Tom's Top 3: July 30, 2024
Literacy, Legacy, Longevity
Hi everyone! Welcome to this week’s installment of Tom’s Top 3 Tuesdays, where I highlight three pieces of content (Podcasts/Shows/Songs/Articles/etc.) that I found interesting or noteworthy from the prior week.
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Let’s get into it:
[YouTube] Max Joseph - BOOKSTORES: How to Read More Books in the Golden Age of Content
I love books. They can instantly transport you to a world you’ve never known, or condense a lifetime’s worth of hard-earned knowledge in 300 pages or less.
I love bookstores. Cozy, quiet. A treasure hunt in disguise. Coffee in one hand, the other hand reaches for book after book with a calm anticipation. You never know if the next book you reach for will end up changing your life.
I just wish my love of reading rivaled my love of books and bookstores. It feels like every year my resolution is to read more, yet my bookcase grows at a rate my reading speed can’t match. Turns out I’m not the only one burdened with this curse. There’s even a Japanese word for the phenomenon: Tsundoku.
Max Joseph is cut from the same cloth. On a mission to read more books, he interviews readers and writers on how to build the habit and tours some of the most beautiful bookstores in the world. He is also a very skilled filmmaker, and I really enjoy his style and editing.
My biggest takeaway is that the road to reading more is all about consistency, not speed. As Tim Urban explains, just 30 minutes a day is the difference between reading 1,000 books in a lifetime instead of just 55.
In order to build the habit, you have to enjoy the process. Read books you are genuinely curious about and bounce between books to keep your excitement intact. Even the fastest reader in the world often slows down to savor a good book, likening speed reading to “chugging Dom Perignon or looking at the Mona Lisa on a skateboard.”
[Quote] Barry Diller, circa 1983
If HBO and Time Inc. go on unchecked, the motion-picture business, without exception, will be under the total control of one company in less than five years.
Diller was the head of Paramount when he spoke these words to The New York Times. I can’t help but laugh when reading it, not because Diller’s fears were unjustified, but because this quote could just have easily been uttered today.
Not with HBO, don’t be silly. But swap in Netflix, and this just about sums up many people’s current view of Hollywood.
The story may be the same, but the players are certainly different. Paramount, once at the height of its powers in the ‘80s, was just acquired after hundreds of millions in shareholder value destruction. HBO, still highly-regarded for its edge and creativity, is largely obfuscated by the sinking ship that is Warner Bros Discovery.
Max (noticeably not HBO Max), makes up just 1.4% of viewership, according to Nielsen. Paramount+ is even worse, at 1.1%.
The entertainment industry has been a story of technology bringing viewership into the household. Whether it be the advent of the television, HBO, VCR, or streaming, the industry has had to adapt to keep up. Is this just another cycle, or is this a drawn-out Greek tragedy entering its final act?
[Podcast] The Peter Attia Drive - Longevity 101
This podcast will save you 500 pages of reading.
Peter Attia, a Stanford-trained doctor, is known for his in-depth (read: LONG) explorations of health topics. Having read his book, Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity, and listened to many of his podcasts, I appreciate this about Attia. But many people just want the Sparknotes.
This podcast is the perfect high-level overview of his philosophy, and it covers most of the main bullet points of the book. He discusses Medicine 2.0 vs 3.0, the “Four Horsemen” (ASCVD, Metabolic Diseases, Cancer, and Neurodegenerative Diseases), and The Centenarian Decathlon — all hallmarks of his longevity philosophy.
There are many ways to go about boosting lifespan and healthspan, but Attia emphasizes that exercise is the single most impactful component. In addition to fitness, he provides frameworks for how to approach nutrition, sleep, pharmacology, and emotional health.
This podcast is an approachable recapitulation of many of Attia’s teachings, and my hope is that there is at least one thing that everyone can take away from this episode and apply to their life today.
That wraps up this edition of Tom’s Top 3 Tuesdays. If you know anyone who would like this newsletter, please consider sharing. I’ll be back next week. ✌️