The hottest Information Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Top Technology Topics

Why did we lose trust during the pandemic?

Your Local Epidemiologist • 1381 implied HN points • 14 Mar 24
🏥 Health & Wellness Trust Public Health Communication Information Improvement
  1. Public health messaging sounded like a sales pitch, leading to a loss of trust due to data issues, messaging inaccuracies, and a mix of advocacy with scientific communication.
  2. Helpful information, like practical tips for care and specific risk factors, was missing, causing confusion and fear among the public.
  3. Opinions being treated as facts and a disconnect between personal experiences and the official narrative led to frustration and loss of trust, but some improvements are being made to address these issues.

The Summary Edition

Why is this interesting? • 1387 implied HN points • 30 Jan 24
🎭️ Culture Technology AI Media Information Content
  1. AI-driven summaries are becoming more prevalent, affecting how we consume information.
  2. Tech-enabled summarization tools can be helpful due to the abundance of content, but they may strip away depth and context.
  3. Relying too much on AI for distilling information raises questions about the loss of individual interpretation and meaning-making.
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Images are Biased

Never Met a Science • 77 implied HN points • 26 Feb 24
🕹 Technology Media Communication Data Images Information
  1. Images are a biased form of communication compared to text because they inherently introduce bias by conveying more context and extra-textual information.
  2. Different communication modalities like images and text convey different amounts and types of information, impacting how we understand and interpret data and knowledge.
  3. Understanding the rise of visual communication technologies can lead to a deeper comprehension of the effects of information technology on society and help in decision-making for the future.

Movers and Shakers - a Parkinson’s podcast

Rory’s Always On Newsletter • 1356 implied HN points • 18 Mar 23
🎙 Podcasts Health Entertainment Medicine Support Information
  1. A group with Parkinson's launched the podcast Movers and Shakers after meeting at a London pub.
  2. The podcast features individuals with media backgrounds, including a High Court judge, discussing Parkinson's.
  3. The aim of the podcast is to educate, inform, and entertain, reaching out to people with Parkinson's, their caregivers, and the general public.

Rabbit Holes 🕳️ #68

Creative Destruction • 28 implied HN points • 21 Feb 24
🎭️ Culture Media Sustainability Information Mindset Art
  1. In today's age of information overload, our curiosity now distracts us, leading to intellectual obesity in the form of a flood of low-quality 'junk info'. This 'junk info' is like fast food for thought - cheap to produce, satisfying to consume, but low in nutrition.
  2. The sustainability movement needs to focus on internal sustainability, not just external factors like ecosystems and technology. Our mind plays a crucial role in the climate crisis as it determines our relationships with ourselves, others, and nature.
  3. Immediacy, or the collapse of mediation, is a powerful and destructive driver in the modern world. It eliminates the middle ground of reflection and personal connection, affecting how we perceive and engage with information and culture.

Tyler Cowen is an Information Monster

Never Met a Science • 44 implied HN points • 23 Jul 23
🎭️ Culture Media Philosophy Ideology Information Politics
  1. Tyler Cowen is viewed as an information monster due to his exceptional capacity to process vast amounts of information and his focus on information density in media.
  2. Cowen's ideologies and arguments should be understood in the context of his information consumption habits, which prioritize speed and quantity over control and deliberation.
  3. There is a debate on whether society should prioritize consuming more information at a faster pace, as emphasized by Cowen, or slowing down to regain control and promote thoughtful decision-making.

Attention Ecology

Soaring Twenties • 2 HN points • 14 Feb 24
🎭️ Culture Media Information Communications Technology Novelty
  1. In the past, people had to carefully choose and condense information before sharing it, but with modern technology, we share vast amounts instantly without prior filtration.
  2. Today, we are bombarded with excessive information and have become indiscriminate in our sharing and consumption, prioritizing novelty over importance.
  3. Our current habits of constant information consumption resemble addiction, leading to information overload and a need to reevaluate our relationship with information for meaningful use.

