The World's Best Book Summaries
Should you bring your “whole self” to work? Why has this become a heated debate? Many workplaces are encouraging employees to bring their “whole (authentic) self” to work. However, not everyone can agree on what exactly this means or what the risks and benefits are to your career. Keep reading to learn more about bringing your whole self to work and why it’s debated.
When have major extinction events occurred? What causes mass extinctions? Are there ever human-caused extinctions? A Short History of Nearly Everything is an accessible overview of the natural sciences that discusses major scientific discoveries, mysteries, and controversies. It’s in this context that author Bill Bryson addresses the serious matter of extinction and its causes. Keep reading for an introduction to this sobering reality of our history and probably our future.
What are meaningless jobs? Why are they a little-known consequence of toxic American work culture and values? In his book Bullshit Jobs, David Graeber explores the phenomenon of meaningless jobs in industrialized Western societies. He claims that American work culture and values have allowed meaningless jobs to thrive, resulting in damaging psychological effects on workers and society at large. Read on to learn more about American work culture, values, and meaningless jobs, according to Graeber.
What is nuclear fusion and how does it produce energy? How close are we to fusion power? Scientists at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) recently achieved net positive energy from a fusion reaction. Scientists hope that fusion will be the foundation of cheap, clean, and sustainable energy for the future. Read on to find out how close we are to fusion power, according to NIF scientists.
Why are care workers paid so little? How do cultural values contribute to underpaying care workers? Author and anthropologist David Graeber wrote Bullshit Jobs in part to explain how society undervalues care work. According to him, because care work doesn’t produce goods, society views it as less important and justifies paying care workers so little. Read on to learn more about why care workers are paid so little, according to Graeber.
What is systems awareness? How can it help us solve global problems such as climate change? In his book Focus, Daniel Goleman outlines three main directions you can aim your attention: inward, toward others, and outward. He connects each direction to certain skills. He associates an outward focus with the skill of systems awareness. Keep reading to learn how tackling the biggest problems requires systems awareness and learn some concrete steps we can take to achieve it.
What are some life lessons from plants? What can plants teach us about mutual care? In Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimmerer shows us how the relationships between plants help individuals and communities flourish. Plants engage cooperatively, which can inspire us to practice mutual care with other humans as well as non-human beings. Let’s look at the many life lessons plants teach us about care and respect.
How can creating new jobs cause problems in society? Why does job creation sometimes result in useless jobs? According to anthropology professor David Graeber, useless jobs have become widespread in most modern societies. He claims that creating new jobs, while beneficial when done responsibly, can also cause the proliferation of useless jobs for economic and political reasons. Keep reading to learn how creating new jobs can also produce meaningless jobs, according to Graeber.
Why are so many Black Americans loyal to the Democratic Party? Are Democrats actually keeping Blacks down? With her book Blackout, Candace Owens is rallying the troops. She sees the Democratic Party as modern-day slavery and is calling on all Black Americans to walk out in a mass exodus. Keep reading for an overview of this eye-opening book.
Why is distrust of media so high? How and why do mainstream media outlets push political agendas? Candace Owens says that mainstream media are biased and hypocritical and that they cruelly exploit tragedies to assert their political views. Profit, she says, is at least one of the reasons behind this malpractice. Continue reading to learn about mainstream media bias, exploitation, and profit.