Weekend Reading #137

What we're thinking.Apart from all the action around the Fed and Evergrande this past week, we have been thinking (as we do) about virtual worlds. Have a read of the newsletter this week which was real fun to pontificate. During the week we came across this incredible statistic about Axie Infinity (if you don’t know what it is by now then you have been either under a rock or not reading our newsletters).  D90 and D30 retention are essentially the same. This means that almost everyone who is still playing Axie after 30 days, is still playing after 90. pic.twitter.com/yACyXUpjK0— The Jiho🦇🔊 (@Jihoz_Axie) September 22, 2021This shows the retention rates for players and what's absolutely mind boggling is that the 30-day retention is almost the same as the 90-day retention. This means players who were playing after 30 days almost never stop. This is unheard of. One of the key criticisms we see of the game consistently (and mainly from people who were born in the developed world) is that the game is not fun, so they don’t see it sustaining. What they tend to miss is that the players are not there because it's fun. It is kinda fun but yes it can be repetitive. But it is a MASSIVE upgrade from a 3 hour commute each way to work on a factory floor. It is a financial AND quality of life upgrade for almost all the players. Is this how a “metaverse” brews?  What we're thinking. Lately I have been deciding whether or not to purchase an e-scooter and finally made the decision to just go for it. Some friends that I have spoken to on the topic have describe them as an absolute game changer for zipping around town with ease meanwhile whilst others I’ve spoken to, namely parents, have described them as a death trap. Having done a number of test rides across different models and several hours of online reading, I finally came to the conclusion that the Xiaomi 1S would be the one for me; good price point, lightweight… (at least lighter than the others) and yet a respectable range/top speed. With the service station for them just around the corner from our office, it seems that it’ll be a great way for me to get across town throughout the day. As such a new purchase, I’ve only had the chance to take it out on a couple of quick rides so inevitably I’ll have to report back in the weeks to come! HSWhat we're reading.Following the 20-year anniversary of 9/11, I watched a couple of programmes and documentaries that prompted personal memories of that historic day. As a Brit, with little affiliation to America, I've always looked back through the rear-view mirror on the events of that Tuesday morning (or the end of the school day in Bath, where I was at the time) through the lens of an outsider. Of course, at the time, I was aware of the gravitas and significance, but, it goes without saying, that I never felt its impact like an American must have. As a consequence, I always struggled to piece together the immense impact that day has had on our world ever since. In trying to get to grips with this thought a little more, I read over the last fortnight a fascinating, often beautiful book from a writer from The New Yorker, Evan Osnos, who recently put out, Wildland: The Making of America's Fury. The books charts the period between 9/11/01 and 6/1/21, when the, so-called, US Capitol Insurrection took place. It tells America’s story between these two dates. As an outsider, but a proud member of a globalised world, I found this book one of the most interesting and enlightening I’ve read in a long while. It gave me a better perspective of the events that have shaped the world over the last two decades, helping me to frame my thinking about how an American-led world, inexorably and inevitably, largely created the world we live in today. In short, this book helped me to think like an American, and in trying to understand how the world has changed in the 20 years since that Tuesday afternoon, that felt important. EJPThis feature piece on the potential of psychedelic medicine appeared in Newsweek of all places. It’s a really good piece and gives a great overview of where we are (and where we have been) in terms of research and treatments as well as some stories of people who have participated in the trials to great success. As regular readers will know we are hopeful that in time this could prove to be one of the most impactful medical treatments (should everything be approved safely of course) as it focuses on mental illnesses that as we speak have very few effective alternatives. Well worth a read. Anyone who loves tennis will have been blown away by the story of Emma Raducanu, who quite literally came from nowhere to win the US Open a few weeks back. She was a qualifier and went through qualifying and the entire main tournament without dropping a set. This fantastic piece by Ian Leslie covers her story and asks all the questions about hard work versus natural talent and nature vs nurture. His conclusion (and mine) is that Raducanu is an exceptional talent, and her journey has just begun.  Related to this was also a piece by David Epstein, author of Range and The Sports Gene (both of which I have recommended highly here before) in which he also discusses Raducanu in the context of generalists and specialists from an early age. Another superb bit of writing. I also really enjoyed this article in The Atlantic about Star Wars and more specifically, The Mandalorian, which the writer, Spencer Kornhaber, thinks is the natural heir to the original Star Wars films. He speaks to the genius of John Favreau and the hope that the show continues to deliver the magic that so far in a world with content thrown at us every minute, has given many great joy.  And finally another beautiful piece of writing from Ali Montag (thanks to Jawad Mian for the link). With all the fuss about metaverses she reminds us of the beauty of the real world and with a title like “Your grandmother is not in the metaverse” she gets everyone’s attention. Slow it all down and read this for something a bit more spiritual. DCWhat we're watching. When the wife’s away, the husband will... watch rubbish television. That adage certainly rings true in my house where, this week, with my better half in the south of France on a work trip, I decided to dig deep into the Now TV archive to find a series that I’d completely forgotten was as both addictive and satisfying as it was 15 years ago. Entourage tells the story of Hollywood actor, Vincent Chase, and his group of friends who live the absolute high life in Los Angeles as Vince takes over the movie world. The show is a lot of fun, the characters, especially Vince’s brother, Johnny Drama, and agent, Ari Gold, are great, and its half hour episodes fly by fast, so quick, in fact, that it feels like you’ve barely slumped onto the sofa after a day of work and an evening of childcare before you’ve watched 3 episodes and it’s past your bedtime. It’s TV that won’t change the world, but it will entertain, and it makes you dream of Hollywood, which is no bad thing on an autumnal evening in northwest London. EJPFor anyone looking for a bit of action and twists and turns, I turned to “Without Remorse” - a 2021 American action thriller film based on the 1993 novel of the same name by Tom Clancy. An elite Navy SEAL goes on a path to avenge his wife's murder only to find himself inside of a larger conspiracy. It's no secret that I enjoy army and action related movies. For the sports fans among us, the next 3 days will have us glued to the screens for this year's edition of the Ryder Cup. Will Pádraig Harrington be able to captain the reigning champions to another victory? Time will tell. I have a feeling the US team take advantage of home soil and take the Ryder Cup back... On the rugby front, let's not go there. For most of Bok fans, we are in the “usual” transformation period in the year where players are tired from the season and the results show it. I hold no hope for any upsets against the ALL BLACKS this weekend. DKWhat we're listening to.I’ve spent a lot of time listening to Billie Eilish, maybe to try and understand what it is that the younger generations love so much about her. My conclusion is that she (and her songwriter brother) is a musical genius. I’ve been listening to a track called Happier Than Ever, which is exactly the opposite of what you think it is. The lyrics are clever, the pace starts really slow and listlessly and ramps up like an approaching herd of elephants. It's just so clever, beautiful and DGAF all at the same time. Well worth a listen! DC

