Decoding the World Buchzusammenfassung - das Wichtigste aus Decoding the World

Einleitung anhören

00:00

Zusammenfassung von Decoding the World

Name: Decoding the World
Rating: 4 (63 reviews)
Author: Po Bronson and Arvind Gupta

Po Bronson and Arvind Gupta

A Roadmap for the Questioner

4 (63 Bewertungen)

25 Min.

Inhaltsübersicht

Decoding the World
in 8 Kernaussagen verstehen

Audio & Text in der Blinkist App

Kernaussage 1 von 8

What’s in it for me? Discover how two Silicon Valley venture capitalists are trying to change the world.

COVID-19. Cancer. Melting glaciers. The incredible rise of China. Artificial intelligence. Genetic manipulation.

Nobody knows what the future holds, but we do know some of the things that will shape it.

Arvind Gupta and Po Bronson, the two friends at the helm of the biotech venture capital firm IndieBio, have devoted themselves to making positive change.

In these blinks, you’ll discover just a few of the ways they’re trying to influence the world for the better.

In these blinks, you’ll learn

how humans helped cause the pandemic;
why people didn’t notice when scientists saved the bees; and
what would make the perfect blue.

Since before the COVID-19 pandemic, IndieBio has been trying to save the world.

It’s March 2020, and the first person has died from COVID-19 in the United States.

Po Bronson and Arvind Gupta have their work cut out for them.

In normal times, the companies they work with at IndieBio, a Silicon Valley–based biotechnology startup accelerator, would be tackling everything from curing cancer to creating the perfect blue. But suddenly, everyone has a common goal – and different ideas about how to achieve it.

Llama antibodies, anyone? What about niclosamide? It’s usually used for birth control but had some effect against SARS, so might be worth a shot. How about 3D-printing lymph nodes that can make antibodies?

At such a time of crisis, IndieBio’s unique style and out-of-the-box, big-picture thinking might be exactly what the world needs.

In that sense, it’s business as usual.

Here’s the key message: Since before the COVID-19 pandemic, IndieBio has been trying to save the world.

Amid a sea of funding applications from prospective companies, Arvind manages to take a step back. How did this all begin? Everyone’s saying the virus came from bats. Quite possible – bats are home to loads of viruses.

But here’s the thing. The bat genome protects bats against viruses extremely well, so most of the time they don’t get sick. And if they do happen to get sick, they don’t usually pass their viruses on to humans.

That only changes when bats are stressed or under threat. Like from loss of habitat. Deforestation, destruction of wetlands, things like that. In other words, when their existence is being jeopardized by human interference.

IndieBio starts rapidly approving all sorts of new ventures that stand a slim chance of helping the world through the pandemic. It’s the name of the game. After all, taking risks is IndieBio’s purpose.

Po read an impressive study a while back, from the University of Michigan. It didn’t use genetic engineering, machine learning, or any other methods favored by IndieBio – just an old fashioned questionnaire. But it proved, comprehensively, that people aged 50 and above were most likely to stay healthy if they had a sense of purpose. Simple as that.

Working from home, Arvind sighs. His sense of purpose is leading him away from IndieBio, the company he founded. He’s leaving it in the safe hands of Po, his good friend. He’ll miss it. But maybe he can do more good at a bigger venture capital firm – invest even more money into world-changing causes.

Now would be the time.

Arvind Gupta founded IndieBio to shake things up in San Francisco.

Since its founding in 2014, IndieBio has been a breath of fresh air in San Francisco. Profoundly unlike any other venture capital firm, it has backed wildly disruptive projects. It pioneered lab-grown meat. It worked out how to save the bees. It flooded the rhino horn market with 3D-printed ones in an attempt to stop illegal trade.

Po, whose background was in journalism, was fascinated long before he got involved. Silicon Valley was getting boring, he thought. It was dominated by Facebook executives lamenting the site’s dependency on ads. IndieBio was the cool kid on the block.

If we’re going to save the planet, we need to overcome our state of inertia.

While the underlying cause of bee colony collapse is still a mystery, it’s now a mystery with a solution – thanks to the IndieBio-funded company Beeflow.

Beeflow guessed that something had changed in the bees’ diet; for whatever reason, they were no longer getting enough of some natural substance. So Beeflow made a cocktail of plant hormones and amino acids, and they added it to the bees’ honey. It worked – the bees got healthier. The plants they visited did better, too.

Genome editing can help us fight the dangers of nature.

