It is a long weekend in the United States and that means perfect opportunity to catch up on some great articles. Here are seven of my favorites from this week. Hope you enjoy them.
- Hot Mess: It is Burning Man time here in California and that means a whole lot of people are out there in the Nevada desert, partying like it’s 1999. How it all get started and the true story of Burning Man is chronicled in this wonderful piece in Outside magazine by Brad Wieners.
- The Siege of Academe: The Washington Monthly‘s Kevin Carey explores Silicon Valley’s efforts to change higher education via technology. I am still not convinced that the change can happen just via technology — there is an institutional mindset that needs an overhaul as well.
- Keep your standards high: Amber Naslund writes about her experience with Pottery Barn and their refusal to sell her what they thought was a substandard product. I wish more people paid attention to this simple fact of life — you either have standards or you don’t.
- Making peace with our cyborg nature: Alva Noe of NPR Radio explored the hidden cyborg inside of us. The tearing down of Lance Armstrong brought on this sympathetic rumination that is worth reading. And also worth reading is Jenny Davis’ commentary on the piece, which argues that attacks on Armstrong are mostly because we are uncomfortable with what she calls a cyborg nature. (Bonus link: Was cycling ever drug-free?, asks Scientific American.)
- Ever had trouble saying no? Well, if you did then Justine Musk has you covered in this list of 75 ways to say no.
- The internet was supposed to be the death of the library. So why is the library more popular than ever? Metropolis Magazine‘s Mark Lamster has the answer.
- And why the best interface is no interface at all.
