Saturdays we catch up with the non-finance related items that we didn’t get to earlier in the week. You can check out last week’s edition. Have a great weekend!
Quote of the Day
"Everyone knows everything is fine in moderation. But why do we all suck so bad at moderating?"
(Michael Easter)
EVs
- EV batteries are outperforming expectations. (jalopnik.com)
- Australian sales of EVS topped gas-powered cars for the first time in August. (nytimes.com)
Energy
- California's utilities are in a tough position. (bloomberg.com)
- What can you do to make yourself more energy independent. (bonddad.blogspot.com)
Travel
- Key West runs, in large part, on Haitian labor. (nytimes.com)
- AI is coming for air traffic control. (arstechnica.com)
Animals
- For the first time in over 30 years, Newfoundland and Labrador’s Northern cod stock has been deemed “healthy” by Ottawa. (canadianaffairs.news)
- Great Lakes sturgeon may be way older than previously thought. (smithsonianmag.com)
- Warmer weather makes for more wasps. (msn.com)
- How Alberta defeated brown rats. (worksinprogress.news)
AI assistants
- Meta's ($META) Muse is pretty good. (spyglass.org)
- Putting Siri AI through its paces. (pogueman.substack.com)
AI slop
- Former legitimate web sites are getting sloppified. (futurism.com)
- Book authors now need to be on the lookout for AI knockoffs. (theatlantic.com)
Behavior
- Short-form video is not great for your brain. (theatlantic.com)
- The number of clinical trials on psychedelics is on the rise. (wapo.st)
Health
- What recent deaths say about the size of the measles outbreak in Pennsylvania. (theatlantic.com)
- How the immigration crackdown is putting children at risk. (npr.org)
- Who really needs a heart calcium scan? (sciencedaily.com)
- Dying isn't easy for anyone involved. (sensible-med.com)
Fitness
- Why you should take your sleep tracker data with a grain of salt. (wsj.com)
- A look at exercise vs. diet for weight loss. (twopct.com)
- "Protocols: An Operating Manual for the Human Body" by Andrew Huberman is a fire hose of recommendations. (slate.com)
Drugs
- Cychlorphine, a new synthetic opioid, is 10 times as potent as fentanyl. (nytimes.com)
- How Portugal rolled out drug decriminalization. (theconversation.com)
Drink
- College kids have found a new way to binge drink. (eurekalert.org)
- When did martinis become a personality? (slate.com)
Food
- Driscoll's entered the berry market in China and promptly got ripped off. (wsj.com)
- How the New World Screwworm made a comeback. (sciencedaily.com)
- Are darker egg yolks actually healthier? (scientificamerican.com)
EPL
- The EPL is the undisputed king of global football, but has it lost its soul in the process? (bloomberg.com)
- Why are so many English football clubs for sale? (nytimes.com)
Sports
- Why position players are pitching more innings than ever. (neilpaine.substack.com)
- LeBron James will make more money from his Polymarket partnership than from playing for the 76ers. (frontofficesports.com)
- Is competitive fly fishing an oxymoron? (whyisthisinteresting.substack.com)
- A look at the new Belmont Park. (nytimes.com)
College
- The BusinessWeek MBA rankings for 2026 with Stanford on top. (bloomberg.com)
- On campus you can now hire a 'concierge mom.' (nytimes.com)
- College students need to sleep more. (theconversation.com)
Earlier on Abnormal Returns
- What you missed in our Thursday linkfest. (abnormalreturns.com)
- Don't miss a thing! Sign up for our daily e-mail newsletter. (abnormalreturns.com)
- Work in wealth management? Sign up for our exclusive Talking Wealth newsletter. (talkingwealthpod.com)
Facts Only
EV batteries are outperforming expectations.
Australian sales of EVS topped gas-powered cars in August.
California utilities are in a tough position.
Key West runs rely in large part on Haitian labor.
Newfoundland and Labrador’s Northern cod stock was deemed "healthy" by Ottawa.
Great Lakes sturgeon may be older than previously thought.
Warmer weather results in more wasps.
Alberta defeated brown rats.
Meta's Muse is considered good.
Siri AI is being tested.
Former legitimate websites are being sloppified.
Book authors need to watch for AI knockoffs.
Short-form video is not great for the brain.
Clinical trials on psychedelics are increasing.
Recent deaths provide data on the measles outbreak size in Pennsylvania.
Heart calcium scans are questioned for necessity.
Cychlorphine, a new synthetic opioid, is 10 times as potent as fentanyl.
Portugal rolled out drug decriminalization.
Driscoll's was reportedly ripped off in the berry market in China.
The New World Screwworm made a comeback.
The EPL is the undisputed king of global football.
LeBron James's earnings from Polymarket partnerships are noted.
Competitive fly fishing is questioned as an oxymoron.
BusinessWeek MBA rankings for 2026 place Stanford on top.
College students are advised to sleep more.
Executive Summary
Full Take
The presented information reveals a landscape where technological acceleration and environmental shifts intersect with deep-seated human behavioral and biological realities. The juxtaposition of cutting-edge AI developments (Muse, Siri testing) against concerns about the degradation of digital integrity (AI slop) suggests a tension between capability and consequence that requires careful navigation. Simultaneously, environmental and public health data—from energy vulnerability in California to shifting animal populations and mortality statistics—highlights systemic fragility.
The pattern emerging is one of rapid information saturation where immediate personal concerns are framed alongside macro-level systemic instability. For instance, the discussion on moderation ("why do we all suck so bad at moderating?") directly contrasts with the complexity of managing energy independence or navigating complex pharmaceutical landscapes (synthetic opioids). This framing invites a critical examination of what constitutes 'moderation' when faced with exponential change.
The implications suggest that cognitive sovereignty is tested not just by external threats, but by the ability to process and prioritize realities amidst this volume. If systems—whether in finance, energy, or information flow—are operating under outdated assumptions, the speed at which new knowledge emerges may outpace our capacity to achieve principled moderation across all domains. The challenge lies in applying rigorous analysis to these disparate fields without succumbing to reactive fear; resisting the impulse to seek simple certainty in a world characterized by complexity.
BRIDGE QUESTIONS: If systems are fundamentally fragile, where should cognitive focus be placed to maximize resilience—in mitigating immediate biological risks, establishing equitable resource distribution, or redefining the boundaries of acceptable technological velocity? How can we develop frameworks for moderation that account for both individual neurological constraints and global environmental pressures? What mechanisms are needed to ensure that scientific advancement translates into collective agency rather than further fragmentation?