This is the hundred-and-thirty-seventh weekly edition of our newsletter, Weekend Reading, sent out on Saturday 25th September 2021.

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*****

What we're thinking.

Apart from all the action around the Fed and Evergrande this past week, we have been thinking (as we do) about virtual worlds. Have a read of the newsletter this week which was real fun to pontificate. During the week we came across this incredible statistic about Axie Infinity (if you don’t know what it is by now then you have been either under a rock or not reading our newsletters).  

D90 and D30 retention are essentially the same.
This means that almost everyone who is still playing Axie after 30 days, is still playing after 90. pic.twitter.com/yACyXUpjK0

— The Jiho🦇🔊 (@Jihoz_Axie) September 22, 2021

This shows the retention rates for players and what's absolutely mind boggling is that the 30-day retention is almost the same as the 90-day retention. This means players who were playing after 30 days almost never stop. This is unheard of. One of the key criticisms we see of the game consistently (and mainly from people who were born in the developed world) is that the game is not fun, so they don’t see it sustaining. What they tend to miss is that the players are not there because it's fun. It is kinda fun but yes it can be repetitive. But it is a MASSIVE upgrade from a 3 hour commute each way to work on a factory floor. It is a financial AND quality of life upgrade for almost all the players. Is this how a “metaverse” brews? 

What we're thinking.
Lately I have been deciding whether or not to purchase an e-scooter and finally made the decision to just go for it. Some friends that I have spoken to on the topic have describe them as an absolute game changer for zipping around town with ease meanwhile whilst others I’ve spoken to, namely parents, have described them as a death trap. Having done a number of test rides across different models and several hours of online reading, I finally came to the conclusion that the Xiaomi 1S would be the one for me; good price point, lightweight… (at least lighter than the others) and yet a respectable range/top speed. With the service station for them just around the corner from our office, it seems that it’ll be a great way for me to get across town throughout the day. As such a new purchase, I’ve only had the chance to take it out on a couple of quick rides so inevitably I’ll have to report back in the weeks to come! HS

What we're reading.

