Given this is the first iteration of this newsletter, I thought I would give a brief introduction. The more complete vision for The Adret is here:
In short, the idea here is to share a series of pieces, essays, or articles that bring underreported stories to light, question assumptions about the world, or serve as calls to action. A very wise person once said to me that cynicism is a cheap way to seem smart, so I will do my best to balance informing and giving room for cautious optimism.
I will give my own one-sentence blurb for each piece, but otherwise will remain in the very comfortable position of the curator.
Without further ado…
College in America is getting cheaper. The Atlantic
A good rundown of how to fight back against the dismantling of the American bureaucracy and how that effort is well underway. The Status Kuo on Substack
Why we shouldn’t fear DeepSeek (too much), with interesting yet unmentioned implications for the environmental impact of AI. Dario Amodei
On a future for development and what it means to build a meaningful career in the field. An Africanist Perspective on Substack
On China, trade, and overcapacity. New York Times
A third-party justification for this newsletter, that will elicit multiple eye-rolls. Financial Times
The extracurricular-ization of Mariachi. The Economist
Making the case for patriotism in technology and why Silicon Valley should return to its national security roots. The Atlantic excerpt from the book The Technological Republic: Hard Power, Soft Belief, and the Future of the West by Alexander C. Karp and Nicholas W. Zamiska.
A nearly over-explained profile of the “Chicken Shop Date”. The New Yorker
Is your city walkable and could it be even more? The Economist. Plus an interactive tool from the original Nature Cities paper to check out cities around the world.
A smug essay by philosopher Robert Nozick about the relationship between intellectuals and anti-capitalism. Cato Policy Report Jan/Feb 1998 (ironically free).
Wishing you all a good March with warmer weather (sorry any Southern Hemisphere folks) and interesting reads.
See you in a month!