Friday Links 07-09-28

From the Web

TED – Hundreds of individual speeches from thought-leaders around the world. Easy, 10-20 minute digestible chunks means you get great content without having to schedule a huge chunk of your day for it. I’ve spend the past month or so watching a few dozen of the excellent speeches there.

Cognitive Dissonance – Scott Adams claims economists don’t suffer from cognitive dissonance. While I’m skeptical of that assertion, he is right on the mark when it comes to the widespread problems caused by this pesky bias. I still can’t understand how people feel it is an intellectual virtue to have confidence in your own beliefs in spite of weak supporting evidence. It takes far more courage to say, “on the other hand,” than to simply dismiss everything you don’t agree with.

How to Engineer Your Day – Another post of mine over at lifehack.

From the Archives

Beyond Introversion and Extroversion – A somewhat controversial article I wrote last year. I’m of the opinion that the labels of introvert and extrovert are not only gross simplifications, but they can become self-fulfilling prophecies. Some readers contend that I’m confusing social-skills with the introvert/extrovert spectrum. I believe since many people are actively making that correlation it is simply another reason to think critically about these labels.

From the Shelf

Diet for a New America – Why become a vegetarian? This book basically outlines all the ethical, health, environmental and economical reasons it’s good for you and the world. Even if you decide you don’t want to give up the steak or chicken, it is worth a read to understand a different perspective.