"We don't consider ourselves good macro-forecasters (or even people who believe in forecasting). So we certainly are in no position to say when the recession or market pullback will start, how bad it will be...or even that there definitely will be one. But we think we're unlikely to be proved wrong if we say cyclicality is not at an end but rather is endemic to all markets, and that every up leg will be followed by a down leg." --Howard Marks (November 1996)
Billions to Bust: Lessons from the failure of some of India's biggest business names [H/T @Sanjay__Bakshi] (LINK)
A great review of the book The Myth of Capitalism (LINK)
The Biggest Returns - by Morgan Housel (LINK)
The Stay Rich Portfolio (or, How to Add 2% Yield to Your Savings Account) - by Meb Faber (LINK)
Not All Marketplaces are Created Equal: Tales of a Marketplace Founder [H/T @eugenewei] (LINK)
Fire in Venezuela - by Peter Zeihan (Part 1, Part 2)
BIS: Claudio Borio’s interview with Capital on debt (LINK)
The Skift Podcast: Megatrends Defining Travel in 2019 (LINK)
American Innovations Podcast: Rubber | Rubber Dreams | 1 (LINK)
In a world where materials were limited to wood, leather, metal, and cloth, rubber was something new: a substance that was strong, soft, flexible, and waterproof—but completely undependable. Then along came a 33 year-old hardware merchant named Charles Goodyear, who made it his personal mission to conquer rubber at any cost.The Ezra Klein Show: Robert Sapolsky on the toxic intersection of poverty and stress (podcast) (LINK)
Related books: Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst; Why Zebras Don't Get UlcersThe Tim Ferriss Show: Susan Cain — How to Overcome Fear and Embrace Creativity (podcast) (LINK)
Related book: Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking
Royal Astronomer Martin Rees' Long Now talk (video) (LINK)
TED Talk: What sticky sea creatures can teach us about making glue | Jonathan Wilker (LINK)
Why Whales, Seals, and Penguins Like Their Food Cold - by Ed Yong (LINK)
No One Is Prepared for Hagfish Slime - by Ed Yong (LINK)
Book of the day: The Ends of the World: Volcanic Apocalypses, Lethal Oceans, and Our Quest to Understand Earth's Past Mass Extinctions
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For Audible Members, the current sale has some great titles included. The sale ends January 27th, and here are some of the names that stood out to me:
Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future
Living with a SEAL
Never Split the Difference
Meditations