Published
Weekend Reading — 😷 178% worried seems accurate to me
This week we talk about health and safety, masks and distance, what happens when time loses meaning, the origin of Triscuit, and the worst possible pizza.
IKEA Israel “It's really not complex - just staying at home.”
😷 How's your week going?
Every week I spend about 2~3 hours to curate the best content for Weekend Reading. This week it's taking twice as long as usual, because there's so much information out there, and it's all about the editing.
I don't plan on turning Weekend Reading into a COVID newsletter, but right now this is the most important information to share. In the US and much of Europe, the virus is doubling every three days and many lives are on the line.
I'm picking the best information from people in the know: scientists, healthcare professionals, epidemiologist, etc. If this is new information to you, read it carefully and pay attention. If you know it all, here's a reminder to share with your family, friends, and community.
Look at China, South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong. They showed us that acting fast and smart, we can flatten the curve. There's light at the end of the tunnel. Together we can make a difference!
If you know a healthcare professional, give them a hug! From a distance — we don't want to get them sick. Let them know how much we appreciate their effort and sacrifice.
Stay safe. Wash your hands. Keep distance. Listen to experts.
☀️🕶
😷 Stay Safe
Mythbusters ‘Contamination’ Experiment Proves Why Social Distancing Is So Damn Important “A Mythbusters experiment conducted back in 2015 has seen a renewed appreciation now the nation is coming into a state of semi-lockdown.”
More Americans Should Probably Wear Masks for Protection You don't say!
Healthcare workers need N95, but the rest of us can do with surgical masks, bandanas, balaclavas, etc. They offer just enough protection for the wearer, but more important — slow the spread from people who are asymptomatic. The idea that only people with symptoms should wear masks ignores the incubation period. And it ignores human nature: unless more people wear masks, not enough people would.
8/ Masks were a whole different ball game as well.
Everyone wore masks. Part of this was to prevent transmission.
But part of it was also to reduce stigma against the sick.
If only the sick wear masks, they may be hesitant.
But if everyone does, then no one is missed.
If you have a personal mask, you can decontaminate it for reuse by sticking in the oven for 30 minutes. Healthcare workers would want to look into vaporized hydrogen peroxide.
Dr. Punch “Gloves are meaningless if you don’t take them off properly. Anyone can take them off safely with these smooth operator moves. 🤣🤣. Stay safe and #ScrubLikeASurgeon #COVID19”
Notification of Enforcement Discretion for Telehealth The US has relaxed HIPPA regulations. You can now use FaceTime, Zoom, Houseparty, or whichever video app to chat with your doctor!
There's an app for that I wish. The three I know of are Private Kit from MIT, TraceTogether from Singapore government, and Hamagen from Israel's ministry of health. They all prioritize privacy in much the same way, but ineffective when hardly anyone uses them (< 5K installs according to Sensor Tower), and the app store reviews are brutal (2.8 to 4.4 stars).
If you are working on an app for physical distancing that is privacy aware, please let me know.
US Health Weather Map by Kinsa This US Health Weather map is a visualization of illness linked to fever — typically the flue. The data is aggregated from Kinsa smart thermometers (I take it back, not everything that's Wifi connected is stupid). We can predict how many of these fevers are typical based on historical data, and so the difference (orange and red) is likely COVID-19.
Note: this map will not show asymptomatic carriers or hospital admissions, mostly home care.
Don Schaffner 👇 TL;DR you don't have to worry about your lattice, fridges don't kill viruses (heat and humidity is better), and don't soap what you're about to ingest:
Unless you are living under a rock or have already perished from COVID-19, you've likely seen a YouTube video making the rounds where a medical doctor (wearing scrubs!) purports to give COVID-19 advice. (1/33)
Gerston Blenman “Joker : “Introduce a little anarchy. Upset the established order, and everything becomes chaos. I'm an agent of chaos...”
Also Joker :”
🏚 WFH
Joshua Rayntine “Behind every successful woman is an unsuccessful man not wearing any pants:”
Netflix Party Watch Netflix together with other people at a distance. A Chrome extension that keeps all browsers in sync, and also includes chat, because what are films without the audience commentary?
Peter Steinberger “Wow, App Store downloads changed massively since the pandemic event! (data is from @appfigures)”
🦠 😷 Coronavirus / COVID19 Emoji List The informative guide to using Emoji in the time of Corona:
🧼 Washing / cleanliness
🧼🖐 Hand washing
🧼👏 Hand washing (at small sizes, 👏 Clapping Hands resembles hand washing)
🧴🤲 If soap is unavailable; use alcohol-based handrub / sanitizer
So today I didn’t realize I was off mute and told the Democratic Caucus (including a couple recent presidential candidates) that “...mommy is working honey, please go potty and wash your hands then mommy will come downstairs.” How’s your working from home going? 🤦🏻♀️
NotOccupying “When your anatomy class is now on zoom. #QuaratineLife #AcademicTwitter”
Design Objective
Marketing Examples “Levi's COVID-19 email is a lesson in copywriting:”
Tools of the Trade
Screen — Screen sharing for remote teams “Work together like you’re in the same room. Supports Mac, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android, Safari, Firefox & Chrome.” Yes! Remember ScreenHero? Slack bought them and killed then, but the founder is back with a new independent app.
The Complete AEA DC 2019 Now Online “As of this morning, we’ve published the 12 remaining sessions from AEA DC 2019 in one fell swoop. They join the five videos we’ve already released this year.” Thank you!