Following the 20-year anniversary of 9/11, I watched a couple of programmes and documentaries that prompted personal memories of that historic day. As a Brit, with little affiliation to America, I've always looked back through the rear-view mirror on the events of that Tuesday morning (or the end of the school day in Bath, where I was at the time) through the lens of an outsider. Of course, at the time, I was aware of the gravitas and significance, but, it goes without saying, that I never felt its impact like an American must have. As a consequence, I always struggled to piece together the immense impact that day has had on our world ever since. In trying to get to grips with this thought a little more, I read over the last fortnight a fascinating, often beautiful book from a writer from The New Yorker, Evan Osnos, who recently put out, Wildland: The Making of America's Fury. The books charts the period between 9/11/01 and 6/1/21, when the, so-called, US Capitol Insurrection took place. It tells America’s story between these two dates. As an outsider, but a proud member of a globalised world, I found this book one of the most interesting and enlightening I’ve read in a long while. It gave me a better perspective of the events that have shaped the world over the last two decades, helping me to frame my thinking about how an American-led world, inexorably and inevitably, largely created the world we live in today. In short, this book helped me to think like an American, and in trying to understand how the world has changed in the 20 years since that Tuesday afternoon, that felt important. EJP

This feature piece on the potential of psychedelic medicine appeared in Newsweek of all places. It’s a really good piece and gives a great overview of where we are (and where we have been) in terms of research and treatments as well as some stories of people who have participated in the trials to great success. As regular readers will know we are hopeful that in time this could prove to be one of the most impactful medical treatments (should everything be approved safely of course) as it focuses on mental illnesses that as we speak have very few effective alternatives. Well worth a read. 

Anyone who loves tennis will have been blown away by the story of Emma Raducanu, who quite literally came from nowhere to win the US Open a few weeks back. She was a qualifier and went through qualifying and the entire main tournament without dropping a set. This fantastic piece by Ian Leslie covers her story and asks all the questions about hard work versus natural talent and nature vs nurture. His conclusion (and mine) is that Raducanu is an exceptional talent, and her journey has just begun.  

Related to this was also a piece by David Epstein, author of Range and The Sports Gene (both of which I have recommended highly here before) in which he also discusses Raducanu in the context of generalists and specialists from an early age. Another superb bit of writing. I also really enjoyed this article in The Atlantic about Star Wars and more specifically, The Mandalorian, which the writer, Spencer Kornhaber, thinks is the natural heir to the original Star Wars films. He speaks to the genius of John Favreau and the hope that the show continues to deliver the magic that so far in a world with content thrown at us every minute, has given many great joy.  

And finally another beautiful piece of writing from Ali Montag (thanks to Jawad Mian for the link). With all the fuss about metaverses she reminds us of the beauty of the real world and with a title like “Your grandmother is not in the metaverse” she gets everyone’s attention. Slow it all down and read this for something a bit more spiritual. DC

What we're watching.

When the wife’s away, the husband will... watch rubbish television. That adage certainly rings true in my house where, this week, with my better half in the south of France on a work trip, I decided to dig deep into the Now TV archive to find a series that I’d completely forgotten was as both addictive and satisfying as it was 15 years ago. Entourage tells the story of Hollywood actor, Vincent Chase, and his group of friends who live the absolute high life in Los Angeles as Vince takes over the movie world. The show is a lot of fun, the characters, especially Vince’s brother, Johnny Drama, and agent, Ari Gold, are great, and its half hour episodes fly by fast, so quick, in fact, that it feels like you’ve barely slumped onto the sofa after a day of work and an evening of childcare before you’ve watched 3 episodes and it’s past your bedtime. It’s TV that won’t change the world, but it will entertain, and it makes you dream of Hollywood, which is no bad thing on an autumnal evening in northwest London. EJP

For anyone looking for a bit of action and twists and turns, I turned to “Without Remorse” - a 2021 American action thriller film based on the 1993 novel of the same name by Tom Clancy. An elite Navy SEAL goes on a path to avenge his wife's murder only to find himself inside of a larger conspiracy. It's no secret that I enjoy army and action related movies. 

For the sports fans among us, the next 3 days will have us glued to the screens for this year's edition of the Ryder Cup. Will Pádraig Harrington be able to captain the reigning champions to another victory? Time will tell. I have a feeling the US team take advantage of home soil and take the Ryder Cup back... 

On the rugby front, let's not go there. For most of Bok fans, we are in the “usual” transformation period in the year where players are tired from the season and the results show it. I hold no hope for any upsets against the ALL BLACKS this weekend. DK

What we're listening to.

I’ve spent a lot of time listening to Billie Eilish, maybe to try and understand what it is that the younger generations love so much about her. My conclusion is that she (and her songwriter brother) is a musical genius. I’ve been listening to a track called Happier Than Ever, which is exactly the opposite of what you think it is. The lyrics are clever, the pace starts really slow and listlessly and ramps up like an approaching herd of elephants. It's just so clever, beautiful and DGAF all at the same time. Well worth a listen! DC

Edward Playfair