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Comfort Food for the Thinking Class: The Great Intellectual Stagnation
https://www.joanwestenberg.com/comfort-food-for-the-thinking-class-the-great-intellectual-stagnation/

"The #neweconomy of #ideas is much more directly dependent on attention, which means much more directly incentivized toward whatever captures #attention… A confident hot take generates more #engagement than a careful analysis that acknowledges #uncertainty. The old system rewarded people who could produce a good book every few years; the new system rewards people who can produce a constant stream of content that keeps audiences #engaged."

https://www.joanwestenberg.com/comfort-food-for-the-thinking-class-the-great-intellectual-stagnation/

“These are the arena rock bands of ideas: acts who had one or two genuine hits, who now tour the same material endlessly, who perform to audiences of business travelers and conference attendees who want to hear the classics one more time. And we seem to have no punk rock waiting in the wings to tear them down. No new movement of rough, vital, angry thinkers ready to call bullshit on the whole enterprise. Our intellectual underground, such as it is, consists of Substack, a platform funded by some of the most establishment venture capital imaginable, and podcasts that run for three hours and manage to say less than a single well-constructed paragraph.”
https://www.joanwestenberg.com/comfort-food-for-the-thinking-class-the-great-intellectual-stagnation/

Grounded intellectual work, when it happens, if it ever happens again, is uncomfortable. It tells you things you don't want to hear, makes arguments that threaten positions you hold, points out problems you'd rather not see.

The public intellectuals of the past, at their best, did this.

Our current crop // slop does the opposite.

https://www.joanwestenberg.com/comfort-food-for-the-thinking-class-the-great-intellectual-stagnation/

Grounded intellectual work, when it happens, if it ever happens again, is uncomfortable. It tells you things you don't want to hear, makes arguments that threaten positions you hold, points out problems you'd rather not see.

The public intellectuals of the past, at their best, did this.

Our current crop // slop does the opposite.

https://www.joanwestenberg.com/comfort-food-for-the-thinking-class-the-great-intellectual-stagnation/

Grounded intellectual work, when it happens, if it ever happens again, is uncomfortable. It tells you things you don't want to hear, makes arguments that threaten positions you hold, points out problems you'd rather not see.

The public intellectuals of the past, at their best, did this.

Our current crop // slop does the opposite.

https://www.joanwestenberg.com/comfort-food-for-the-thinking-class-the-great-intellectual-stagnation/

Comfort Food for the Thinking Class: The Great Intellectual Stagnation https://www.joanwestenberg.com/comfort-food-for-the-thinking-class-the-great-intellectual-stagnation/

Das ist eine exzellente Analyse von @Daojoan , die man lesen sollte. Die Gedanken sind auch auf den deutschen Markt der Intelligenz anwendbar, auch wenn die publizistische Landschaft etwas unterschiedlich ist.

https://www.joanwestenberg.com/comfort-food-for-the-thinking-class-the-great-intellectual-stagnation/

"The #neweconomy of #ideas is much more directly dependent on attention, which means much more directly incentivized toward whatever captures #attention… A confident hot take generates more #engagement than a careful analysis that acknowledges #uncertainty. The old system rewarded people who could produce a good book every few years; the new system rewards people who can produce a constant stream of content that keeps audiences #engaged."

https://www.joanwestenberg.com/comfort-food-for-the-thinking-class-the-great-intellectual-stagnation/

"The #neweconomy of #ideas is much more directly dependent on attention, which means much more directly incentivized toward whatever captures #attention… A confident hot take generates more #engagement than a careful analysis that acknowledges #uncertainty. The old system rewarded people who could produce a good book every few years; the new system rewards people who can produce a constant stream of content that keeps audiences #engaged."

https://www.joanwestenberg.com/comfort-food-for-the-thinking-class-the-great-intellectual-stagnation/

Highly amused by the stories of companies using agentic AI chatbots to run their internal company stores, only for their employees to immediately Bugs Bunny the chatbot into giving them free stuff https://www.aiweirdness.com/when-a-chatbot-runs-your-store/

Highly amused by the stories of companies using agentic AI chatbots to run their internal company stores, only for their employees to immediately Bugs Bunny the chatbot into giving them free stuff https://www.aiweirdness.com/when-a-chatbot-runs-your-store/

"Large language models are basically doing improv."
— Janelle Shane
https://www.aiweirdness.com/when-a-chatbot-runs-your-store/

"Large language models are basically doing improv."
— Janelle Shane
https://www.aiweirdness.com/when-a-chatbot-runs-your-store/

Highly amused by the stories of companies using agentic AI chatbots to run their internal company stores, only for their employees to immediately Bugs Bunny the chatbot into giving them free stuff https://www.aiweirdness.com/when-a-chatbot-runs-your-store/

Highly amused by the stories of companies using agentic AI chatbots to run their internal company stores, only for their employees to immediately Bugs Bunny the chatbot into giving them free stuff https://www.aiweirdness.com/when-a-chatbot-runs-your-store/

