In episode 208, Charis and Eugene discuss the case of an NYU professor's contract termination after the school received a number of student complaints. They talk about teaching methodologies and some of the ways schools are lacking.
At N.Y.U., Students Were Failing Organic Chemistry. Who Was to Blame? by Stephanie Saul
In episode 207, Eugene highlights the significant role of urban planning in setting the “energy” of a city. One short question to get at the heart of this: How is usage mixed in a city?
In episode 206, Charis talks about being fascinated by the idea of someone sitting down to watch an 857 hour movie and whether that experience uniquely gives a more tangible understanding of capitalism.
I Watched An 857-Hour Movie To Encounter Capitalism’s Extremes by Ashley Darrow
In episode 205, Eugene and Charis talk about a Blackbird Spyplane banger on trends and their various designations and why they’re so fascinating to follow.
In episode #204, Charis finds extreme hilarity in people selling fake sacrament of penance on depop and the latest frontier for what the creator economy can sell.
In this episode, Eugene and Charis highlight the impact of Instagram’s prioritization of video content for certain genres of artists. Is one’s ability to market themselves part of the job and “art” of being an artist?
Links
A New Refrain From Artists: We ‘Almost Gave Up on Instagram’ By Kalley Huang
In our first recording after a long-ass hiatus, Eugene and Charis update us on what they’ve been up to, what they’ve missed, and what’s to come with Making It Up!
Charis and Eugene talk about NFTs, collectability, anti-capitalist capitalists, missing counterculture, and individualism.
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Links:
The NFT Collector | Richard Kim in Right Click Save
Hope Beyond Rugged Individualism by Tara McMullin
14 Warning Signs That You Are Living in a Society Without a Counterculture by Ted Gioia
The young, rich, anti-capitalist capitalists by Whizy Kim
Eugene and Charis talk about efficiency, over-optimization, having slack (not the service) or intentionally holding your feet to the fire.
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Charis and Eugene catch each other up about the last three months of their lives, discuss the move to Twitch, and overcome tech troubles.
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Eugene and Charis discuss Buy Nothing groups/movement and what a change in platform means for their participants. They also talk about Kevin LaBuz’s article “Grandma’s Pierogis” about how corporate culture is created and knowledge passed on.
00:04:47 Buy nothing
00:20:49 Pierogis
#107 - Grandma’s Pierogies from Below the Line by Kevin LaBuz
Buy Nothing exploded on Facebook — now it wants a platform of its own by Mia Sato
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Charis and Eugene talk about the attitude of the team behind the Italian luxury fashion brand Brunello Cucinelli toward growth and family business. They also discuss the conviction of Elizabeth Holmes, former founder and CEO of the health tech company Theranos, in a trial that ended in January.
00:04:19 Brunello Cucinelli
00:23:47 Theranos
Brunello Cucinelli says 2021 growth spurt “not rational” by Luke Leitch
The Dropout, a podcast hosted by Rebecca Jarvis produced by ABC News
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Eugene and Charis discuss what it means to pay close attention to anything. They also talk about the benefits of tribalism.
00:10:22 Attention
00:30:37 Tribalism
attending to the other by Jasmine Wang
The Myth of Tribalism by Dominic Packer and Jay Van Bavel
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Charis and Eugene talk about key moments in culture in 2021 and reflect on significant changes that will carry forwards.
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Eugene and Charis discuss the new Substack started by the authors George Saunders for readers to closely read and consider short stories. They also talk about concerns raised regarding the future of web3—mainly the possibility that it will become an extension of web2 with a new veneer.
00:03:05 Story club
00:23:17 Web3
Story Club with George Saunders
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Charis and Eugene talk about The Krause House, a Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) that has the longterm goal of purchasing an NBA team. They also discuss the decreasing audibility of dialogue in movies and the many reasons why that’s the case.
00:03:30 Krause House
00:27:36 Movie sound
Buy your Ticket to Krause House
Here's Why Movie Dialogue Has Gotten More Difficult To Understand (And Three Ways To Fix It) by Ben Pearson
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Eugene and Charis discuss an essay by Sherry Ansari published in Culture study on how Peloton provides fitness with a “Health At Every Ability” attitude. They also talk about the waning UK soft power and how soft power is growing for other countries.
00:06:18 Peloton
00:23:01 Soft power
What It Means to Ride at Any Ability by Sherry Ansari
Harrods CEO on the threat to London’s cultural status by Sarah Shannon
What makes a cultural superpower? by Noah Smith
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Charis and Eugene talk about the allure of better sleep fueling an industry of sleep-related products. They also discuss how a rise in online shopping in combination with pandemic factors has lead to supply chain issues.
00:07:09 Sleep
00:24:43 Supply chain
Nice Try! by Curbed, Season 2: Interior, Mattress episode
How Our Online Shopping Obsession Choked the Supply Chain by Cam Wolf
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Eugene and Charis discuss Facebook’s bet on the metaverse and what the allure of the metaverse is. They also discuss dating apps that prioritize an audio experience.
00:06:00 Metaverse
00:28:45 Audio dating apps
Heart to Heart raises $750K to bring sweet, sweet flirtation to your ear holes by Haje Jan Kamps
Founder’s Letter, 2021 by Mark Zuckerberg
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Charis and Eugene talk about a recently released whitepaper that summarizes findings from a recent survey of independent creators. They also discuss how to price your art as an artist.
00:07:18 Creator economy
00:33:20 Pricing art
From Dependence to Independence | The Rise of The Independent Creator (The Whitepaper)
Ask the Experts: I’m Just Starting Out as an Artist. How Much Should I Charge for My Art? by Francesca Gavin
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