Brigadoon Daily Rundown = June 18, 2020

The number of public charging points for electric vehicles jumped by 60% in 2019. The International Energy Agency says 89% of the world’s 7.3 million charging points are still private slow-chargers at homes and businesses.

After coronavirus, bicycles will have a new place in city life: Rising demand for bicycles (and disruptions in manufacturing caused by the coronavirus) have led to bicycle shortages from New York to North Dakota. In Beijing, there has been a 150% increase in bike-share use since lockdowns there began easing, according to research firm ITDP. Meanwhile, Europe-centered bike-share operator Nextbike reported a 35% year-over-year spike in ridership in April and May. In London, the transit authority has projected a 10-fold increase in cycling. Philadelphia’s Indego bike-share service says it has seen a rise in ridership as well, although it didn’t share specific numbers. https://bit.ly/37yhyfb

The virus: What went wrong? Frontline's latest episode, as COVID-19 spread from Asia to the Middle East to Europe, why was the U.S. caught so unprepared? Despite repeated warnings of a potent contagion headed our way, America’s leaders failed to prepare and protect us. Why and who is accountable? Watch the trailer here: https://to.pbs.org/2YcZnZr

The Milky Way contains 36 contactable alien civilizations, scientists estimate: Scientists estimated how many alien societies in the Milky Way can send interstellar messages. But just because they can talk does not mean we will hear them. https://bit.ly/3dc5a5O

Adam Grant: WorkLife leader: Sir Alan Parker poses three questions to Grant, the author of four New York Times bestselling books, the host of a chart-topping podcast called WorkLife and the organizational psychologist who for seven years has ranked as Wharton’s top-rated professor. https://bit.ly/37F8mph

Brigadoon Daily Rundown = June 17, 2020

James Stavridis: The China-India border dispute just got real: With 20 of its troops dead, India may turn to the US as a bulwark against Chinese aggression. https://bloom.bg/2N72rzH

Innovating the world: Matt Ridley in his new book makes the case that ‘innovation is the child of freedom and the parent of prosperity.’ https://bit.ly/3dcFvdf

@mattwridley: "During the 1870s many people were working on electric lighting, and about 20 reasonable claimants for its invention can be identified. But it was really Thomas Edison — not just an inventor, but an innovator — who made electric lighting a reality."

Bannon tells Asia Times: US election is all about China: In an exclusive interview, Steve Bannon pulls no punches on what he really thinks about China and Trump's re-election chances. https://bit.ly/2YGklii

Bill Scher: 1968? 1920? 1932? Which election year is it? https://bit.ly/3hyB5QX

The US military is getting serious about nuclear thermal propulsion: There are many ways to get around space, but most of them are pretty slow. For decades, many rocket scientists have looked to a propulsion system powered by a nuclear reactor as the fastest practical means of getting to Mars and other places in the Solar System more quickly. https://bit.ly/2UHYBkX

“Activity in cislunar space is expected to increase considerably in the coming years.”

The first-ever interview on 'The Observer Effect' with Marc Andreessen. When planning for these series of interviews with interesting leaders and institutions, there was only one person Sriram Krishan had in mind to have here first - Marc Andreessen. https://bit.ly/3hsHxJo

"..The world's an incredibly complex and erratic place and trying to figure that out ...is kind of a lifetime occupation...."

The interview covers:

+ Productivity
+ Delegation
+ Goals and systems
+ Process, outcomes, and bets
+ Books
+ Learning and alternate viewpoints
+ Improvement and motivation
+ The “Build” essay

Jennifer Carroll Foy was one of the first black women to attend the Virginia Military Institute. This is what she knows about patriotism: Jennifer Carroll Foy was elected to the House of Delegates in the former capital of the Confederacy. Now she's hoping to be the country's first Black woman governor. https://bit.ly/3hwUnGB

One-third of US adults who watch television while working from home said they keep it on to have background noise, per Morning Consult.

Brigadoon Daily Rundown = June 16, 2020

Coronavirus lockdown: now it’s the economy, stupid: Fears of a return to 1980s levels of unemployment have put jobs at the top of the PM’s agenda. Dominic Cummings’s pet schemes may have to wait. https://bit.ly/37wtfTs

Hugo Rifkind: It’s zombie dawn in every shopping center: The only thing we really want to buy is a trip back in time but it’s our patriotic duty to get in the queue for a bargain. https://bit.ly/2AHh22d

The UK labor market has been impacted more than other developed economies.