People tend to react strongly when they learn about new ideas, especially in fields like genetics.

Po and Arvind call it “Warp-Speed Impulse” – our tendency to immediately envisage a world where current trends are pushed to their worst extremes.

Advances in genetics may transform our understanding of the human body.

For Arvind, like millions of others, the fight against cancer is personal. His mother was diagnosed with uterine cancer years ago. She’s had treatments and made good progress, but cancerous cells are still there.

During one round of surgery, Arvind made an unusual request. He asked the doctor to send his mother’s tumor to the lab at IndieBio.

Just a handful of elements make up almost everything on the planet.

The things bacteria can do are unbelievable. Among the trillions of different species that exist, there are bacteria that can – or can be programmed to – convert almost anything into pretty much anything else.

We’re talking bacteria that make electricity, or metals, or bioplastics. Bacteria that could eat carbon dioxide or turn food waste into hydrogen fuel.

Scientific innovation can help us build a better society.

While it’s fascinating to speculate about possibilities, a lot of work at IndieBio is about tackling complex, philosophical questions and making something real happen as a result.

For example, what is the perfect blue?

Our choices today will affect our health and the health of our planet.

Some futuristic ideas remain far-off. Artificial intelligence, for one, is nowhere near close to human capabilities. The machines we’re making have no way of acquiring something even a four-year-old already has: common sense.

And how about the soul? Something’s going on inside us that can’t be explained through science. Get the world’s top scientists to poke around inside a human brain. Would they find the soul? No chance. But it’s there. It’s in what we do – and what we choose to do.

Du möchtest die gesamte Zusammenfassung von Decoding the World sehen?

Kernaussagen in Decoding the World

Mehr Wissen in weniger Zeit

Sachbücher auf den Punkt gebracht

Kernaussagen aus Sachbüchern in ca. 15 Minuten pro Titel lesen & anhören mit den „Blinks”

Zeitsparende Empfehlungen

Titel, die dein Leben bereichern, passend zu deinen Interessen und Zielen

Podcasts in Kurzform ^Neu

Kernaussagen wichtiger Podcasts im Kurzformat mit den neuen „Shortcasts”

Worum geht es in Decoding the World?

Decoding the World (2020) is a dive into the fascinating world of IndieBio, a biotechnology firm that’s determined to change the world for the better. The long-term health of both people and the planet are at stake – and not just because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bestes Zitat aus Decoding the World

IndieBio wasnt a Think Tank. It was a Do Tank.

—Po Bronson and Arvind Gupta

Wer Decoding the World lesen sollte

Science fans excited by fascinating new developments
Futurists imagining what lies ahead
Philosophy enthusiasts wondering what to do in the modern world

Über den Autor

Arvind Gupta is the founder of the venture capital firm IndieBio, which he left in 2020. He studied genetic engineering and is a former BASE jumper. Po Bronson is IndieBio’s managing director and an award-winning science journalist whose books include What Should I Do With My Life?

Kategorien mit Decoding the World

Wissenschaft Technologie & Zukunft

Ähnlich wie Decoding the World

How to Prevent the Next Pandemic

Bill Gates

What We’ve Learned From COVID-19 & the Changes We Need to Make

The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming

28 min

4.3

The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels

Alex Epstein

What if using fossil fuels is healthy and moral after all?

How Climate Migration Will Reshape Our World

17 min

4.0

Where Will Man Take Us?

Atul Jalan

The Bold Story of the Man Technology is Creating

A Classic Novel on the American Dream of the Roaring Twenties

20 min

4.7

AI 2041

Kai-Fu Lee and Chen Qiufan

Ten Visions for Our Future

New Science Shows How to Break the Cycles of Worry and Fear to Heal Your Mind

28 min

4.7

Architects of Intelligence

Martin Ford

The truth about AI from the people building it

An Ancient Greek Tragedy on Civil Disobedience, Morality and Gender

Cosmic Perspectives on Civilization

Why Some People See Things Clearly and Others Don't

How Humans Evolved Through Fire, Language, Beauty, and Time

Surviving the Climate Crisis

A Big History of Everything

31 min

4.3

Capitalism and Freedom

Milton Friedman

The definitive statement of Friedman's immensely influential economic philosophy

An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones

19 min

4.7

A Little History of Economics

Niall Kishtainy

A whistle-stop tour of the major questions posed by economists through the centuries, from Aristotle to Thomas Piketty

