The Cultures

Finnish school kids' meal bag vs. British school kids' meal bag (Twitter) UK Government Communication Service blog post example Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

The Progressive Case for Breaking Up the BBC – while increasing public funding for the good things it does! Things we're watching and reading, including: A Swim in a Pond in the Rain by George Saunders It's a Sin (Channel 4) Catch Me If You Can (Wikipedia) Kajillionaire Another Round Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

The Lab-Leak Hypothesis by Nicholson Baker (New York Magazine) Did America Use Bioweapons in Korea? Nicholson Baker Tried to Find Out (New York Times book review) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

America's Next Authoritarian Will Be Much More Competent by Zeynep Tufekci (The Atlantic) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Sorry for the poor audio quality on Adrian's bits, he accidentally turned down the gain on his mic, and while we were able to boost the volume, that introduced a bunch of noise! Jesse Singal's tweet linking to Vice's story on Penguin Random House staffers' reaction to their publishing Jordan Peterson's next book Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Sorry for the poor audio quality on Adrian's bits, he accidentally turned down the gain on his mic, and while we were able to boost the volume, that introduced a bunch of noise! A giant leap forward by DeepMind in AI protein-folding prediction How to start reading again Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

The rise and fall of Adobe Flash Flash Game History The 'Screen Time' debate

Naomi's virtual travel instructions! Look for music from the country Search on BBC Sounds (there's a prog called World Music Road Trip and also sometimes stuff in From Our Own Correspondent) Also try documentaries, especially Storyville Find the best movie you've never seen from that country Internet search for recipes from there Look online for specialist ingredients Is there takeaway from there one could get? Can you do a few minutes of language learning via Duolingo etc? Just enough to say hello, goodbye, please and thank you? Who's their most famous writer? Read a short story Have they ever had a movie up for best foreign picture Oscar, or best short or best documentary? Where would you stay? Pick a hotel. Have a look on Google Street View to see where you “are” Is there a board game (or video game!) from that country to try? What sights would you try to see if you were there? Can you find virtual tours online? What do people drink in a cafè or bar there? Can you learn to sing something that's popular there or written there? Put the radio on all day from that country Change your Twitter/social media localisation to that country Is there a bath product/perfume/smell from there? Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Ted Lasso (Apple TV+) Ghosts (BBC) The Queen's Gambit (Netflix) The Trial of the Chicago 7 (Netflix) Upload (Amazon Prime) Guardian: The Lonely and Great God (Viki) After Life (BFI Player) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

BBC journalists told not to 'virtue signal' in social media crackdown (The Guardian) Official BBC social media guidance What Is The Internet Doing To Boomers' Brains? (Huffpost) The creation of Boris Johnson by Tanya Gold (Unherd) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Oculus Quest 2 VR headset Oculus now requires a Facebook account Jaron Lanier's Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now Adrian's mini-review on Twitter Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs (Wikipedia) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

We talk about books we've recently enjoyed, including: The Complete Short Stories of J. G. Ballard: Volume 1 Charles Palliser (including The Quincunx) Gilgamesh Beowulf: A New Verse Translation by Seamus Heaney Beowulf: A New Translation by Maria Dahvana Headley Logicomix Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Hot off the presses, we catch up with each other and talk about all the latest news! Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Lockdown Mental Health British Literary Shenanigans with Baroness Nicholson, Damian Barr, and Janice Turner JK Rowling Hamilton Vaccine Good News Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

America Inc., Andrea's new book! Near-Future Writing QAnon and ARGs Being Creative Now Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Naomi Alderman Was Writing a Pandemic Novel Before the Pandemic Hit (New York Times) L'Île-des-Pins in New Caledonia (Wikipedia) 4K Japan Videowalks from Rambalac America, Inc. – Andrea's upcoming new book Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Exit: The Game – The Abandoned Cabin Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Nintendo Switch) Death Stranding/Hideo Kojima Twitter joke Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Flatten the Curve Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Daf Yomi (Wikipedia) Sefaria The Disputation (YouTube) St. John's College Great Books Curriculum Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

The Charisma Machine by Morgan G. Ames OLPC XO (Wikipedia) Selling a Charismatic Technology (LA Review of Books) The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley (HBO documentary) Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

The Good Place (ending spoilers!) Disco Elysium Star Trek: Picard The Morning Show (more spoilers) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

