Weekend Briefing No. 451

A Saturday morning briefing on innovation and society.

Welcome to the weekend.

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Prime Numbers

8,000,000,000 – This year the Earth will surpass the 8 billion person mark. This is a cool visualization to see how the population is distributed by country.

13,000,000 – Amazon averaged 13 million viewers for its debut live stream of “Thursday Night Football,” that’s up from 8.9 million in the same week in 2021.

20,230 – Zero gravity soccer game breaks world record at 20,230 feet.

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Lean Startup Problems

In 2008 when the Lean Startup methodology first came onto the startup scene it was a new way to build startups. The methodology caught lightning in a bottle. Entrepreneurs worldwide immediately embraced its core concepts, like MVPs, validated learning, pivots, and more. However, it may not be the best process for everyone. Startup veterans from the likes of PayPal, Wealthfront, Pinterest, Netscape, and more, have identified four core challenges with the Lean Startup: (1) It encourages agnostic experimentation instead of starting with a compelling strategy. (2) It stresses the need for minimum viable products, which can lead to failing too fast. (3) It results in developing incremental products, not product innovations. (4) It overemphasizes product development instead of a deliberate focus on growth. This article will break down each of these four challenges in more detail. Reforge (12 minutes)

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Bots & Bees

Have you learned about the bots and the bees yet? If not, you’re about to. A team of international scientists and engineers have created a swarm of 3D-printing drones that work together to form a single blueprint, similar to how bees or wasps construct large nests. This marks the first time detailed 3D-printing has ever been achieved by a free-flying robot, the researchers said. How it works: Like bees or wasps, the drones use a “collective building method.” Meaning some drones are in charge of doing the actual printing – which could be done with either a cement-like pseudoplastic material or insulation foam – and others are responsible for verifying the accuracy of everything that’s been constructed. The drones are fully autonomous while flying, but still require human supervision in case something goes awry. Nature (17 minutes)

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Unexpected Hidden Gem

Finding the best opportunities outside the traditional markets is what the experts at HiddenWealth focus on 24/7. They recently completed a comprehensive analysis of the seven most-talked about alternative assets… and the results may surprise you. With leading banks like Goldman Sachs reporting that a US recession could cause the S&P 500 to freefall an additional 14% by year-end, it doesn’t take a Harvard genius to know investors today need to do something different. That’s why HiddenWealth says one alternative – that's probably totally different from anything you’ve seen before – stands above the rest. Even better, you don’t need millions of dollars to access this investment opportunity. You just need a smartphone and curiosity to access a platform that is now averaging a net return of 29%. For a limited time, you can check out the pick with this exclusive link. Masterworks (Sponsored)

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Chaos Principles

There are four cornerstone principles to chaos in nature that we can also observe in chaotic times in our lives and at work: (1) Equilibrium is a precursor to death. When a living system is in a state of equilibrium, it is less responsive to changes occurring around it. This state of equilibrium is highly dangerous, putting the system at risk of not adapting quickly enough. (2) Innovation usually takes place on the edge of chaos. When faced with a threat or the excitement of a new opportunity, living systems tend to come up with new ways of living through experimentation and mutation. (3) Self-organization emerges naturally. As long as a system is sufficiently populated and properly interconnected, a new self-organization will emerge from chaos. (4) Living systems cannot be directed towards a linear path. In dynamical systems, an attractor is defined as a set of states toward which a system tends to evolve. The direction is discovered rather than dictated by the living system. Ness Labs (5 minutes)

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Up & Down

Logic dictates that indiscriminately firing a gun into the air is probably not a great idea. There's an old saying, “what goes up must come down”, and it certainly applies here. But just how dangerous can a falling bullet be? Where will it land and how fast will it be moving? How long will it take for it to reach the ground? As it turns out, there isn't a simple answer to these questions. There are a lot of variables that affect the path of a bullet, especially when fired vertically. Gravitational forces, the size and shape of the projectile, air resistance, humidity, the firing angle, and many other factors impact trajectory or how far the bullet will go and how much damage it can do. This article has simulations for five of the most common ammunition types in the U.S. at five different firing angles. 1Point21 (12 minutes)

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Declutter

I’m a clutter-free type of guy. So, I like tips on tidying up your space. Here are some of my favorites: (1) Realize that what you keep costs you a lot. Many times, you’re tempted to hang on to things because you feel like it’s a waste of money if you should ever have to buy them again. But, there is a cost to keeping something. You need to think about where to store it, give up the actual storage space or take up precious empty space. (2) You will not start liking something you never liked. You might have perfectly useful hand-me-down lamps stuffed in your closet because it feels wasteful to get rid of them, but you don’t really want to use them in your own home. The solution is simple: Out they go. You aren’t going to suddenly start liking them. But someone somewhere out there will. Apartment Therapy (7 minutes)

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Photojournalism

A photo essay of the week’s best photojournalism. Enjoy. The Week (3 minutes)

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Should We Work Together?

Hi! I’m Kyle. This newsletter is my passion project. When I’m not writing, I run a law firm that helps startups move fast without breaking things. Most founders want a trusted legal partner, but they hate surprise legal bills. At Westaway, we take care of your startup’s legal needs for a fixed-monthly fee so you can control your costs and focus on scaling your business. If you’re interested, let’s jump on a call to see if you’re a good fit for the firm. Click here to schedule a call.

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Weekend Wisdom

The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why. -Mark Twain

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