David Lidsky's Blog, page 367

How Perplexity’s AI is reinventing search

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The metaverse never happened, but Mark Zuckerberg’s got some funky glasses

An expensive demo, an unfulfilled Metaverse—Meta has become the Queen of Vaporware.

This story originally appeared in The Technology Letter and is republished here with permission.

Developing the fine art of saying what you mean

Instead of trying to gain the upper hand, we might content ourselves with the goodwill we earn by being up-front, honest, and sincere.

“Oh, no, I couldn’t possibly . . .” 

This is the best way to announce your layoff on LinkedIn

You’ve been laid off. Should you go public with the news—and how?

After Ethan Olkovikas lost his marketing communications job in the third round of company layoffs earlier this year, he faced a common decision: To post or not to post about it on LinkedIn.

Try these neuroscience-backed tactics to train your brain to make better decisions

The brain science behind making better decisions faster is pretty compelling. Here are a few tactics to try.

We’re just off a solid week of the annual Fast Company Innovation Festival and one of the things that stands out to me every year (along with the stellar programming, of course) is the certainty of attendees asking me: “What should I absolutely see and do?” Understandable. When you’re spoiled for choice, it’s tough to make a decision and the default can be just to ask someone you trust.

How Trump mocking Harris’s laugh tells a story of America’s racism

Black folks who laugh ‘turned the world upside down and inside out,’ social critic Ralph Ellison wrote in 1985.

Just when the summer uproar over Donald Trump calling his potential rival “Laffin’ Kamala” and “” was beginning to subside, an apparent new round of attacks by Trump and other Republicans has emerged recently.

Plans for lithium extraction in one of California’s poorest regions raise concerns

Imperial County happens to be sitting on enough lithium to produce nearly 400 million batteries.

Imperial County consistently ranks among the most economically distressed places in California. Its Salton Sea, the state’s biggest and most toxic lake, is an environmental disaster. And the region’s politics have been dominated by a conservative white elite, despite its supermajority Latino population.

Assuming financial responsibility for your aging parents: A 3-step guide

One of the most difficult aspects of caring for elderly parents is figuring out when and how to start taking over their finances. Here’s how to keep their finances (and your relationship) intact.

As your parents age, it can often feel like you have swapped roles. Now you’re the one taking care of everything, from scheduling Mom and Dad’s doctor’s appointments to driving them where they need to go. But even if your aging parents welcome some aspects of this role reversal—you did give them anxiety-induced heartburn all through your teen years, and turnabout is fair play—they may struggle to accept it when you start taking responsibility for their finances.

Lin-Manuel Miranda talks about how he decides which ideas are worth developing

Miranda appeared last week at the Fast Company Innovation Festival in New York and talked about his leadership style and how he keeps track of ideas.

It’s perhaps a gross understatement to assert that multihyphenate Lin-Manuel Miranda knows a thing or two about leadership. This is the man who got people on board with his crazy idea to create a hip-hop musical about lesser-known founding father Alexander Hamilton.

A surprising number of millennial and Gen X workers are switching careers due to menopause

A new survey from Maven Clinic reveals how employers could be doing more to support women employees who are experiencing symptoms of menopause.

Menopause impacts 47 million women a year, resulting in $150 billion in lost productivity. Yet menopause continues to be shrouded in silence and shame, with few employers providing support to employees.