The Coming of Age

Simone de Beauvoir Sometime back, during a college reunion, D’s friend mentioned how she was shocked when she realised that she (and therefore us) were ‘those people’ who were being referred to as ‘middle aged’. A couple of years ago, I had written a blog post on entering the second half of my life, which […]

This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends: The Cyberweapons Arms Race

Within 50 years of the first email being sent, everything from election systems, power grids, nuclear power plants, gas pipelines to hospital systems can be held hostage with ransomware. Nicole Perlroth starts from the Cold War era to explain how we got here. With many interesting stories, and a hard-hitting, engaging narrative, it’s an absolute must-read on an escalating war with consequences that impact all of us.

Wanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire, and How to Want What You Need

Schopenhauer is believed to have said “A man can do as he wills, but not will as he wills.” We can replace will with ‘want’ and it still holds. But we have convinced ourselves otherwise – that we desire things independently. Based on the work and philosophy of René Girard, and his own experiences, Luke Burgis sets about dismantling this notion – what the book calls the Romantic Lie – self delusion.