Highly amused by the stories of companies using agentic AI chatbots to run their internal company stores, only for their employees to immediately Bugs Bunny the chatbot into giving them free stuff https://www.aiweirdness.com/when-a-chatbot-runs-your-store/

When a chatbot runs your store
https://www.aiweirdness.com/when-a-chatbot-runs-your-store/

Highly amused by the stories of companies using agentic AI chatbots to run their internal company stores, only for their employees to immediately Bugs Bunny the chatbot into giving them free stuff https://www.aiweirdness.com/when-a-chatbot-runs-your-store/

When a chatbot runs your store https://www.aiweirdness.com/when-a-chatbot-runs-your-store/

I became a software engineer because writing code is fun. Thinking through hard problems, designing elegant solutions, seeing the things you’ve built working for the first time… these moments are all deeply satisfying, so why in the world would I ever surrender them to AI?

https://davidcel.is/articles/writing-code-is-fun

I became a software engineer because writing code is fun. Thinking through hard problems, designing elegant solutions, seeing the things you’ve built working for the first time… these moments are all deeply satisfying, so why in the world would I ever surrender them to AI?

https://davidcel.is/articles/writing-code-is-fun

I became a software engineer because writing code is fun. Thinking through hard problems, designing elegant solutions, seeing the things you’ve built working for the first time… these moments are all deeply satisfying, so why in the world would I ever surrender them to AI?

https://davidcel.is/articles/writing-code-is-fun

I became a software engineer because writing code is fun. Thinking through hard problems, designing elegant solutions, seeing the things you’ve built working for the first time… these moments are all deeply satisfying, so why in the world would I ever surrender them to AI?

https://davidcel.is/articles/writing-code-is-fun

I became a software engineer because writing code is fun. Thinking through hard problems, designing elegant solutions, seeing the things you’ve built working for the first time… these moments are all deeply satisfying, so why in the world would I ever surrender them to AI?

https://davidcel.is/articles/writing-code-is-fun

I became a software engineer because writing code is fun. Thinking through hard problems, designing elegant solutions, seeing the things you’ve built working for the first time… these moments are all deeply satisfying, so why in the world would I ever surrender them to AI?

https://davidcel.is/articles/writing-code-is-fun

I became a software engineer because writing code is fun. Thinking through hard problems, designing elegant solutions, seeing the things you’ve built working for the first time… these moments are all deeply satisfying, so why in the world would I ever surrender them to AI?

https://davidcel.is/articles/writing-code-is-fun

I became a software engineer because writing code is fun. Thinking through hard problems, designing elegant solutions, seeing the things you’ve built working for the first time… these moments are all deeply satisfying, so why in the world would I ever surrender them to AI?

https://davidcel.is/articles/writing-code-is-fun

I became a software engineer because writing code is fun. Thinking through hard problems, designing elegant solutions, seeing the things you’ve built working for the first time… these moments are all deeply satisfying, so why in the world would I ever surrender them to AI?

https://davidcel.is/articles/writing-code-is-fun

I became a software engineer because writing code is fun. Thinking through hard problems, designing elegant solutions, seeing the things you’ve built working for the first time… these moments are all deeply satisfying, so why in the world would I ever surrender them to AI?

https://davidcel.is/articles/writing-code-is-fun

They're not "waiting to return to the surface," they're waiting for the planet to be blasted into pebbles to that they can reach another star-system #panspermia #intraterrestrials #aeonophiles

https://aeon.co/essays/the-discovery-of-aeonophiles-expands-our-definition-of-life

They're not "waiting to return to the surface," they're waiting for the planet to be blasted into pebbles to that they can reach another star-system #panspermia #intraterrestrials #aeonophiles

https://aeon.co/essays/the-discovery-of-aeonophiles-expands-our-definition-of-life

"If we encounter a dormant microbe in soil in winter, we can presume that it’s holding out for summer. What is the equivalent situation for a deeply buried marine sediment organism waiting for thousands to millions of years?"
https://aeon.co/essays/the-discovery-of-aeonophiles-expands-our-definition-of-life

"If we encounter a dormant microbe in soil in winter, we can presume that it’s holding out for summer. What is the equivalent situation for a deeply buried marine sediment organism waiting for thousands to millions of years?"
https://aeon.co/essays/the-discovery-of-aeonophiles-expands-our-definition-of-life

They're not "waiting to return to the surface," they're waiting for the planet to be blasted into pebbles to that they can reach another star-system #panspermia #intraterrestrials #aeonophiles

https://aeon.co/essays/the-discovery-of-aeonophiles-expands-our-definition-of-life

“Intraterrestrial” organisms, theoretically immortal, found deep in the earth’s crust.

https://aeon.co/essays/the-discovery-of-aeonophiles-expands-our-definition-of-life

https://aeon.co/essays/the-discovery-of-aeonophiles-expands-our-definition-of-life

They're not "waiting to return to the surface," they're waiting for the planet to be blasted into pebbles to that they can reach another star-system #panspermia #intraterrestrials #aeonophiles

https://aeon.co/essays/the-discovery-of-aeonophiles-expands-our-definition-of-life

"These vessels represent the first moment in history when people chose to portray the botanical world as a subject worthy of artistic attention," the authors note. "It reflects a cognitive shift tied to village life and a growing awareness of symmetry and aesthetics."

