The Great Video Game Crash of 1983
I'm guessing that Brian saved this link since I didn't exist in 1983, but consider he's had his turn at editing this issue and didn't add any commentary here I'm going to make up some stuff to say about it. There's something extra silly about digging up a blog post about obsolete video game consoles using the Way Back Machine, but I can't figure out a quippy joke to write about that. I read this post and am in total disbelief at the detail with which the writer captures the minutiae of this moment in time before widespread use of the Internet, where the video game industry was in complete disarray in the US and paved the way for Nintendo. - C
My plan has worked perfectly. Also the greatest game ever made (Super Mario Bro 2) was a direct result of this narrative so all’s well that ends well. -B
Photoreal Roman Emperor Project
My take: Caligula looks like the freak he probably was, and Commodus looks like the moronic bro he probably was. - C
Why the Future Doesn't Need Us
I'll be honest, this may be one of the longest articles we've ever shared. It was written twenty years ago by an OG computer engineer. In it he waxes eloquently about his concerns over AI, nanotech, and lets us follow along as his mind wanders. I enjoy reading pieces like this, where the writer is being candid despite knowing that the words they are writing may become outmoded worries that seem silly to a future reader, but writes them down anyway. Plus, bonus points for referencing the Borg. -C
Why 'Civilization' is a political masterpiece
I need to play this game right now. I can't imagine building something like this and all the thought and historical knowledge that was poured into its design. - C
Just one. More. Turn. Also how is it 3am? I just started playing... -B
The Incredible Story of the Great Cannonball Boom
Like everyone who's not a millennial or younger I saw Cannonball run on tv in the '80's. The true life record for this coast to coast challenge stood for years until Covid cleared all the traffic off the roads except for dozens of people speeding east to west at 100+ mph. -B
Side note: GQ's website is a wonderful reading experience, especially their longform stuff. -C
PowerPoint activism is taking over your friends' Instagram accounts
I remember the not-so-distant past when Instagram was the one corner of the Internet that was like, 92% pretty. Pictures of cute animals, babies, and houses, or delicious meals, or incredible landscapes. You've probably noticed a new kind of slideshow, one that attempts to summarize complex topics and turn them into something you can virtually ascribe to without actually understanding. This article is an explainer, like most stuff on Vox, but I think it makes a good point about discernment when it comes to this type of activism. Watch out for brands and companies to appropriate this style to push their own messages. - Calvin
As a Gen-X'er I'm not really aware of all the things that happen on the Insta; I don't even know what a slideshow is on that platform but apparently it is a thing... My Insta is a simple place of one picture that makes me happy from each of the trips of note I've been on in the last few years. -Brian
Gen Y (Millennials) and Gen Z (iGen) Characteristics
"Generations Y and Z, who came of age during the Great Recession, were reared by overprotective parents, and ..., evince a (literal and metaphorical) sobriety, prudence, steadiness, well-adjusted friendliness, pragmatism, and flexibility that contrasts with the more passionate, idealistic, but immature and ideologically rigid dispositions of Baby Boomers, as well as the more cynical and edgy bent of GenX’ers. (We should note that the Baby Boom and GenX generations have their own strengths in comparison to these younger generations."
Science once again proves Gen Xers > Millenials... -Brian
Ugh. - Calvin
Number Fever: The Pepsi Contest That Became a Deadly Fiasco
This is an absolutely wild ride that ends with Pepsi being hated by much of the Philippines with the fury of 1,000 suns. -Brian
This author has climbed very deep into an Internet rabbit hole. I'm not done reading it yet, but it's so convoluted and weird that I know I have to finish it.