Eugene and Charis discuss an essay written by Paul Jun, “The Four Dirty C-Words of the Internet”, and breakdown the usage of the words content, culture, community, and creator. They also talk about memes as shared language and the conduit through which beliefs are transmitted.

00:07:18 Four dirty c-words

00:33:20 Memes

The Four Dirty C-Words of the Internet by Paul Jun

How Memes Control Everything by Nathan Baschez

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Charis and Eugene talk about the global appeal of Squid Game and the possibility of supposedly niche cultural entertainment going viral. They also discuss the importance of Frances Haugen, the latest Facebook whistleblower, coming forward to testify about the need for social media platform regulations.

00:06:44 Squid Game

00:24:20 Facebook whistleblower

Planet Squid Game by Josef Adalian

Here are 4 key points from the Facebook whistleblower's testimony on Capitol Hill by Bobby Allyn

Facebook whistleblower testifies company 'is operating in the shadows, hiding its research from public scrutiny' by Samantha Murphy Kelly and Clare Duffy

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Eugene and Charis discuss Star Atlas, a space-fantasy RPG built on the Solana blockchain, that indicates the promising possibilities of funding game development through digital asset ownership. They also talk about the prevalence of captions on TikTok and how the use of captions signals considerations of design and inclusion.

00:04:18 Blockchain video games

00:28:05 TikTok captions

Star Atlas: The Most Ambitious Blockchain Game by Ryan Foo

Why captions are everywhere on TikTok: ‘Glasses for your ears’ by Brian Contreras

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Charis and Eugene talk about the Comme des Garçons and Dover Street Market brand-development division called Dover Street Market Paris that is similar to an incubator for emerging brands. They also discuss digital fashion as seen in how Farfetch recently seeded influencers their latest lines of clothing via digital fashion items.

00:04:40 CdG

00:26:45 Digital fashion

‘Lack of strategy is the strategy’: what Comme des Garçons did next by Alexander Fury published in Financial Times

Influencers are wearing digital versions of physical clothes now by Maghan McDowell published in Vogue Business

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Eugene and Charis discuss what makes a critique good as well as how to give and receive feedback well. Plus, they talk about overcoming Web3 bias in the context of understanding paradigm shifts.

00:03:37 Critiques

00:25:16 Paradigm Shifts

How to Take Criticism by Chapell Ellison

Google Slides from Charis’ PolyU class

Overcoming Web3 Bias | How to navigate strange new paradigms that could change everything—unless they don’t. by Nathan Baschez

Cryptopilled by Drew Coffman

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Charis and Eugene talk about a single topic inspired by “Nike’s End of Men” by Ethan Strauss. Their conversation covers a shift in Nike’s values (whether internal or what they project to the public), target audience, and marketing strategies.

00:04:17 Change at Nike

Nike’s End of Men by Ethan Strauss

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Eugene and Charis talk about the illusory nature of tech solutions for the climate crisis as well as personal responsibility in the face of it. They also discuss the artistic merit of the release of Kanye West’s DONDA.

00:04:42 Climate crisis

00:24:15 DONDA

It’s Time to Replace Ambition with Adaptation by Rosie Spinks

The Other Crisis by Jon Leighton

DONDA, Kanye West

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Charis and Eugene talk about the attraction to and difficulty in thinking rationally. They also discuss the awkward relationship between tech and fashion.

00:05:52 Rationality

00:27:39 Tech/fashion

Why Is It So Hard to Be Rational? by Joshua Rothman

Worn Out by Drew Austin

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Eugene and Charis discuss “Ghosts” by Vauhini Vara, a creative writing piece written with the assistance of the language AI GPT-3 (Generative Pre-Trained Transformer 3). They also talk about sexism and double standards in sports as seen in recent discussions around uniform requirements in women’s sports.

00:07:02 Language AI

00:29:01 Sexism in sports

Ghosts by Vauhini Vara

Facing Outrage Over Bikini Rule, Handball Federation Signals ‘Likely’ Change by Jenny Gross

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Charis and Eugene talk about the factors that lead to the prominence of curators and curation. They also discuss the trend, as WGSN calls it, of “genuinfluencers”, who interact with their audiences differently and share content that is a departure from the traditional influencer fare.

00:07:54 Curators

00:33:39 “Genuinfluencers”

Curators All the Way Down by Gaby Goldberg

Meet the “genuinfluencers” who don’t want to sell you anything by Kati Chitrakorn

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