“This research contributes to the growing field of #ethnomathematics, which explores how mathematical ideas are expressed through cultural practices and artistic traditions.”

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251216081937.htm

#pottery #archaeology #art

“This research contributes to the growing field of #ethnomathematics, which explores how mathematical ideas are expressed through cultural practices and artistic traditions.”

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251216081937.htm

#pottery #archaeology #art

"These vessels represent the first moment in history when people chose to portray the botanical world as a subject worthy of artistic attention," the authors note. "It reflects a cognitive shift tied to village life and a growing awareness of symmetry and aesthetics."

“This research contributes to the growing field of #ethnomathematics, which explores how mathematical ideas are expressed through cultural practices and artistic traditions.”

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251216081937.htm

#pottery #archaeology #art

"These vessels represent the first moment in history when people chose to portray the botanical world as a subject worthy of artistic attention," the authors note. "It reflects a cognitive shift tied to village life and a growing awareness of symmetry and aesthetics."

“This research contributes to the growing field of #ethnomathematics, which explores how mathematical ideas are expressed through cultural practices and artistic traditions.”

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251216081937.htm

#pottery #archaeology #art

"These vessels represent the first moment in history when people chose to portray the botanical world as a subject worthy of artistic attention," the authors note. "It reflects a cognitive shift tied to village life and a growing awareness of symmetry and aesthetics."

“This research contributes to the growing field of #ethnomathematics, which explores how mathematical ideas are expressed through cultural practices and artistic traditions.”

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251216081937.htm

#pottery #archaeology #art

"These vessels represent the first moment in history when people chose to portray the botanical world as a subject worthy of artistic attention," the authors note. "It reflects a cognitive shift tied to village life and a growing awareness of symmetry and aesthetics."

“This research contributes to the growing field of #ethnomathematics, which explores how mathematical ideas are expressed through cultural practices and artistic traditions.”

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251216081937.htm

#pottery #archaeology #art

"These vessels represent the first moment in history when people chose to portray the botanical world as a subject worthy of artistic attention," the authors note. "It reflects a cognitive shift tied to village life and a growing awareness of symmetry and aesthetics."

“This research contributes to the growing field of #ethnomathematics, which explores how mathematical ideas are expressed through cultural practices and artistic traditions.”

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251216081937.htm

#pottery #archaeology #art

"These vessels represent the first moment in history when people chose to portray the botanical world as a subject worthy of artistic attention," the authors note. "It reflects a cognitive shift tied to village life and a growing awareness of symmetry and aesthetics."

“This research contributes to the growing field of #ethnomathematics, which explores how mathematical ideas are expressed through cultural practices and artistic traditions.”

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251216081937.htm

#pottery #archaeology #art

"These vessels represent the first moment in history when people chose to portray the botanical world as a subject worthy of artistic attention," the authors note. "It reflects a cognitive shift tied to village life and a growing awareness of symmetry and aesthetics."

“This research contributes to the growing field of #ethnomathematics, which explores how mathematical ideas are expressed through cultural practices and artistic traditions.”

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251216081937.htm

#pottery #archaeology #art

"These vessels represent the first moment in history when people chose to portray the botanical world as a subject worthy of artistic attention," the authors note. "It reflects a cognitive shift tied to village life and a growing awareness of symmetry and aesthetics."

“This research contributes to the growing field of #ethnomathematics, which explores how mathematical ideas are expressed through cultural practices and artistic traditions.”

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251216081937.htm

#pottery #archaeology #art

On reading Proust vs experiencing the world intermediated by screens (even when you’re not on one). “Your attention is, on a foundational level, all you have. This is why it feels worse than bad to waste it. It feels annihilating.” https://www.blackbirdspyplane.com/p/this-life-gives-you-nothing

On reading Proust vs experiencing the world intermediated by screens (even when you’re not on one). “Your attention is, on a foundational level, all you have. This is why it feels worse than bad to waste it. It feels annihilating.”

https://www.blackbirdspyplane.com/p/this-life-gives-you-nothing

On reading Proust vs experiencing the world intermediated by screens (even when you’re not on one). “Your attention is, on a foundational level, all you have. This is why it feels worse than bad to waste it. It feels annihilating.” https://www.blackbirdspyplane.com/p/this-life-gives-you-nothing

On reading Proust vs experiencing the world intermediated by screens (even when you’re not on one). “Your attention is, on a foundational level, all you have. This is why it feels worse than bad to waste it. It feels annihilating.” https://www.blackbirdspyplane.com/p/this-life-gives-you-nothing