Inside the Anti-Social Century
A conversation with Derek Thompson
The World Cup is over, and although my teams (Scotland, England) didn’t win, France didn’t win either. Small victories. The big victory? Watching the beautiful game with friends and family, i.e., socializing IRL. Join me for more on human connection this week at Prof G.
Live conversation with Derek Thompson
I’m going live tomorrow at 10:00am ET with Derek Thompson, host of the Plain English podcast, Substack writer, and co-author of Abundance. This event is for everyone. Sign up below.
We’re discussing Inside the Anti-Social Century – a time when each new technology has made life more convenient, but also more isolating. In sum: we’re living through the loneliest era in American history. How did we get here and what do we do about it?
Get involved:
Submit your questions and topics in the comments of this Substack post before the taping. We’ll use that to shape the conversation.
Join the livestream and give us feedback in real-time. We’ll be looking at the comments.
A recording of the episode will be available this Thursday as usual – the difference is that your input will have helped shape it.
You’ll get an email notification when the stream goes live.
Stay tuned for a second live conversation, this one with Noah Smith
Later that afternoon at 1:30 ET, Ed Elson and I will go live on Prof G Markets with economics blogger Noah Smith to discuss The New Global Economy. He’ll help us unpack everything from AI, to war, to the dating market. This event is for everyone.
Pay to connect
Speaking of loneliness and connection, I believe the experience economy is entering a new phase. Consumers aren’t just buying memories over things, they’re purchasing connection. Join me for a Deep Dive into the disappearance of the venues where people used to gather, the data on loneliness and its health costs, and the surge in live entertainment. Available exclusively for Prof G + paid subscribers. To upgrade, click here.
All the rage
Wednesday July 22 at noon ET (and every Wednesday) catch Jess Tarlov and Aaron Parnas on Raging Perspective. They will help you make sense of the firehose of political news this week.
Life is so rich,
P.S. Don’t forget to leave your questions for Derek Thompson in the comments.
Question for Scott and Derek: Abundance argues that we’ve forgotten how to build. Has the Anti-Social Century happened because we’ve also forgotten how to build communities? Technology may amplify loneliness, but are we overlooking the possibility that belonging can be intentionally designed? If so, what are the design principles?
If we can learn to engineer abundance, can we also figure out how to design for belonging—without manufacturing it?
Scott, you've often said one of the three most important masculine skills is making a woman feel safe. So is part of the loneliness epidemic that men no longer have any easy way to approach a woman, say in a bar, that reads as safe rather than intrusive or even threatening? Even asking for a phone number these days feels pushy. What do you think women want from that first moment that men aren't giving them?
Thanks for the podcast.