How to Win Friends, Influence People & Succeed in a Changing World

25 min

4.8

How to Talk to Anyone

Leil Lowndes

92 Little Tricks for Big Success in Relationships

The Journey Beyond Yourself

12 min

4.5

Where Good Ideas Come From

Steven Johnson

The Natural History of Innovation

18 min

4.2

Stealing Fire

Steven Kotler and Jamie Wheal

How Silicon Valley, the Navy SEALs, and Maverick Scientists Are Revolutionizing the Way We Live and Work

28 min

3.9

The Willpower Instinct

Kelly McGonigal

How Self-Control Works, Why it Matters and What You Can Do to Get More of It

23 min

4.4

Your Brain Is Always Listening

Daniel G. Amen

Tame the Hidden Dragons That Control Your Happiness, Habits, and Hang-Ups

22 min

4.2

The Whole-Brain Child

Daniel J. Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson

12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child’s Developing Mind

15 min

4.5

Thinking, Fast and Slow

Daniel Kahneman

Intuition or deliberation? Where you can (and can't) trust your brain

The Secret Language of the Universe

How to Work with Anyone (Even Difficult People)

7 min

3.3

How to Avoid a Climate Disaster

Bill Gates

The Solutions We Have and the Breakthroughs We Need

How to Feel Alive Again

26 min

4.4

The Beginning of Infinity

David Deutsch

Explanations That Transform the World

How to Use Advanced Learning Strategies to Learn Faster, Remember More and be More Productive

14 min

4.1

Energy Myths and Realities

Vaclav Smil

Bringing Science to the Energy Policy Debate

How Play Made the Modern World

Japanese Wisdom for a Perfectly Imperfect Life

The Science behind Atheism

26 min

4.1

Minimalist Parenting

Christine Koh and Asha Dornfest

Enjoy Modern Family Life More by Doing Less

The Modern Prometheus

19 min

4.7

Adult Daughters of Narcissistic Mothers

Stephanie M. Kriesberg

Quiet the Critical Voice in Your Head, Heal Self-Doubt, and Live the Life You Deserve

The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us

Has the Human Game Begun to Play Itself Out?

27 min

4.2

The Courage to Be Free

Ron DeSantis

Florida’s Blueprint for America’s Revival

How to Build Massive Wealth by Permanently Lowering Your Taxes

The Fight to Master Our Greatest Opponent

22 min

4.4

Do What Matters Most

Rob Shallenberger and Steve Shallenberger

Lead with a Vision, Manage with a Plan, Prioritize Your Time

19 min

4.5

You Can Fix Your Brain

Dr. Tom O'Bryan

Just 1 Hour a Week to the Best Memory, Productivity, and Sleep You've Ever Had

19 min

3.9

The First Conspiracy

Brad Meltzer and Josh Mensch

The Secret Plot to Kill George Washington

19 min

4.3

Why “A” Students Work for “C” Students and “B” Students Work for the Government

Robert T. Kiyosaki

Rich Dad's Guide to Financial Education for Parents

18 min

4.3

❤️ für Blinkist️️️

Ines S.

Ich bin begeistert. Ich liebe Bücher aber durch zwei kleine Kinder komme ich einfach nicht zum Lesen. Und ja, viele Bücher haben viel bla bla und die Quintessenz ist eigentlich ein Bruchteil.

Genau dafür ist Blinkist total genial! Es wird auf das Wesentliche reduziert, die Blinks sind gut verständlich, gut zusammengefasst und auch hörbar! Das ist super. 80 Euro für ein ganzes Jahr klingt viel, aber dafür unbegrenzt Zugriff auf 3000 Bücher. Und dieses Wissen und die Zeitersparnis ist unbezahlbar.

Ekaterina S.

Extrem empfehlenswert. Statt sinnlos im Facebook zu scrollen höre ich jetzt täglich zwischen 3-4 "Bücher". Bei manchen wird schnelle klar, dass der Kauf unnötig ist, da schon das wichtigste zusammen gefasst wurde..bei anderen macht es Lust doch das Buch selbständig zu lesen. Wirklich toll

Nils S.

Einer der besten, bequemsten und sinnvollsten Apps die auf ein Handy gehören. Jeden morgen 15-20 Minuten für die eigene Weiterbildung/Entwicklung oder Wissen.

Julia P.

Viele tolle Bücher, auf deren Kernaussagen reduziert- präzise und ansprechend zusammengefasst. Endlich habe ich das Gefühl, Zeit für Bücher zu finden, für die ich sonst keine Zeit habe.