Around the water cooler 🗞️
A clearer picture of how social media affects our happiness 😪
In 2017, psychologist Jean Twenge warned of a mental health crisis on the horizon as she saw rates of anxiety, depression, and loneliness rising. Six years later now, Twenge has literally written the book on it, with her findings and data collected in a new book out this month, Generations.
Why we're following it
It's pretty commonly acknowledged that social media has an effect on our mental health, but Twenge's new book, and a slew of better research in the past decade, are painting a better picture of the not only the symptoms, but the behaviors and trends driving them.
In 2022, 95% of teens report using social media everyday, up from about half in 2009.
Facebook's rollout to college campuses from 2004-2006, led to clinical depression in about 2% of college students.
The percentage of 10th and 12th graders sleeping seven or fewer hours a night rose from a third to one-half from 2010 to 2021.
22% of 10th grade girls spend seven or more hours a day on social media.
One 2018 study estimtaes that taking a break from Facebook improves mental health by 30%
Your task should you choose to accept it: Try reducing or taking a break from social media. Or, as the kids say, touch grass 🍃
Other topics to launch your conversation 🚀
At long last,Twitter removed blue checks from legacy-verified users but it seems no one of note is particularly interested in paying for Twitter Blue. Unfortunately for Musk, that's not his only failed launch this month...
Wrexham FC have gotten their hollywood-ending and won promotion to the English Football League where they'll be able to play at the pro level. The team was purchased in 2021 by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenny, and was the subject of a well-received docuseries on Hulu, produced by the two celebrity entrepreneurs.
In a weird, cosmic balancing-of-the-scales, Tucker Carlson is out at Fox and Don Lemon is out at CNN. Someone's relative, somewhere, will have something to say about this at the next family dinner.
Recommendations
To Watch:
The Super Mario Bros. Movie: a nostalgic, fun romp through Mushroom Kingdom and already the highest-grossing animated movie of all time.
Baby J: John Mulaney's newest standup special on Netflix recounting his experiences with addiction and rehab.
Jury Duty: one unsuspecting man gets Truman Show'd and thinks he's serving jury duty with a cast of oddball jurors + real-life celebrity James Marsden.
Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields, a rare bio-doc that "emulsifies and complicates its cinematic memoir with lucid insights into the culture that shaped her." - Natalia Winkleman, NY Times.
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves: a hilarious, high fantasy adventure film with an ensemble cast that's actually having fun. Starring Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Regé-Jean Page, Sophia Lillis. Justice Smith, and Hugh Grant.
HBO on Sunday nights: Bill Hader's Barry and Succession are both in full swing in their respective fourth seasons.
The Mandalorian S3 just wrapped...actually, maybe just skip this and watch Andor instead.
To Read:
The Cult of Creativity: Samuel W. Franklin makes the case that "creativity" is an American concept invented after World War II and unpacks the history of the term.
Psychonauts: Before hippies, a group of 19th century artists, philosophers, and scientists were trying to unlock the secrets of the mind through...alternative means.
Y/N: a novel about K-pop, fanfiction, and going through life alone, together.
This is What You'll Pay For: The Menace of Generative Music.
The Glossary of Happiness: words for feelings and positive things we can't always translate
To Listen:
rip ryuichi: a playlist commemorating the powerhouse producer and Oscar-winning composer, Ryuichi Sakamoto.
To Try:
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