You May Also Like: Taste in an Age of Endless Choice | 
"...people liked the same piece of music more when it was described as being by Bach versus a fictitious composer named Buxtehude" [Dieterich Buxtehude was entirely real, and admired by Bach]
"...people liked the same piece of music more when it was described as being by Bach versus a fictitious composer named Buxtehude" [Dieterich Buxtehude was entirely real, and admired by Bach]
pickDidn't change my life, but still an interesting exploration of why we like what we like, and why that's different across people and through time. Based on a social science research, like his earlier book on traffic -- in fact tastes share many characteristics with physical traffic. I recommend that book too; I learned a lot.
On how the past was never better than the present: 'Let me let you in on a little secret. If you're hearing about something old it's almost certainly good. Why? Because nobody wants to talk about shitty old stuff. But lots of people talk about shitty new stuff, because they're still trying to figure out if it's shitty or not. The past wasn't better, we just forgot about the shitty shit.' Q.E.D.
That moment when the book you're reading name-checks a grad school buddy: priceless. That moment when you learn that the author was on Jeopardy, but performed worse than you: PRICELESS.
'Who does google think you are? There's an easy way to find out. Type in www.google.com/ads/preferences.' I did this just now, and it was interesting to see the things that Google says I like. I'm wondering whether my interests are corrupted by when my kids use my computer.
'Go to a diner, diners have menus that are seven pages. But you order the same thing. You don't want choice -- you want the illusion of choice.'
Ep 6 of #MyWeekInTinder now live!
iTunes: https://itun.es/i67d9TG
Stitcher: http://bit.ly/2kXHT0E
PodOmatic: http://bit.ly/2kXfsjx
Brevity is the soul of wit, so this episode isn't even 20 min long. There's a new app coming to town and I CAN'T WAIT. What happens when I actually respond to someone who just messages "hi"? Nothing good. Also, an unsolicited critique of my OKCupid profile and my response to it.
Thank you to the Littens who listen!
So, one of the things I found today was a bulletin board, which I mounted above my new desk location and filled with images that inspire me or just make me happy. How many do you recognize?
pickA very interesting read about taste and why we make the choices we make. It's a bit dense in places and I found it best to read in bursts between other books. Which I'm sure says something about the way I make choices. 🤗
