From [this article](https://www.ancient-origins.net/history/sumerians-looked-heavens-they-invented-system-time-and-we-still-use-it-today-007341).

> Many ancient civilizations had a rough approximation of the passage of time. Obviously, a day began when the sun rose and night began when the sun set. Somewhat less obvious was the passage of weeks, months, and years; however, these too had been approximated by ancient peoples. A month was the length of time of one complete lunar cycle, whereas a week was the length of time for one phase of the lunar cycle. A year could be estimated based on the changing seasons and relative position of the sun. Once the zenith of the sun was determined, scholars could count the number of sunrises/sunsets that passed until it reached its zenith again. In this manner, the ancient Egyptians, Mayans, and Babylonians, among others, determined that the year had 360 days.


The passage of time

I learned this was a real science today while reading *Leonardo da Vinci* by Walter Isaacson.[ Britannica describes physiognomy as](https://www.britannica.com/topic/physiognomy-divination):

> The study of the systematic correspondence of psychological characteristics to facial features or body structure.

Put simply, judging people's character or competence by how they look. It's quite a crude practice indeed, but nonetheless was important enough at some point in time to have a term created out of it.

The earliest work on physiognomy was attributed to Aristotle. It contained six chapters to:

> The consideration of the method of study, the general signs of character, the particular appearances characteristic of the dispositions, of strength and weakness, of genius and stupidity, and so on. Then he examined the characters derived from the different features, and from colour, hair, body, limbs, gait, and voice. While discussing noses, for example, he says that those with thick, bulbous ends belong to persons who are insensitive, swinish; sharp-tipped noses belong to the irascible, those easily provoked, like dogs; rounded, large, obtuse noses to the magnanimous, the lionlike; slender, hooked noses to the eaglelike; and so on.


On Physiognomy

Did a brief dive on time this morning and read some interesting article on whether or not time exists. One interesting point one of the articles made was that we know what chairs and tables are made out of–particles–but we don't know what time is made out of. Surely it doesn't just exist? Is it made out of space, like Einstein's General Theory of Relativity posits? Maybe.

 - [Does time exist?](https://phys.org/news/2022-04-physicists-philosophers.html)
 - [Is time real?](https://phys.org/news/2022-04-physicists-philosophers.html)
 - [What if time was tiny sections?](https://www.space.com/loop-quantum-gravity-space-time-quantized)
 - [Astronomer's discover an exocomet orbiting another star.](https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/ukrainian-astronomers-discover-exocomets-around-another-star/)
 - [Where did water come from on Earth?](https://www.nasa.gov/feature/comet-provides-new-clues-to-origins-of-earth-s-oceans)

Thursday's Assorted Links

1. [Scientist's discover the furthest galaxy to date.](https://phys.org/news/2022-04-scientists-farthest-galaxy.html) (Image below)
![scientists-have-spotte](//images.ctfassets.net/nk2hkdvz2uym/4niAGF5b1EXmhlaozh6PJJ/35bb21b56356dec5e91d84f3dc6b6c53/scientists-have-spotte.jpeg)
3. [Essays so good, they eventually became books](https://josephcwells.com/curations/essays-that-became-books). Save time by reading the essays, get nuance by reading the books.
4. [Why George Orwell hates](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whPnobbck9s) the way you (and most likely a lot of people, specifically academics and people who use big words to sound smart) write.
5. A bit of tension at the Vatican.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A bit of tension at the Vatican.<br>If the Bishop moves forward, the Queen can take him. <a href="https://t.co/fOsW7cAWkI">pic.twitter.com/fOsW7cAWkI</a></p>&mdash; Whitey McWhiteyface (@OldWelshGit33) <a href="https://twitter.com/OldWelshGit33/status/1511608081637126149?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 6, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
6. [An essay on Countersignaling](https://www.marketingsociety.com/the-library/counter-signalling-or-signalling-it%E2%80%99s-all-about-status) being so rich you are allowed to act poor.

Thursday Assorted Links

## Links
- [Simple time management advice][1]
- [Tyler Cowen book recommendations][2]
- [What science should do for the average person][3]

## Things I Learned
["If by whiskey..."][4] (or Russell Conjugation) - A tactic used in certain arguments or debates to change the meaning or language used to describe something.

"If by whiskey" caught on from a speech in 1952 on whether or not Mississippi should change their prohibition laws. The lawyer making the speech said "If by whiskey you mean..." and went on to say all of the bad things that whiskey can do. Here's a brief excerpt:

> If when you say whiskey you mean the devil's brew, the poison scourge, the bloody monster, that defiles innocence, dethrones reason, destroys the home, creates misery and poverty, yea, literally takes the bread from the mouths of little children...

If that's what they meant by whiskey, then certainly he opposed it. But, he continued, saying:

> But, if when you say whiskey you mean the oil of conversation, the philosophic wine, the ale that is consumed when good fellows get together, that puts a song in their hearts and laughter on their lips, and the warm glow of contentment in their eyes; if you mean Christmas cheer; if you mean the stimulating drink that puts the spring in the old gentleman's step on a frosty, crispy morning

If that's what they meant by whiskey, then surely it was a good thing to have around.

