The dynamics of real human societies cannot be accurately predicted far in the future because of the nature of chaotic behavior, free will, and natural disasters.
~Peter Turchin
Unexpected Articles from this Week
A team of researchers has claimed to have created a superconductor that works at both room temperature and relatively low pressure. This has the potential to revolutionize electronics, but their claim is facing extreme scrutiny, and the ultimate test will be whether it can be confirmed by other researchers. The material is made of hydrogen mixed with nitrogen and lutetium, and the team has reported several hallmarks of a superconductor. The research has faced significant skepticism due to the team’s history and other researchers’ inability to reproduce their results. Read more here
Scientists have used muon imaging to map out a hidden corridor behind the famous chevron blocks on the north face of the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. This technique works by detecting the particles, known as muons, that are created by cosmic rays, and it is much more powerful than X-ray imaging or ground-penetrating radar. The corridor is about 9 meters long, 2×2 meters in size, and appears to slope upwards, although it is unclear where it leads. This is the most significant archaeological discovery of the 21st century. Read more here
China is set to raise its military spending by 7.2%, the fastest rate since 2019, and economic growth goal for this year is to be around 5%. This comes as Beijing is facing increasing pressure from the US over trade, human rights, and other issues, with some analysts believing the military spending increase is due to China’s intent to take over Taiwan and keep the US out of the region. The meetings of the National People’s Congress and the concurrent “political consultative conference” serve as a forum for attendees to present pet projects, but they have little say in broader questions of how China is run. Read more here.
A gold medal discovered in Denmark contains a runic inscription that is the earliest reference to Norse mythology, dating back to around 400. This discovery shows that the Viking religion of Odin and Thor is at least 150 years older than previously estimated. This finding may help researchers better understand other, unreadable prehistoric runic inscriptions. Read more here.
What I am reading
•Great Pyramid: How My Research on Ancient Egyptian Poetry Led to an Amazing Discovery (Article)
•The Hero and the Outlaw (Book)
•Geopolitical Alpha (Book)
•Zero to One (Book)
If you are looking for an investment in your startup, please tell me about your project.
As always – I would enjoy hearing from you (what you found interesting, the format of this email, notes from your own explorations, etc.), feel free to just respond to this email.
Until next week,
Ian Eliason