Books I'm Reading
It’s becoming increasingly clear the impact that dopamine has on our physiological well-being. App designers and others with an economic interest in grabbing and keeping a user’s attention deeply understand and aim to take advantage of the human body’s neural and chemical design.
Equipped with this knowledge, we should begin making wiser choices about what we give our attention to, and for how long.
“I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless.”
Psalm 101:3
From the Goodreads summary:
In Dopamine Nation, Dr. Anna Lembke, psychiatrist and author, explores the exciting new scientific discoveries that explain why the relentless pursuit of pleasure leads to pain . . . and what to do about it. Condensing complex neuroscience into easy-to-understand metaphors, Lembke illustrates how finding contentment and connectedness means keeping dopamine in check. The lived experiences of her patients are the gripping fabric of her narrative. Their riveting stories of suffering and redemption give us all hope for managing our consumption and transforming our lives. In essence, Dopamine Nation shows that the secret to finding balance is combining the science of desire with the wisdom of recovery.
Podcast I'm Listening To
Another fascinating interview from Lex Fridman with Michael Levin, a biologist at Tufts University working on novel ways to understand and control complex pattern formation in biological systems.
On Bitcoin
Saving in Bitcoin, and the incentives this brings, starts to cultivate various character attributes into a person. Here are few:
- Longer time preference
- Self control
- Fortitude during struggle
- Desire for community with like-minded people
- Desire to align short-term actions with long-term
All of these are great things.
Bitcoin is worth you spending 10 hours learning about it. If it’s intriguing to you after 10 hours, spend another 10. You may discover what many others have: it’s the best way to preserve the economic value you’re spending your finite time on this earth earning.
Tweets I'm Reading
No more photoshoots!
— Pavol Rusnak (@PavolRusnak) November 27, 2025
Just use this Nano Banana Pro prompt with a selfie:
"A professional, high-resolution profile photo, maintaining the exact facial structure, identity, and key features of the person in the input image. The subject is framed from the chest up, with ample… pic.twitter.com/k9WWZapfWy
How worried should Bitcoiners be about quantum computing? Check out our @LuganoPlanB Forum panel to hear the latest thoughts from a variety of perspectives!https://t.co/WAiVq7h7GI
— Jameson Lopp (@lopp) November 27, 2025
25 years of straight to the point Carnivore advice in 8 minutes flat. #carnivore #weightloss #weightlossjourney pic.twitter.com/9rEQAaBlGa
— Anthony Chaffee, MD (@anthony_chaffee) November 27, 2025
I sometimes help my friends rewrite their announcements/launches/blog posts for Twitter.
— Dwarkesh Patel (@dwarkesh_sp) September 16, 2025
Sharing what ends up commonly helpful.
90% of my value ends up being just getting them to say what they're trying to say.
Literally the first thing I do is discard their current draft,…
my friend asked if i have any tips for showing up to a party alone
— Adele Bloch (@adele_bloch) November 26, 2025
(of course I do!!!)
this is an underrated skill – knowing how to show up confidently makes events way less stressful
tips:
> please don't hide in the corner on your phone – it will signal 'don't talk to me'
>…
If you have feedback for me, if something resonates and you want to see more of it, reply in the comments below. You can also tweet at me on Twitter @the_cody_hall.
I look forward to hearing from you!
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