#13: What We Overlook Shapes What We Find

☀️ The Question That Changed the Conversation

During a networking event, I sat next to someone I didn’t know. Everyone was doing the usual “So what do you do?” shuffle.

But instead of asking that, I blurted: “What’s something you've been curious about lately?”

It caught them off guard, but they smiled. We ended up talking for an hour about strange travel destinations, antique maps, and childhood dreams. I never got their job title, but I still remember how much I enjoyed that talk.

Sometimes the most interesting sparks during conversations come from questions no one else is asking. How will you shift the narrative today?

📖 3 Articles to Spark Your Curiosity

1. Geo > SEO

   What if discovery didn’t depend on keywords, but on location? This a16z piece explores why “geo-based” exploration might be the next wave of how we find products, places, and even ideas.

2. Can Air Conditioning Make You Sick?

   TIME unpacks the surprising ways cooling systems affect our health, from humidity levels to indoor air quality. A curious reminder that comfort sometimes comes with a hidden cost.

3. A New Observatory for Alien Technosignatures

   A new facility is setting out to scan the skies, not just for signs of life, but for technology. What if the real discoveries lie in the signals we’ve overlooked?

🗞️ 3 Headlines Worth Exploring

1. An Enzyme That Eats Plastic Found in a Compost Heap
   A German startup may have just unlocked a new path to sustainable recycling, thanks to an enzyme discovered in the most unexpected place: compost.

2. How Flamingos Create Tiny Water Tornadoes to Hunt
   Science meets elegance. New research reveals how flamingos stir up mini-vortices and trap shrimp through a mixture of head flicks, beak pulses, surface skimming and stomping footwork(like pink ballerinas, but with physics).

3. Vast Roman Villa Unearthed in France
   Archaeologists have uncovered a Roman estate near Auxerre, complete with thermal baths, underfloor heating, and ornate gardens, revealing the luxurious lives of Gaul’s elite

☀️ 3 Actions to Step Out of Your Comfort Zone

1. Leave familiar ground behind with a different route home, a new café, or a random detour through a park. 

   A little novelty goes a long way in waking up your day-to-day experience.

2. Blast your “hype playlist” before a task 

   Queue up upbeat or nostalgic tracks to energize your mind and create momentum before diving into something you’re avoiding.

3. Switch up one mundane habit

   Like putting your left shoe on first or mixing up your journal format for a week (haiku Monday, collage Tuesday…). Small changes trigger new neural connections and fresh perspectives.

⚡ 6 Quick Resources

🪐 To check: Astronomers just discovered the most powerful cosmic explosions since the Big Bang, and they still don’t fully understand them.
Read on Space.com ›

🌍 To plan: From icy fjords to sun-drenched villages - 50 breathtaking places in Europe to add to your travel list.
See them on Condé Nast Traveler ›

📈 To read: ChatGPT traffic is rising while most top websites see a dip, a sign of shifting habits in how we search, learn, and think.
See the data on Social Media Today ›

🏛️ To watch: Think you know Ancient Rome? This video busts four popular myths with the help of Minerva herself.
Watch on YouTube ›

🎨 To get inspired: Three designers. One empty college apartment. A creative challenge in bringing space to life through style.
Watch on YouTube ›

🎮 To play: A dose of nostalgia: Super Mario. In browser form! Just press start.
Play now ›

🎲 This week’s wonderfully random corner of the internet 

🚀 How many people are in space right now?

A single-purpose site with one oddly grounding fact: exactly how many humans are floating above Earth at this very moment.

📝 Word of the Week

Apophenia (noun) - The tendency to perceive meaningful connections between unrelated things.

A reminder that our brains are wired to seek patterns, but what we do with those patterns is where the real magic (or danger) happens.

🧘‍♀️ Question of the Week for Introspection

When was the last time you noticed something others missed?
What made you pay attention? And what did it reveal?

See you next Sunday! Until then, keep your eyes open, your questions big, and your sense of wonder alive.

Your curious internet friend,

Ruxandra