NYTimes: ““When walking next to someone, a conversation becomes parallel play,” with each person “looking ahead yet connected by the exchange,” said Esther Perel…Consider a theme. Think about the sort of conversation you’d like to have ahead of time, Parker advised. If you’re feeling creative, you may even want to give it a title, she said. [Priya] Parker suggested four: Wander Walk: Choose a neighborhood or park you’ve never explored and “wander together and talk about things that don’t normally come up in everyday life,” Parker said. Memory Lane: On this walk, talk about important memories that the other person may not know. Struggle Stroll: You and your companion can take an opportunity to share something you’ve been struggling with “and just listen to one another, no advice, just deep listening,” Parker said. Walk and Talk: No need to structure your chats; simply meet for movement instead of sitting at a bar, restaurant or someone’s home. “We walk and we talk, about anything and everything,” Parker said.”
WSJ: “What’s the secret to a good sand castle? There are only three ingredients, all abundant at most beaches: sand, water and air. If sand is completely dry or extremely wet it flows like a liquid, but somewhere in the middle there’s a critical mixture that can behave like a solid. To understand why, we have to zoom right in to peer at the tiny details surrounding each sand grain. Water molecules have a very strong affinity for each other, so in damp sand the water gathers at the places where the sand grains touch. These tiny droplets form bridges between the grains, which are important because the rest of the space is filled with air. The water’s surface tension at its boundary with the air causes those water bridges to narrow in the middle, forming a tightly curved surface that pulls the grains of sand on either side closer to each other. So if you pick up a handful of damp sand and squeeze it to form a ball, it stays together because it’s held by thousands of these tiny connecting bridges.”
WSJ: “Why does including an outsider boost team creativity? To understand the outsider effect, consider the unconscious influence group members have on one another. For example, research has found there is a strong tendency for group members to grow more similar in attitude and behavior over time—a type of conformity. This phenomenon can certainly be an advantage in some situations, such as when you want a team to embrace a specific set of norms or values. But when it comes to “thinking differently” and challenging one another, having highly similar perspectives or approaches can understandably be detrimental… When we analyzed that output, we found the old-timers generated more and better ideas after a newcomer entered the group. Apparently, one of the key benefits of a newcomer is that they stimulate incumbent members to think about problems in different ways, effectively jump-starting creativity.”
Satya Nadella: “Let’s start by looking at what the frontiers for developers are. One of the things that I am really excited about is bringing back the joy of development. Microsoft started as a tools company, notably developer tools. But over the years, because of the complexity of software development, the attention and flow that developers once enjoyed have been disrupted. What we have done for the craft with this AI programmer Copilot [which writes the mundane code and frees programmers to tackle more challenging problems] is beautiful to see. Now, 100 million developers who are on GitHub can enjoy themselves. As AI transforms the process of programming, though, it can grow 10 times—100 million can be a billion. When you are prompting an LLM, you’re programming it.”
WaPo: “For years scientists have believed that when it comes to weight gain, all calories are created equal. But an intriguing new study, published in the journal Nature Communications, suggests that’s not true. The body appears to react differently to calories ingested from high-fiber whole foods vs. ultra-processed junk foods. The reason? Cheap processed foods are more quickly absorbed in your upper gastrointestinal tract, which means more calories for your body and fewer for your gut microbiome, which is located near the end of your digestive tract. But when we eat high-fiber foods, they aren’t absorbed as easily, so they make the full journey down your digestive tract to your large intestine, where the trillions of bacteria that make up your gut microbiome are waiting. By eating a fiber-rich diet, you are not just feeding yourself, but also your intestinal microbes, which, the new research shows, effectively reduces your calorie intake.”