The Dating Market: Thesis Overview (PDF, Tyro Partners) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Behold the Beefless ‘Impossible Whopper' (NY Times) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Famous Authors Drag Student in Surreal YA Twitter Controversy (Vulture) Related Metafilter discussion Ghislaine Maxwell (Wikipedia) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Tikkun olam (Wikipedia) Effective altruism (Wikipedia) Kwame Anthony Appiah's Reith Lectures Religion for Atheists by Alain de Botton (Wikipedia) Meetup wants to charge users $2 just to RSVP for events — and some are furious (The Verge) Note: this has now been reversed Yahoo will delete all Yahoo Groups content on December 14th (The Verge) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Us (Wikipedia) Get Out (Wikipedia) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Russian Doll (Wikipedia) Attachment theory (Wikipedia) Naomi's podcast on Groundhog Day (On Being) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Are you really the ‘real' you? (The Guardian) on Faking It Related Metafilter discussion Who do you think you are – and how bad could you be? (The Guardian) Person–situation debate (Wikipedia) Doggerland (In Our Time) Why Some Americans Won't Move, Even for a Higher Salary (CityLab) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

How many automated notifications do you turn off? Adrian has a new robovac Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

The Slackification of the American Home (The Atlantic) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

As Floods Keep Coming, Cities Pay Residents to MoveAs Floods Keep Coming, Cities Pay Residents to Move (NY Times) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

UK officials discussed resettling 5.5m Hong Kong Chinese in Northern Ireland (The Guardian) The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

What the Space Age taught us: Earth is the best of all possible worlds The Soul of a New Machine by Tracy Kidder Dealers of Lightning by Michael Hiltzik Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (UK) Office of Technology Assessment (US) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

If you're so smart, why aren't you rich? The Rise of the Meritocracy by Michael Young, the book that coined the term satirically  Liquid Death sells water to punks who are too cool for alcohol Note: No Naomi this ep Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Alternis on Serial Box "A Taste of Armageddon" (the Star Trek ep Adrian was talking about) Memories of the Alhambra Note: No Naomi this ep Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop  

OK, so it's just Adrian this episode – due to life happenings, it's been difficult for us to all get together these past few weeks and so rather than leave you hanging, we thought we should post at least something to tide you over. He's not used to recording on his own, so please forgive any awkwardness! Airpods Are a Tragedy Naomi's Twitter thread on apologies The Three Parts of a Meaningful, Heartfelt Apology John Profumo volunteering at a charity Naomi's Twitter thread on ending a story well Codecademy vs. The BBC Micro Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software by Charles Petzold Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Cruise utilisation optimisation Gamified Amazon Warehouses Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Old people who spend two hours or more a day on a hobby live longer (US News) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

The Hiddleston Centrum Ad A good man is hard to find: China's 'leftover women' look for love abroad (SCMP) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Broken Stars: Contemporary Chinese Science Fiction in Translation by Ken Liu The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. Le Guin Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky How Democracy Ends by David Runciman (Talking Politics podcast) The Salt Path by Raynor Winn The Miriam Black series by Chuck Wendig The Goodness Paradox: The Strange Relationship Between Virtue and Violence in Human Evolution by Richard Wrangham The Lady From The Black Lagoon by Mallory O'Meara The Complete Short Stories of J. G. Ballard: Volume 1 Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

FT article (paywalled) about Against Empathy The Banality of Empathy on the NYRB Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

David Schneider tweet on "dark forces" Luciana Berger interview Labour Party leadership election rules Conservative Party leadership election rules Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Andrea's viral tweet Assortative mating (and how it may relate to autism) Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker The secret lives of Facebook moderators in America on The Verge Note: No Naomi this ep Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

How to mute all retweets on Twitter Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Fyre Festival (and the duelling documentary controversy) Dan Mallory article on The New Yorker Rory Stewart's invented Brexit statistic Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Note: No Adrian this ep Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

How to Remember Anything Forever(ish) interactive comic by Nicky Case Introductory Guardian article Fluent Forever book Anki The Mystery of People Who Speak Dozens of Languages (New Yorker) Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

That Photo 'Debunking' the Paris Protest Fires is Actually Bullshit (Gizmodo) Note: No Naomi this ep Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Proteins on Wikipedia AlphaFold @ CASP13: “What just happened?” Note: No Naomi this ep Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop

Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective boardgame The Four Tendencies by Gretchen Rubin How do you decide what New Year resolutions to make? Follow us at @culturescast, and our hosts on Twitter at @adrianhon @naomialderman @andrhia We're on Mastodon at @adrianhon@mastodon.social @naomialderman@mastodon.social @andrhia@wandering.shop