Ben Nesvig's Blog, page 6

Inside North Korea – Documentary From Vice

I’m obsessed with North Korea. It seems I have an obsession with most Asian countries. Obsessed with Japan for the sushi and work ethic. Obsessed with Thailand for the beauty and food. Obsessed with China for the food. And not long ago I paid someone I’ve never met to send me a postcard from North Korea.

Below is a mini documentary on North Korea from VICE that’s more interesting than any half hour show on TV right now.

How To Influence Behavior

If you’re the owner of a restaurant and want people to not eat any of the food, how would you do it?

The instinctual response is to simply make a rule saying “No employee sampling” and punish anyone who is caught eating food.

But then people get satisfaction in doing what others say they can’t.

People get the joy of eating the food along with the little thrill that they might get caught.

So maybe the opposite approach would work – unlimited free food for employees while working.

It’s paradoxical s...

The One Element of a Good Story

A good story isn’t made from a single ingredient, just as a good meal isn’t composed of one ingredient. Four pieces of bacon might be my breakfast, but I wouldn’t call that a meal.

If there is one element that makes every story better it’s change.

There are few things people enjoy more in a story than watching the transformation of someone.

This is why Groundhog Day is one of my favorite movies.

Phil transforms from selfish to depressed to happy and caring.

It’s also why The Way Way Back is one of...

Invent Something Today

Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla, Henry Ford, Alexander Graham Bell, Ben Nesvig… all inventors.

My favorite cupcake place has three themed cupcakes for Breaking Bad, my favorite TV show.

Seeing their promotion for the Heisenberg cupcake early in the week prompted an idea for a Breaking Bad cupcake. I emailed the owner my idea and within 24 hours it was set to be a reality. While they weren’t able to write 50 on each cupcake with bacon, which would be a little laborious, they still took the name and...

How To Cheat In School And Never Get Caught

In high school, a few kids used to take 20oz bottles of Coke, peel off the label, and tape a tiny sheet of notes on the inside, giving themselves a handy reference guide on tests.

Others would create a program on their graphing calculator that would basically be typed out notes from the book.

Some girls would write all over their jeans, casually adding a few answers.

And most opted for the old fashioned method of harnessing their peripheral vision to glance at the bubble test of the person next...

So Good They Can’t Ignore You

Last fall, while home alone on a Saturday afternoon, I did what any married man would do. I drove 45 minutes each way to buy two apple pies.

I could have driven to a dozen bakeries near me in half the time, but they don’t have what this place has.

A few years ago, someone brought an apple pie into work from some place off the freeway. They left it in kitchen, offering it up to anyone who wanted an afternoon snack.

I didn’t think much of it. An apple pie is an apple pie is an apple pie.I’ve had a...

How To Become a Better Writer

I told Dave not to do it. I saw it happen in a movie and when you’re in 4th grade, you don’t really know which laws of the universe transfer off screen, but I knew this one would. We were walking home from school, trudging through a baseball field of shin high snow wearing ugly rubber boots.

At the end of the baseball field, acting as more of a comfort shield to the houses than realistic target for elementary kids to swing for, sat the metal baseball fence. Most days this was the perfect place...

Lifelogging One Second Every Day For Six Months

This video is the result of taking one second of video every single day for six months. Last year I took a photo of myself every day, which is far less interesting than taking one second of video every day.

One of the things I’ve come to love over the last few years is the recording of thoughts. I generally have a pocket notebook with me at all times, with observations and thoughts getting written down or put into an app on my phone. The throwaway thought becomes a lot more interesting once yo...

America

The birth of America and the coming of the French Revolution marked the entrance of nobodies onto the stage of history. The revolutions of the twentieth century are a reaction against history made by common people. The history of this country was made largely by people who wanted to be left alone. Those who could not thrive when left to themselves never felt at ease in America.

- Eric Hoffer

Happy Independence Day!

Mail Bag: Advice On Writing a Book

Maybe this isn’t technically reader mail and maybe it was mandated homework, but this blog doesn’t rake in mail like the Bieber fan club so I’m using it.

My brother is wrapping up a year of teaching English at a university in China. For an English assignment, he gave them some information about my family and had each of them write us a letter. This week I received 30 hand written letters in the mail from students telling me about their life, commenting on mine from photos, and a few asked ques...