, which she argues was the first age of extensive social networks. 4 Strategies For Becoming a Master Persuader The following four…


  • Digital Serfdom, Rural Creative Class & Science Frontiers

    We’re living in digital serfdom — trading privacy for convenience This is the era of the digital nomad, and consequently, it’s also the era of the digital serf. The masses of serfs in the feudal period in Europe provided the labor, and the owners of property reaped the profits. Today, the labor is largely data, and…


  • PWC 2018 Global Innovation, Diversity in Tech & Rage Rooms

    The 2018 Global Innovation 1000 study Investigating trends at the world’s 1000 largest corporate R&D spenders. Who Works In Tech? A look into the workforce since 2014. Rage rooms: Why recreational smashing could be good for your mental health Rage rooms, also known as smash rooms or anger rooms, have opened in cities around the…


  • Bill Gates Toilet, Open Source Hollywood & Self Taught in Silicon Valley

    Why the world deserves a better toilet The toilets on display here in Beijing might one day replace a piece of technology that’s been with us for ages—and they could save millions of lives in the process. Mattermark Founder On Being Self-Taught In Silicon Valley Investing, writing, and engineering might seem like fundamentally different skills,…


  • Manhattan, Hippocampus & Islamic Golden Age

    How Manhattan Became a Rich Ghost Town A rich ghost town sounds like a capitalist paradox. So what the heck is going on? Behind the darkened windows, there’s a deeper story about money and land, with implications for the future of cities and the rest of the United States. Neuroscientists Create Most Detailed Map Ever…


  • 200 Years of Elections (Map), NYC Skyline & LATAM Coffee Empire

    200 Years of Elections to the House of Representatives, Mapped This deliciously wonky interactive map is a reminder for midterm voters that, when it comes to electoral politics, “deviation from the norm is the norm.” 100 Years of Change in New York’s Skyline: 1920 – 2020 Manhattan is known for its iconic skyline, brimming with…


  • Crazy Rich Asia, Hoax Academia & Europe’s Capital Cities

    Crazy Rich Asia The film also stars Singapore, a place unfamiliar to most Westerners. For some, the real shocker in the movie will be just how crazy rich parts of Asia have become. What an Audacious Hoax Reveals About Academia Three scholars wrote 20 fake papers using fashionable jargon to argue for ridiculous conclusions. Their…


  • GDP Happiness, Black Scientists and Nobel & Age-Friendly City

    If happiness is going to become the new GDP, we need to get better at measuring it Move over GDP: happiness is angling to become the metric of the future. Nation states have begun to compete in global happiness rankings and plan policy according to statistics of well-being. No Black Scientist Has Ever Won a…