Google’s History, Quantum Computing, and Augmented Reality Chemistry: Lux Recommends #140
Welcome to Lux Recommends #140, this week’s edition of what we at Lux are reading and thinking about (and want to receive this by email? Sign up here).
Articles
“Google was not a normal place”: Brin, Page, and Mayer on the accidental birth of the company that changed everything: ‘A behind-the-scenes account of the most important company on the Internet, from grad-school all-nighters, space tethers, and Burning Man to the “eigenvector of a matrix,” humongous wealth, and extraordinary power.’ — Peter
A years-old, one-letter typo led to Aliens: Colonial Marines’ weird AI: Good case study on how AI can tend to fail silently. — Alex
Quantum computing — weird science or the next computing revolution? “With more companies moving quantum computers from the lab to commercial activities, we believe widespread quantum computing is about to become a reality and holds the key to double the high-end computing market from $5bn to $10bn.” [pdf] — Lux friend Chuck Clarvit
You Want This Tattoo? Get in Line: “Keith McCurdy, the owner of Bang Bang, has transformed the body-art industry with his diverse hiring and high prices. Of course there’s a wait list.” — Adam G
Pieter Hugo’s best photograph: the hyena men of Nigeria: “They would beat drums to draw a crowd. Then they’d take the muzzles off the hyenas and put their heads between their jaws” — Adam G
Books
Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou: “The full inside story of the breathtaking rise and shocking collapse of Theranos, the multibillion-dollar biotech startup, by the prize-winning journalist who first broke the story and pursued it to the end, despite pressure from its charismatic CEO and threats by her lawyers.” — Adam G
Television
Wild Wild Country: “When a controversial cult leader builds a utopian city in the Oregon desert, conflict with the locals escalates into a national scandal.” — Adam G
Movies
A Futile and Stupid Gesture: The life of “comedy writer Doug Kenney, during the rise and fall of National Lampoon.”— Sam
Videos
Augmented Reality Chemistry Set — Adam K
Aerial footage offers a rare view of sharks feasting on massive schools of fish — Adam K
The geography of the US is weirder than you think — Sam
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