Start your week with nine curated reads, served fresh each Monday

Kickoff For May 22, 2023

Welcome to this week's edition of the Monday Kickoff, a collection of what I've found interesting, informative, and insightful on the web over the last seven days.

Let's get this Monday started with these links:

The Spaceport at the Edge of the World, wherein we learn about the intention to create a centre for launching satellites in a desolate area of Scotland, and the hopes around that to revive a town's declining fortunes.

How Americans edit sex out of my writing, wherein Walter Grünzweig looks at the differences in attitudes towards sex in literature in Europe and the US, which also contributes to how people in both places view life, work, and living.

Into the Field, wherein Amanda Giracca argues that to become better people and more well-rounded professionals, university science students need to do some of their work outside the walls of the classroom.

Without Warrant, wherein Emily Berman looks at how police in the US collect and use data, what role private companies play in the collection and analysis of that data, as well as how we should be able to refuse or constrain the collection of all that information.

How worker surveillance is backfiring on employers, wherein we learn how by keeping very close tabs on employees who work from home, companies are adding to the stress and feelings of burnout that those employees are experiencing.

The Modern Memex, wherein Bradford Morgan White takes us on a tour of the origins and evolution of the World Wide Web in its earliest days.

The Origins of Creativity, wherein Louis Menand looks at the concept of creativity, how an obsession with it became entrenched in our culture, and how it's become an economic, not aesthetic, notion.

Why Tokyo Works, wherein we get some insight into why one of the world's largest cities, which is more like a collection of small villages, rather than one big city, is as livable as it and why it operates so smoothly.

The Road to Auto Debt, wherein Julie Livingston and Andrew Ross examine the financial burdens that many American take on when they purchase a car, and the potential consequences of failing to meet that debt's obligations.

And that's it for this Monday. Come back in seven days for another set of links to start off your week.

Scott Nesbitt