Recap – The Matrix (spoiler)

The Matrix is a giant virtual reality simulation where the machines that currently rule the world are storing what’s left of the human race. There is a small resistance force of humans outside the Matrix who, because they are aware of the simulation’s nature, can hack the system to a limited degree giving them low level superhuman powers, awesome guns, and so on. They have a prophecy about a Chosen One — Neo — a man who has the extraordinary power to perceive and directly manipulate the computer code that makes up the Matrix. This ability will let him change the Matrix in ways the resistance fighters can barely imagine, but only if he has the chance to discover and develop them.

The Agents are programs that run in the Matrix to stop people from realizing they live in a simulation. They’re the machines’ front line of soldiers inside the Matrix against the resistance and, because they’re programs made for that purpose, have abilities “written in” far above even the resistance fighters. The resistance’s strategy for the Agents is literally to just run away. The Agents are also aware that Neo might be that Chosen One and take extraordinary measures first to capture him, and after he escapes and starts learning about his powers to kill him.

More here.

Financing the Clean Industrial Revolution

Bill Gates publishes something called Gates Notes on subject matter, this one was around climate action.

“Currently, companies can get credit for reducing emissions by purchasing offsets, investments in a wide range of projects with climate impact, including forestry and land use or solar and wind power projects. These are worthwhile investments, but offsets as currently conceived do not offer a path to meaningful global reductions, much less zero”

“Offsets completely skirt the collective action problem that bedevils the fight against climate change. There will always be governments, companies, and individuals who either can’t afford
to or don’t care to offset their own emissions. Even if every single government, company, and individual could afford to and cared to, there simply aren’t enough offsets to zero out global emissions. So until we address the root causes of climate change, the temperature will keep rising. It is one thing to avoid contributing to the problem; it is another to be part of the solution.”

“We need to develop a new paradigm for thinking about net zero so that companies get credit not just for doing the thing we happen to measure right now but the thing that will make the biggest difference toward the one number that matters: global net-zero emissions”

“We intend to directly invest up to $3 billion over 5 years to advance vetted projects in four key areas: direct air capture, green hydrogen, long-duration energy storage, and sustainable jet fuel”

What would our societies look like if elected officials were limited to one term only (four years)?

What would our societies look like if we completed a preferendum at each general election? Meaning, ranking issues to focus on, in order of priority. For example, if four issues are healthcare, education, foreign policy, and climate change – a voter ranks them in order of what they prefer elected officials to focus on.

Voter 1 Voter 2
1. Climate Change . 1. Climate Change
2. Foreign Policy 2. Healthcare
3. Healthcare 3. Education
4. Education 4. Foreign Policy

I.e. It goes beyond partisanship and allows for a broadly unified electorate and sets a clear mandate for gov.

KlimaDAO

At first glance, KlimaDAO looks less DeFi and more a protesting collective forcing carbon credit prices higher.

Polluting companies often have an emissions cap; they can either purchase carbon credits to offset excess emissions, or they can invest in efficient production infrastructure to produce more and emit less.

Carbon credits are more affordable and simpler to manage in the short term – but it’s not a long term solution to combat climate change. Therefore the increase in carbon credit prices makes capital investment competitive.

Here’s a useful summary, with access to their manifesto at the bottom.

DeFi = Democratic Finance?

Imagine using zk proofs for affordability, NFTs for land registry deeds, and decentralised funding pools to obtain a mortgage. Or using crypto collateral to borrow, while the collateral generates its own yield and pays down the loan.

Navalism

Free education is abundant, all over the internet. It’s the desire to learn that’s scarce. Source.

Jeff Goldblum

Petit Pli

Here’s Petit Pli’s pitch that I read up on last week:

Children can grow 7 sizes in their first 2 years on Earth. This contributes towards 183 million items of outgrown & unused childrenswear being hidden in homes across the UK.

Frustrated by these facts, and using his background in aeronautical engineering, Ryan set out to innovate within the $252bn childrenswear market for a LittleHuman called Viggo, his nephew.

Ryan developed Petit Pli’s patented textile from the ground up; its versatility enables clothes to expand through 7 sizes. The technology has moved from a UK James Dyson Award winning proof of concept (2017) to a scaled technology in June 2019, with applications in sister segments, PPE, winning TIME’s Best Invention of 2020. Our Adultwear is shortlisted for the 2021 Dezeen Award for Best Wearable Design & released in 2021.

Starting as a student project, Petit Pli has grown into a D2C business with an international community of users spanning 60 countries.

Tom Hanks can end his emails with T. Hanks and it’d work as both a sign-off and signature.