Hello friends,

how are you coping with the winter season? Some of us are winter persons, meaning we simply love the season. For those of you that are not that fond of winter, here are just a few reasons that should help you cope with it: it’s the only time of the year when you can relish in being warm, cosy and full of comfort food. The time of the year when it feels right to just get under a warm blanket and read a good book, or watch your favourite show. And most importantly, the time of the year when we are reminded that we should appreciate and feel thankful for our family and friends.

Let’s enjoy the season. Before we start with our topics, here’s a song called Winter Song from Sara Bareilles and Ingrid Michaelson, the version with lyrics.

Yes, love is alive. You can listen to it while reading the newsletter.

TECH 👨‍💻

1. I am sure you heard about web3, lots of people are using the term and speaking about it. But what exactly is web3? Web3, explained.

2. A nice mindful messaging app. Pony Messenger.

3. Say hello to…Xenobots 3.0 - robots that will be able to reproduce? Okay, this really is mindblowing. You start to wonder where exactly are we headed? Read about it.

4. Here is a useful browser extension for Youtube. Pockettube.

5. If you have old accounts, you should close them. How to delete your old accounts and why you should do it.

CULTURE 🧬

1. I really don’t know if we will be able to travel safely or not next year. You know, the pandemic. But just in case we do, here are The 22 Best Places to Go in 2022.

2. It’s december. We eat more than we normally do (or is it just me?). Anyways, here are some December Recipes that will warm you right up.

3. What goes best with good winter food? Well, good winter movies ! Here is a list of 50 Winter Movies for When It's Too Cold to Go Outside.

4. But if you’re not in the mood for movies, maybe you are in the mood to listen to something. Here is a list of the Top 50 Podcast chart for Q3 2021.

5. An unusual museum. The mobile phone museum.

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   PHILOSOPHY 📜

1. Many philosophers debated over the notion of happiness. One of them, Epicurus, suggested that pleasure was found in simple living. Read more about the Epicurean Philosophy for Finding Happiness.

2. A short philosophical animation : The Missing Scarf.

3. A really great book from author Oliver Burkeman : The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking.

4. Learn about the Psychology of Regret.

5. Yes, life is hard, but most of us are still happy. Unequal yet happy.

Now let’s talk books. The two books this week and the usual five notes from each book. The first book is a classic book, one of the greatest books i have ever read : Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte.

Here are five notes from the book:

1. If all the world hated you and believed you wicked, while your own conscience approved of you and absolved you from guilt, you would not be without friends.

2. There is no happiness like that of being loved by your fellow creatures, and feeling that your presence is an addition to their comfort.

3. It is in vain to say human beings ought to be satisfied with tranquility: they must have action; and they will make it if they cannot find it.

4. Crying does not indicate that you are weak. Since birth, it has always been a sign that you are alive.

5. I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself.

Our second book of the week is one about startups and entrepreneurship. Zero to One by Peter Thiel and Blake Masters.

Here are five notes from the book:

1. Every startup should start with a very small market. Reach a few thousand people who really needed your product.

2. Once you think that you’re playing the lottery, you’ve already psychologically prepared yourself to lose.

3. Our schools teach the opposite: “It doesn’t matter what you do, as long as you do it well.” That is completely false. It does matter what you do. You should focus relentlessly on something you’re good at doing, but before that you must think hard about whether it will be valuable in the future.

4. If you’ve invented something new but you haven’t invented an effective way to sell it, you have a bad business - no matter how good the product.

5. Creating value is not enough - you also need to capture some of the value you create.

French philosopher Jacques Derrida on psychoanalysis:

Psychoanalysis has taught that the dead – a dead parent, for example – can be more alive for us, more powerful, more scary, than the living. It is the question of ghosts.

Professor of Behavioural Science Dr Grace Lordan on certainty:

As humans we love certainty, so even if we’ve created for ourselves a goal we are moving towards and then we change our minds, for the period we are doing it there is certainty.

Bestselling author Elizabeth Gilbert on love, loss and how to move through grief :

Grief is a force of energy that cannot be controlled or predicted. It comes and goes on its own schedule. Grief does not obey your plans, or your wishes. Grief will do whatever it wants to you, whenever it wants to. In that regard, Grief has a lot in common with Love.

Now let’s take a good breath of nature, with the weekly nature shorts.

This week’s reads that were carefully chosen for you:

🟪 How to Read a Jellyfish's Mind. The human brain has 100 billion neurons, making 100 trillion connections, which makes it an incredibly complex puzzle for neuroscientists. But now, fundamental questions about the neuroscience of behavior may be answered through a new and much simpler model organism: tiny jellyfish.

🟩 The Great Escape. Why workers are quitting their jobs, after the trauma of the pandemic.

🟨 Nature Is Becoming a Person. How to make sense of the new global trend that grants legal rights to animals, plants, and rivers.

Time for some great finds from the web:

🟣 An artificial intelligence tool that will judge your music.

🟢 So many lives were lost due to the pandemic. Discover Griefdeck - a resource for people that are grieving, you can find lots of flashcards that were made by artists or caregivers or people who have lost someone.

🟡 If you are in the mood for the sound of rain, wind, or even a thunderstorm, check out Pluvior.

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You can also support if you buy me a coffee. Thanks a lot. Have a great week forward. Even if it’s cold outside, just put on your warmest coat 🧥 and get out, just walk and enjoy the wintertime ❄️ Walking and getting some fresh cold air does wonders.

Oh, and one more thing: next edition of powernotes (next monday, on december 20) - will be a Christmas-themed edition 🎅 🎄 🎁 So don’t miss it.