[1]: https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2004/11/time_management.html
[2]: https://mostrecommendedbooks.com/tyler-cowen-books
[3]: https://www.coordinationproblem.org/2021/08/what-a-science-does-or-should-do-is-simply-to-allow-the-average-man-through-professional-specializat.html
[4]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/If-by-whiskey


Wednesday Assorted Thoughts

Inspired by [Julian Lehr](https://julian.digital/2021/05/03/media-consumption-apr-2021/), I wanted a place to document the various media I consumed each month. Partly to better remember what I learned about and partly to force myself to write at least one article per month that was low friction. Here's what I consumed in February of 2022:

## Articles
- [Walt Disney's Three Room System for Creativity](https://notes.daltonmabery.com/Evergreen+Notes/Walt+Disney's+three-room+system+to+creating+ideas) - I have to be honest here, I saw this idea on a TikTok and was fascinated by it. So I decided to do some further research and write a note on the idea. Essentially, Walt Disney's office had three separate rooms and they were all used differently during a brainstorming session. it's pretty cool.
- [Never Before Seen Pictures of Venus](https://www.inverse.com/science/venus-surface-pictures?utm_campaign=inverse&utm_content=1644520901&utm_medium=owned&utm_source=twitter) - Not much to comment on here. 
- [Observed Patterns Around Major Technological Advances](https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/iRhSi5KcnnD9qsAGo/observed-patterns-around-major-technological-advancements) - This was the first time I came across this site, 'LessWrong', and have been reading their content a lot. This article maps the patterns society routinely follows after a new technology. It explains the first version of a new technology is almost always of very low practical value. But after the first version comes out, things improve rapidly.
- [After the Fact](https://www.collaborativefund.com/blog/after-the-fact/) - Working out for an hour is only half the battle. After the workout, you have to ensure you don't ruin the progress 'after the fact.' The same is true for building wealth. Wealth is what you don't spend.
- [Visibility Isn't Success](https://holla.substack.com/p/visibility-isnt-success) - "Creating leads to a legacy beyond space and time. To me, that’s the meaning of success. You don’t see some people online, yet you’ll feel their impact for decades to come."
- [The Ketchup Condundrum](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2004/09/06/the-ketchup-conundrum) - This is quite possibly one of my favorite articles I've ever read. It's an amazing example of taking something nobody cares about, crafting a narrative around it, and explaining why it matters.
- [The Future of Netflix](https://every.to/napkin-math/the-future-of-netflix) - A great breakdown of the streaming wars, what Netflix is battling for, and the way Netflix thinks about it's customer. This article is a parallel to "Observed Patterns Around Major Technological Advances".
- [Motivation is a Myth](http://www.wisdomination.com/screw-motivation-what-you-need-is-discipline/) - This article obliterates the "I just don't feel like doing it today" argument so many people use with working out, reading, writing, and so on. It argues that motivation is a feeling that comes and goes as it pleases. But discipline stays ready to fight the battle. What people think they need is more motivation. What they actually need is more discipline.
- [Moore's Not Enough: 4 New Laws of Computing](https://spectrum.ieee.org/on-beyond-moores-law-4-new-laws-of-computing) - If you don't follow the latest trends in tech and programming, this might not be for you :) If you do, it's a cool breakdown of laws to help think through software and technology advancements.

## Books
- [Einstein: His Life and Universe](https://www.amazon.com/Einstein-Life-Universe-Walter-Isaacson/dp/0743264746) - Could not have gotten enough of this book. To be honest, I was a little emotional when it ended because of how much I enjoyed the author's writing and how much I enjoyed reading about Einstein's life. I've published my [notes on this book](https://www.daltonmabery.com/essays/einstein-his-life-and-universe) as well as an essay about the [philosophy that Einstein approached life with.](https://www.daltonmabery.com/essays/albert-einstein)
- [How We Got to Now](https://www.amazon.com/How-We-Got-Now-Innovations/dp/1594633932/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3F5382S0EQZU6&keywords=how+we+got+to+now&qid=1646081911&s=books&sprefix=how+we+got+to+no%2Cstripbooks%2C139&sr=1-1) - The feeling I get when I learn why something is the way that it is cannot be beaten and this book stirred up that feeling multiple times. Steven Johnson explains the history of six inventions that have shaped the modern world. I published [my notes on this book here.](https://www.daltonmabery.com/essays/how-we-got-to-now)

## Videos
- [What Happens if The Moon Crashes Into Earth](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lheapd7bgLA) - Did not see this turning out how it did. Really fun video.
- [Spaceship You](https://youtu.be/snAhsXyO3Ck) - This is an exceptional video on the importance of keeping a routine during the pandemic. It was posted in April 2020, so none of the information is novel. But the illustration of being on a lone spaceship with nobody but yourself helps communicate the idea in such a unique way.
- [How American Gothic Became an Icon](https://youtu.be/Lf3ER5Ope_s)
- [Why Knights Fought Snails in Medieval Art](https://youtu.be/6ISOK-XtvYs)
- [How 1 Photo From Space Explains ALL of History](https://youtu.be/ki-hoy-3ea8)
- [Tim Urban: Elon Musk, Neuralink, AI, Aliens, and the Future of Humanity | Lex Fridman Podcast #264](https://youtu.be/0Jd7fJgFkPU)
- [Feynman: Fire Fun to Imagine 2](https://youtu.be/ITpDrdtGAmo)
- [The True Science of Parallel Universes](https://youtu.be/Ywn2Lz5zmYg)

## Cool Sites
- [Simulation illustrating how the movement of people and ideologies spread](https://ncase.me/polygons/?utm_campaign=The%20Bookshelf&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Revue%20newsletter) - As I continue my education on political parties and politics in general, this simulation struck me. It shows how neighborhoods and cities naturally form around the ideas of the people who live there. If people don't get along, they'll move to a place where they fit in better. After a long enough time, almost every city becomes homogeneous.

links