Addy Osmani “Tip: http://excalidraw.com is fantastic for quickly mocking up UIs. Free, feature-filled and the live collaboration mode is excellent.”
Peopleware
Why Time No Longer Has Meaning, According to Science This article explains why last week feels like it was the longest year ever (also, why time passes slower for kids, for which everything is a new experience):
As Eagleman explains in this video, “People don’t actually see time in slow motion during an event.” Instead, when you are in a life-threatening moment, your brain records this memory in much greater detail. Then, when you recall this memory, your brain gets confused by all of these extra details, and is tricked into thinking this event lasted longer than it actually did.
dergigi “People are 178% worried, which seems accurate to me.”
Today In Business Models
Suhail If you're running a startup, now is the time to over react:
Things I am hearing from founders' board mtgs:
(1) Re-plan operating plan in 30-45 days (the future is hard to predict)
(2) Assume 18 months of recovery
(3) Tighten the belt: cut pay, cut costs, or layoff.
(4) Plan for the severe to extreme downside scenario
(5) Raise now
April Dunford 👇 Thread. When the economy picks up, the new normal will be different from the old normal, so make sure you skate to where the puck will be:
A few thoughts on positioning in a downturn. Pay attention to what's changed for your buyers - a shift in their priorities could have a big impact on your unique value 1/
If someone older than you with business experience is giving you advice on navigating tough times please listen & don’t argue. Good judgement comes from experience that comes from bad judgment. They used to have the same perspective you do. That’s why they are trying to help.
Rafat Ali 👇 Business travel is going to change profoundly:
There is a mass delusion in travel industry about recovery, if my LinkedIn posts, YouTube videos from travel CEOs, or analysis from consultant types: if you just hold on for few more months, the world will come gushing right back out, come Q3 or Q4. Add inspirational song here...
Helen Dale A business model invented out of lock down:
Economics of Coronavirus: illegal dog walking markets have sprung up in Spain. People are renting their dogs so they can be taken for walks, allowing multiple "customers" to go outside; it's one of the few reasons people can leave their homes.
Going rate per dog is €35-45/hour.
Locked Doors
Carina C. Zona 👇 Unfortunately, while Zoom is a wonderful and useful product, they play fast & loose with privacy and security:
Here's a sampling of some of Zoom's cavalier long-rerm history regarding security and privacy (thread):
Full Third-Party Cookie Blocking and More Good bye 3rd party cookies. Safari is doing the right thing here, Google needs to track you, so don't expect Chrome to follow up for a while.
Available For Hire
Darren Full stack developer with experience in React/Redux, Node.js and Python. Regular coach/instructor in underrepresented tech communities like @CodeFirstGirls & @codebar. London or remote. https://github.com/DarrenVong
goldirises Site Reliability Engineer, cloud infra, Kubernetes, Helm, golang, python, nice person, etc. Seattle area or remote.
Bonnie Kate Wolf Illustrator and visual/brand designer based in SF. Contract, or full time. http://www.bonniekatewolf.com
kjmrussett Open source, design systems, architecture, React, front end engineering, public speaking. https://www.linkedin.com/in/resource11
lynn Infra / tooling / SRE roles. Go, python, or rust. Startups, Seattle or remote. https://github.com/lynncyrin/
Jack Lo Russo Front-end engineer with design background. Passionate about building great products and growing excellent teams. https://www.jacklorusso.com
None of the Above
Deeda Payton “The salsa aisle inventory pretty much sums up Texas 🤠”
the government is making us quarantine so they can change the batteries in the pigeons
Sage Boggs “OK, buckle up. I wanna talk to you about Triscuit.” 👇 The ending is electrifying!
Flatten the Curve of Armchair Epidemiology Great take on all the social media armchair experts:
Dunning-Kruger Effect (DKE) is a phenomenon where people lack the ability to understand their lack of ability. While strains of DKE typically circulate seasonally, a new and more virulent strain called DKE-19 is now reaching pandemic proportions.
When you’re done reading this article, this is what you’ll take away:
- DKE-19 is coming to you.
- It’s coming at an exponential speed: gradually, then suddenly, then suddenlier.
- When it does, your feeds will be overwhelmed.
- Exhausted fact checkers will break down. Some will die of sadness.
- The only way to prevent this is social media distancing. Not tomorrow. Today.
- That means vetting sources BEFORE you share, starting now.
Jon Acuff Time to reshuffle the bookcase.
I’m judging the bookshelf behind you when we do a Zoom call.
Rex Chapman🏇🏼 “Quarantine day 11:”
NE Oh Regional Sewer 👇 TL;DR flush toilet paper, but not disinfecting wipes! Also, this thread is unexpected fun read:
i’m here to help. you name an item and i’ll tell you if it’s flushable or not.
The Four Possible Timelines for Life Returning to Normal “The coronavirus outbreak may last for a year or two, but some elements of pre-pandemic life will likely be won back in the meantime.”
Ozzy Man Reviews I don't even want my money back, just cancel the whole of 2020 and keep the change:
Coronavirus Causes Dip in Podcast Listening Fascinating, but in retrospect not that surprising. Podcast listening is down across the board, probably because fewer people are commuting. News is down 10%, culture is down 17% — replaced with Netflix and TikTok? Sports down 17%, but also much of sports has been cancelled.
The biggest hit? Crime podcasts are down 30%. It has been said that crime podcasts are porn for people who live a safe life, and now that nobody is safe, that category is redundant.
Judd Winick “Where is your god now”