Revealed: How Huawei conquered Britain: Bagging a key role in the 5G network was like ‘winning the Battle of Stalingrad’. But the Chinese telecoms giant’s march to the heart of the Establishment began 20 years ago. https://bit.ly/3ftBQce

The Salisbury poisonings: the inside story: The plot to kill Sergei Skripal with lethal nerve agent left one woman dead but could have been much worse. Declan Lawn, co-writer of a new television drama based on the attack and reports. https://bit.ly/2N7kjdH

How New Zealand eliminated coronavirus: In the First Wave series, Times and Sunday Times foreign correspondents investigate responses to COVID-19 and ask what happens next. Bernard Lagan looks at New Zealand’s approach — and the impact on its economy. https://bit.ly/2N3ooQ8

Sean Speer: The US and Canada have little differences, but today, they are adding up fast: One society is more dynamic and richer but less equal and a bit more chaotic. The other is fairer and more equal but less vital and a bit poorer. How do we judge which one is better? https://bit.ly/30Potz5

Richard Horton, The Lancet’s editor-in-chief, on coronavirus and controversies: “Viruses are creeping up on us. This one is bad. The next one could be even worse.” https://bit.ly/2Ccvi3B

It started as a nightmare. Now COVID-19 has turned us into a nation of dreamers: Whether we are stressed out, confused or simply sleeping longer, our lockdown dreams have been getting more vivid — and a lot weirder. https://bit.ly/2zFHtVK

The end of world order and American foreign policy: CFR reports, the United States should respond to the COVID-19 reordering moment and stop deterioration in the balance of power with China, bolster relations with India and Europe, and reform the way it deals with allies and partners. https://on.cfr.org/3eiKiLz

'Trump thought I was a secretary': Fiona Hill on the president, Putin and populism: She was the White House’s top Russia expert catapulted to fame by Trump’s impeachment. She reflects on her journey from County Durham to Washington. https://bit.ly/37AcJBL

Niall Ferguson: 2020 is not 1968. It may be worse. Social unrest helped doom Lyndon Johnson's presidency. It may end up saving Trump's. https://bloom.bg/2B9fEFy

"In short, history shows that pandemics all too often exacerbate existing social tensions between classes and ethnic groups. It also provides numerous examples of quarantines and public social restrictions intensifying citizens’ mistrust of the state."

How Google Docs became the social media of the resistance: Facebook and Twitter might have the bells and whistles, but the word processing software's simplicity and accessibility have made it a winning tool. https://bit.ly/37wtjma

Why gravity is not like the other forces: Quanta Magazine, asked four physicists why gravity stands out among the forces of nature. We got four different answers. https://bit.ly/2Y9xcKZ

Communications in the time of COVID: 7 lessons learned: Senior communications leaders in the manufacturing space share their response to a situation that has no playbook. https://bit.ly/3e6WXRw

1. Employees first
2. Empower regional and local staff
3. Leadership in the spotlight
4. Increase and expand communications
5. Communications is a two-way street
6. Return-to-work planning focused on empathy
7. Rethink everything

Dan Gilbert, author of "Stumbling on Happiness," challenges the idea that we'll be miserable if we don't get what we want. In the TED Talk, Gilbert explains how our "psychological immune system" lets us feel truly happy even when things don't go as planned. https://bit.ly/2Y1HX1x

Tom Denning: Be aware of the quiet ones like Keanu Reeves — They are the ones that actually make you think: The smarter you become, the less you speak. https://bit.ly/3hGDcm6

@ESPNFC: Official: Kevin Durant has bought a 5% stake in MLS team @PhilaUnion https://es.pn/2YzIoiV

Toto Wolff, CEO and team principal of Mercedes Formula One, and his wife, Susie, team principal of Venturi Formula E https://bit.ly/2Y6tTnD

Baseball + Brigadoon | ESPN's 30 for 30 | Long Gone Summer

Long Gone Summer @ ESPN

On Sunday, June 14 @ 9pm ET, AJ Schnack's “Long Gone Summer”, an official selection of the 2020 Tribeca Film Festival, will broadcast on ESPN.

The film chronicles Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa’s storied 1998 home run chase following the 1994 MLB strike. For the first time, both men discuss that summer at length, including its lasting legacy and undeniable complications.

AJ is a world-class documentarian and was generous to attend Brigadoon Sundance in 2014.

As part of the activities for the 2014 Brigadoon gathering, his film Caucus was shown in the original Sundance Screening Room and he conducted a Q+A session with the other participants following the presentation.

As a native son Missouri and a lifelong St. Louis Cardinals fan, AJ's film about the home-run record chase during the summer of 1998 will be a welcome bit of sports entertainment in a year that has been grim on many fronts.

You can catch the trailer below.

I am excited for AJ and his team and looking forward to watching some baseball Sunday night.

-Marc