No I’m not sponsored by the NYT despite all of these articles coming from them. It’s just that the NYT has some really interesting long-form articles spanning such a variety of topics that it’s easy to spend your entire day reading articles without ever actually reading about Trump (I know, shocking!). And when I do have some time to lose in in-depth reporting, I can’t help but want to discuss it all, even if it’s just with myself on a website that I started… to discuss things I read.
In any case, below are another list of really interesting articles if you’ve got a bit of time to spend reading. This week’s pick’s definitely revolve around a theme of “where is the world headed, and are we ready for that?”. If, like me, you’re super excited about how innovation can change our lives, you’ll probably like these articles too. But the dark side of innovation is the lack of transparency that seems to go on behind the scenes. I’m not entirely sure how we’ll be able to turn some of these conundrums around, but hopefully we can sort it out before chaos ensues.
Anyway, onto the articles. And as always, please discuss your thoughts in the comments if you feel so inclined!
The Business of Food // A classic tale of ethics versus cold hard cash. What would you do if you built your business around pre-packaged, long-life food, only to find your market dwindling as consumers realised your food’s negative impact on their health? In Nestle’s case, they decided to take their food to the third world, where potential consumers might consider any food to be good food. By adopting a direct-sales model, Nestle has been able to reach the farthest areas of Brazil, regions that don’t even have supermarkets let alone KitKat bars. The result? Some of the poorest people in the world are finding themselves in the midst of an obesity crisis.
If you’ve got a bit of time up your sleeve, this article from the NYT is really riveting. It’s a story of a new-age government manipulation to keep product in the hands of consumers, which conjures up images of Pablo Escobar in Narcos, although instead of cocaine it’s sugar. “The new reality is captured by a single, stark fact: Across the world, more people are now obese than underweight.” Apparently, Type II Diabetes is set to become the 21st century’s malnourishment.
Behind-the-Scenes of Tech Finance // Walking down the supermarket aisles, you’re often faced with a dozen brands marketing the same product; you’d probably assume they’re all competitors. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned working in the food manufacturing industry, there are usually only a few players, each owning a number of those ‘competing’ brands. Much like food, it seems that some of our favourite tech giants have their proverbial hands in a number of competing pies, and in this instance it’s Uber vs. Lyft. Typically, Uber’s narrative has been one of disruption and forced hands, but what happens when the bully meets its match? This article shows just how tangled the web of investment can become, while also providing some fascinating insight into the minds of huge investment firms and how they hedge their bets (hint: invest in both sides of a duopoly for better returns). And you thought Westeros was a tangled web of relationships and manipulation…
“Very bubble. Much scam. So avoid.” // I’ll admit that cryptocurrency isn’t something I’m overly familiar with, but even for a total n00b, this story was informative without going over my head (in fact, I learned quite a bit! Check the casino analogy). I’ve had it in my head that I need to get familiar with Bitcoin and the like quicksmart, because it doesn’t seem to be doing anything but increasing in value. However, apparently that may not be the case. As if the concept of cyber currency wasn’t weird enough, a new cryptocurrency based on a meme (seriously) sprouted up, and actually took off. Much like I asked last time I wrote one of theses posts, what happens when things on the internet go way beyond the originator’s control? (Alex from Target, anyone?) But beyond that, did the joke just highlight exactly why now is not necessarily the time to jump aboard the blockchain Titanic? I’m still fully committed to learning more about cyber currency in the event that it stabilises and becomes the norm, however I’m beginning to think that now’s not the time to invest in this one. I’ll wait and see. Then again, I’m also the person in 2003 who insisted that iPods would never take off. Much intuition, so foresight.
Images via Happily Grey
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