In the 1860s, a man named James Croll began writing about how the Earth’s movements shape our climate, particularly ice ages.

Fascinatingly, he wasn’t even an academic, but a janitor at Strathclyde University (formerly Anderson’s University). He spent evenings in the uni library, teaching himself physics, hydrostatics, mechanics…whatever he could get his hands on.

What fascinates me just as much though, is who gets remembered (and who decides that). We all know of Einstein or Newton, even if we can’t quite explain their work. But there are countless others who’ve helped make sense of the world, including teachers, priests, and gardeners.

Your Name

Almost 8 years later and the soundtrack still lifts me. The movie is exceptional.

Wetware

Where most of the AI hype today represents software models running on conventional computers, Cortical Labs is trying to make computation happen inside living neural tissue.

…Bet you didn’t have that on your bingo card.

Imagine a bookshop café where each table becomes a private listening booth…

…sharing music with friends, your date, or curious strangers.

Or at least somewhere to safely house the “Let me show you my Spotify Wrapped” population.

I wonder if rich people get their hangers custom-fitted, so each shirt or sweater hangs perfectly and never gets those little shoulder bumps….

Norwegian Movies I’ve watched in November so far:

  • Verdens verste menneske (2021)
  • Elskling (2024)
  • Drømmer (2024)
  • Kjærlighet (2024)
  • Ninjababy (2021)
  • Syk pike (2022)

ZK-Proofs

Imagine you could prove things about yourself (age, citizenship, credit score or subscription) without ever handing over your personal details.

No forms, no documents. Instead, your phone shows a QR code that represents a kind of digital ‘yes’. It’s a cryptographic proof that confirms you meet the requirement without revealing the underlying data. More here.

Real-World Problems zk-Proofs Could Solve Overnight:

Platforms request lots of PII to know if you’re real, safe, or profitable. Zk-proofs flip that logic on its head, meaning no identity leaks through hacks.

Also, bots can’t fake cryptography, therefore the web can be spam-free and built on trust.

Sensory System

Long before we came along, with our brains and matcha tea, early life forms only had rudimentary sensory systems.

They detected and responded to environmental stimuli… things like light, pressure, or temperature. These primitive systems didn’t “think”, they just acted. They supported survival by moving toward nutrients, or reacting to threats and toxins.

As nervous systems evolved into nerve nets, and eventually brains, those older sensory systems didn’t disappear. They became part of the foundation for what we now experience as intuition or gut feeling. They can operate way quicker than conscious reasoning because they’re fast, automatic, and built for survival. For example, the amygdala and brainstem can trigger action before the cortex finishes fully processing what’s happening (aka sometimes you know something before you know it).

So, intuition and feeling aren’t just “soft” or “irrational”, they’re actually evolutionarily ancient tools for rapid decision-making. Rational thought is a newer layer built on top….And for some of us, it’s still under construction.

Unnecessary shots fired.