P.S. You Should Know... | Issue #317

my story 🚀

Usually it’s just the kids who get to dress up.

fun facts 🙌

So you want to launch a hedge fund? Among other challenges, the classic 2-and-20 fee structure is now “1.35-and-16”. ~ learn more

A look into MrBeast’s media empire. “‍Jimmy Donaldson — aka MrBeast — has established an online multi-platform empire with nearly 200 million followers, planted ~25 million trees, given millions of dollars away, and even helped 1,000 blind people see again. He’s also 24 years old.” ~ learn more

Why the moon landing footage couldn’t have been faked. “The filmmaker takes a look at the video technology of the late 1960's, showing alleged fraud was simply not possible.” ~ learn more

oh, chicago 🏆

Did a consultant steal $680k from the Vallas campaign? “Chimaobi Enyia, hired to get out the vote in Black communities, is accused of being paid for work he refused to give an accounting of or return the money when confronted by mayoral candidate Paul Vallas.” ~ learn more

tech, startups, internet ⚡

Excuse me, is there a problem? Recommended reading for anyone who spends time around early-stage businesses. “Many startups fail despite identifying a real problem and building a product that solves that problem. This explains why, so you can avoid their fate.” ~ learn more

The 4 questions startups should ask themselves about building with generative AI. Tom Tunguz presentation about the 4 questions: layer; market; moat; ai depth. I liked that the author shares the prompts for the AI images he used in the slide deck. Example: “A robot working on a rocket in a laboratory cartoon.” ~ learn more

better doing 🎯

Mental liquidity. The ability to quickly abandon previous beliefs. Mostly our brains try to resist information that’s contrary to beliefs. Click thru for a nice Albert Einstein anecdote. ~ learn more

to your health ⚕

Heart attack deaths drop over past two decades. This is so awesome to read. ~ learn more

retail therapy 💸

The age of average. Over the years I have shared articles that reflect bits and pieces of this story. Now, a more comprehensive look. “This article argues that from film to fashion and architecture to advertising, creative fields have become dominated and defined by convention and cliché. Distinctiveness has died. In every field we look at, we find that everything looks the same. Welcome to the age of average.” ~ learn more

Why brands like JuneShine are pivoting away from direct-to-consumer sales. Late last year they shuttered their d2c business. Similarly, Liquid Death no longer sells its canned water d2c, pointing customers to Amazon instead. It’s because after accounting for all costs, their margins were actually better in wholesale channels. ~ learn more

under the microscope 🔬

Fighting the good fight against mosquito bites. “New research into bite-protection has taken a readily available natural molecule, cellulose, and manipulated it to produce a product that saw an 80% reduction in mosquito feeds on human skin.” ~ learn more

Special diet triggers self-destruction of brain cancer cells in mice. “In their study, the team fed mice a diet that restricted the intake of cysteine and methionine, two sulfur amino acids… Not only did they find that the diet made glioblastoma cells more likely to die from ferroptosis, but they also noted that the cells become more subject to chemotherapy drugs, meaning that they could be delivered in lower doses.” ~ learn more

on the blockchain ⛓

The SEC is coming for Bittrex. Matt Levine explains in vivid detail the trap that is the US regulatory environment, and the sense of scary foreboding that other US crypto exchanges might be experiencing these days. ~ learn more (open in incognito if paywalled)

thanks for reading!