VOL 57: From Gutenberg to Google: How the Printing Press Shaped the Digital Age

MAP's Tech Newsletter. • 4 implied HN points • 18 Feb 23
🕹 Technology Innovation Internet Communication Digital Information
  1. The printing press revolutionized access to knowledge by making books more affordable and paved the way for the development of the Internet.
  2. Both the printing press and the Internet facilitated rapid spread of information and decentralized gatekeeping, impacting society in unforeseen ways.
  3. The impact of innovations like the printing press and the Internet on society is closely related to the speed and scale of communication they enable, influencing human technology and knowledge sharing.

Basso Continuo & Internet Search

Crossfade • 1 HN point • 24 Apr 23
🎭️ Culture Music History Technology Philosophy Information
  1. AI is portrayed dramatically in media and technology, without reflecting reality.
  2. Internet search is where people first encounter AI in daily life, impacting how we access information.
  3. Transition from Baroque to Classical music notation can provide insights into the evolution of systems like internet search and AI, suggesting a focus on approximations rather than definitive answers.

Learn Together

Are You Okay? • 0 implied HN points • 29 Mar 20
🏥 Health & Wellness Information
  1. The author plans to cover essential information about the coronavirus throughout the week in a virtual class.
  2. The author's patients and readers are seeking answers and information about the unfolding situation with the virus.
  3. The post suggests that learning together and sharing knowledge is important during this challenging time.

Inaccuracy Is Your Friend - Squadron Weekly Email

Squirrel Squadron Substack • 0 implied HN points • 26 Nov 23
💼 Business Data Decisions Truth Information
  1. Don't focus on having perfectly accurate data; multiple sources of truth are beneficial.
  2. Even with noisy and conflicting data, successful outcomes are possible, as seen with the Apollo 11 landing.
  3. Embrace inconsistent information and make decisions based on the bigger picture, like looking out the window, rather than getting bogged down in details.

Tucker Carlson Explains Why He Interviewed Putin: "Most Americans Are Not Informed... We're Here Because We Love The US"

Global Community Weekly (GloCom) • 0 implied HN points • 07 Feb 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Media Interview Propaganda Information Foreign Policy
  1. Tucker Carlson interviewed Putin because he believes most Americans are uninformed about global events.
  2. The corporate media fails to provide comprehensive coverage of international conflicts and important global figures.
  3. Carlson's motivation for the interview with Putin was driven by a desire to inform and protect the prosperity and freedom of the United States.

Tomato Flu!

Joshua Gans' Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 24 Aug 22
🏥 Health & Wellness Disease Prevention Information Wellness
  1. Tomato Flu is a new virus in Kerala, India, affecting children under 5. It shows similar symptoms to COVID-19 but isn't connected to it.
  2. As of July, 82 cases of Tomato Flu were reported in Kerala. It's believed to spread through close contact.
  3. Experts believe Tomato Flu is self-limiting and not a significant concern. It's a trending topic but may not require immediate action.

Taking variants seriously

Joshua Gans' Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 26 Apr 21
🏥 Health & Wellness Variants COVID-19 Vaccines Testing Information
  1. Variants of the virus have higher reproduction numbers and spread more effectively in certain environments, posing a significant threat.
  2. Considering variants as new viruses could prompt more focused and proactive measures like containment and targeted testing and vaccination.
  3. Efforts to combat new variants require heightened focus on genomic testing, international collaboration, and strategic allocation of resources to areas where variants are emerging.

How many vaccine doses do you need?

Joshua Gans' Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 18 Nov 20
🏥 Health & Wellness Vaccines Immunity Logistics Information Pandemic
  1. Vaccine dosages are crucial - receiving two doses is necessary to ensure proper immune response and protection for individuals.
  2. Timing of vaccine doses is important - while sticking to the recommended schedule is ideal, there is some flexibility in providing the second dose within a reasonable timeframe.
  3. Good information infrastructure is essential - reliable systems are needed to track who received which vaccine doses and when to ensure effective vaccination management.

Test Week: The Information Gap

Joshua Gans' Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 17 Aug 20
🔬 Science Health Testing Epidemiology Information Decisions
  1. Testing for a virus like Covid-19 helps solve the information problem for pandemics, potentially saving costs and impacting decisions like diagnosis, clearance, surveillance, and mitigation.
  2. The effectiveness of tests relies on the prevalence of the virus in the population; when prevalence is low, test results can be noisier and less useful.
  3. Contact tracing complements testing by providing additional information, especially in increasing the value of imperfect tests by identifying those more likely to be infected.