Each week the HODINKEE team members gather their favorite finds from around the internet and recommend them to you right here. These are not articles about watches, but rather outstanding examples of journalism and storytelling covering topics from fashion and art to technology and travel. So go ahead, pour yourself a cup of coffee, put your feet up, and settle in.
A 2-dimensional slice of a 6-dimensional Calabi-Yau manifold; graphic by Andrew J. Hanson.
Are We Living In A Computer Simulation? Let's Not Find Out ?The New York Times
Though the idea that we might be living in a computer simulation ?an extremely high fidelity computer simulation ?seems the stuff of science fiction, there are some arguments that it might actually be the case, arguments which are harder to dismiss than you might think. One estimate is that the ratio of sims to real people could be as high as a trillion to one ?and, moreover, that there may be a way to experimentally test the idea, by looking for certain ?well, glitches in the Matrix. A recent article in the New York Times Sunday Review, however, argues that to conduct such experiments would be to court disaster on a truly cosmic and unprecedented scale. As if we didn't have enough to worry about.
-Jack Forster, Editor-In-Chief
ADVERTISEMENTThe Evolution Of Hybrid Technology In Formula One ?Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport (YouTube)
For those following along, it's been an interesting year in F1. Driver swaps, bizarre penalties, and Hamilton's continued domination aside, it's also the 10th anniversary of the first time that a hybrid car won a race (driven by Hamilton at the 2009 Hungarian GP). In this short but interesting video, Andy Cowell, the Managing Director of Mercedes-AMG High Performance Powertrains, offers an overview of how hybrid technology has evolved within the world of F1. As we enter what is arguably the final age of internal combustion GPs, this video outlines the tech that will bridge the coming transition to fully electrified platforms (likely similar to those used in Formula E).
-James Stacey, Senior Writer
The Five Best Hikes In N.Y.C ?The New York Times
Green space comes at a premium when living in any big city. Thankfully, in New York, we do have the luxury of large parks like Central and Prospect and the ability to easily jump on a train and escape the concrete jungle. Even with that in mind, you might be surprised to find that the city that never sleeps offers some interesting hikes that intersect both the urban and the bucolic. The New York Times put together a list of five hikes in NYC that will make you forget that you are living in one of the most populous areas in the world. Go out and get into some green, it's closer thank you think.
-Nick Roberts, Public Relations
How Aggressively Cute Toys For Adults Became A $686 Million Business ?Vox.com
I feel like I understand collecting. I collect watches, of course, as well as decks of playing cards. I inherited a small stamp collection. All sorts of people collect all sorts of stuff. Yet I never understood why the heck anyone would collect those anime-proportioned figurines you see everywhere nowadays. I mean, I get it, but at the same time, it's never clicked for me. I had Beanie Babies - they didn't make me rich. But the Funko Pop (their actual name) trend is here, and the market is very strong. In this article, Vox dives into how they became the pop-culture force they currently are and gives a glimpse into the lives of those who collect them by the thousands.
-Brad Slavin, Advertising Manager
IndyCar At Road America Shot In Super 8 Is Charmingly Incomplete - Hagerty
Racecar driver Nick Shirrell filmed a modern IndyCar race using a 1968 Canon 1218 Super 8 film camera and the effect is incredible. This footage reminded me of the kind of grainy resolution available in an era before the invention of technology for high resolution capturing and display playback. Watching this video produces a strange feeling as it tricks me into thinking the event took place many decades ago. Perhaps it's the grainy resolution or the lack of computer-aided stabilization, but something about this kind of analog recording is just so much more visceral and emotional. Within the context of our modern perspective, the video is so much fun to fake watch and feels a bit like an old home movie.
-Andy Yang, Director of Marketing
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