Profile 8 min read

Lessons from Adam Tooze

Adam Tooze, an economic historian, traces how global systems operate and fail, from the Nazi war economy to modern finance. His “polycrisis” framework examines the collision of climate, finance, and geopolitics—and the political choices driving them.
Profile 7 min read

Lessons from Abhijit Banerjee

Abhijit Banerjee, a development economist, replaced sweeping theories of poverty with randomized controlled trials. His work shows that people under severe constraints make sophisticated choices, and that governments must test assumptions against real behavior in education, credit, and migration.
Profile 8 min read

Lessons from Paul Romer

Paul Romer, an economist and Nobel laureate, showed how ideas and innovation drive long-term economic progress. His work on charter cities, institutions, and governing rules asks what conditions allow developing nations and human societies more broadly to improve.
Profile 10 min read

Lessons from Neal Stephenson

Neal Stephenson writes mathematically dense novels about the physical shape of the internet and virtual reality, and coined the “Metaverse” in Snow Crash. His diagnosis of “innovation starvation” asks why societies struggle to execute civilization-scale engineering and imagine ambitious futures.
Profile 8 min read

Lessons from Fuchsia Dunlop

Fuchsia Dunlop gave English-speaking cooks a practical vocabulary for regional Chinese food, especially Sichuan cuisine. Her approach to woks, cleavers, flavor, and texture redirects Western home cooking toward technique, authenticity, and vegetable-heavy meals.
Profile 9 min read

Lessons from David Brooks

David Brooks, an author and longtime New York Times columnist, examines the move from résumé-building ambition toward moral character and community. His observations ask how people deepen connection, shape a meaningful life, and navigate cultural change.
Profile 9 min read

Lessons from Russ Roberts

Russ Roberts, an economist, author, EconTalk host, and Shalem College president, translates economic principles into everyday parables. Drawing on markets and Adam Smith’s moral philosophy, he argues that life’s defining choices cannot be optimized with data.
Profile 10 min read

Lessons from Ross Douthat

Ross Douthat, a conservative New York Times columnist, writes about American religion, class, and cultural stagnation. His work connects Western decadence and traditional religious institutions with questions of meritocracy, chronic illness, and political realignment.

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