OVERWORLD:
-The other shot that landed perfect on Trump-

ONE BETWEEN:
-Slime and glue businesses are making bank, apparently.-

THE DEPTHS:
-The greatest teenage artist ever.-

“Charm is the ability to insult people without offending them; nerdiness the reverse.”
— Nassim Nicholas Taleb

✦DISCOVERY PICKS✦

▶️ YouTube:
Skyrim Intro But It's Brainrot (Gen Alpha Slang)

✖️ X:
You need to be APPLE maxxing. We often hear, “an apple a day keeps the doctor away”, but have you ever wondered why?

❓
Mystery link.

Presidential headshots

The other shot that landed perfect on Trump.

Two historical shots were attempted last week. One failed, and one succeeded in an excellent, masterful manner.

As the 20-year-old shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks nearly assasinated Trump, what probably is modern American history’s most important photo was shot by Evan Vucci.

You can catch Evan in action during the rally coverage below. In the middle of the heat, with no fucks.

He probably saw the flag waving over Trump as a golden opportunity. Imagine if he'd been a bit to the right, like the other photographers; it wouldn’t have the same magic.

Evan Vucci is the chief photographer of AP in Washington, DC. He's known for his bipartisan style — always trying to get the best sides of any party. In 2021, he won the Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of the George Floyd protests.

Here’s some more Evan Vucci photography:

✦QUICK HITS✦

✦Business & Tech✦

The big one: Google is in advanced talks to acquire cybersecurity firm Wiz for $23 billion. Founded in 2020, Wiz recently valued at $12 billion. This would be Google’s largest acquisition in its entire history.

European finger-wag: The EU warned X that its blue checkmark system violates the Digital Services Act, citing deception and non-compliance with advertising transparency and data access rules. X has a chance to respond or face fines up to 6% of its global revenue. The investigation also examines X’s handling of illegal content and moderation practices.

Miracle drug? Novo Nordisk's Ozempic, Hollywood’s favorite waist-snatcher, was linked to a 48% lower dementia risk and other mental health benefits in an Oxford study. Patients also had a lower risk of cognitive deficits and smoking. More research is, of course, needed and expected.

✦Fashion & Culture✦

Kinda cool: A new Skepta documentary, directed by Hector Dockrill who made Post Malone: Runaway. The film is expected to release in 2025 under H.Wood Media and Skepta’s production company, 1PLUS1 Production.

Bad investment: Luxury watch prices on the secondary market fell again last month, continuing a two-year decline. The Bloomberg Subdial Watch Index dropped less than 1% in June, down 23% over two years. Despite this, some brands like Cartier saw price increases.

Officially over: Alec Baldwin's involuntary manslaughter case for the 2021 Rust shooting was dismissed on July 12. Baldwin expressed gratitude online, while the cinematographer's widow re-opened his wrongful death lawsuit.

✦Hmm… Interesting✦

Cozy 1-minute read: A Reminder to Take a Walk and Breathe

Really cool 10-minute read: The Hidden Economy of Spam

Big read for big brains: The Six Dumbest Ideas in Computer Security

Watch: Where Did Fallout 3's Bombs Actually Hit?

ONE 

BETWEEN

Sticking to the money

Slime and glue businesses are making bank, apparently.

Elmer's Glue is a 70-year-old glue brand — and is the de facto glue in every American household, kindergarten and school. Sounds like a lame, ordinary business… but it's not.

Elmer’s Glue is actually at the forefront of innovating business via cultural swings à la social media. In fact, it had its first positive quarter in 2024, its first positive Q1 in 4 years.

Why? Are people sniffing glue again? Building toothpick Notre-Dames? No and no. They’re making and fingering slime. Like, a lot. 

In a gold rush, the real winner sells picks and shovels:

✦Finger while the slime is hot✦

As the ASMR wave struck, Elmer’s didn't miss a beat. They launched Elmer’s Creations, a digital hub for slime lovers. New recipes, fun products, everything to keep the slime craze going. One new product, Squishies, offers a similar sensory experience. Stretch, pull, and enjoy.

Sloomoo Institute, the slime museum, has 30,000 monthly visitors using disgustingly vast quantities of Elmer’s Glue. Similarly, OG Slimes founders Christine Ly and Olivya Soth use thousands of gallons of Elmer’s Glue to produce their unique, sensory-rich slime products.

Takeaway: Glue is, at sight, an old-school business. Yet, Elmer's Glue is making super fast-twitch movement to adapt to cultural movements. Impressive.

THE DEPTHS

The best, really

The greatest teenage artist ever.

In 1837, Gustave Doré was just five years old, and a prodigy. His drawings were considered far better than most grown-ups. And they just got better and better.

Then, by 15, he mastered stone carving and began his career as a caricature artist for the French newspaper, Le Journal pour rire. And so begun one of the greatest art careers of all time.

✦Multi-media don-dada✦

Born on January 6, 1832, in Strasbourg, France, Doré is one of history's most significant and prolific artists. In his lifetime he produced over 10,000 illustrations. And he was multi-media as fuck; he was a printmaker, illustrator, and sculptor.

Legendary youth: In 1853, at 16 years old, Doré illustrated the absolutely legendary visualization of Dante Alighieri's "The Divine Comedy," capturing the journey through Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise with haunting detail.

Ten years later, his illustrations for Miguel de Cervantes' "Don Quixote" vividly brought the characters to life.

Then, his Biblical illustrations in 1866 and a major London exhibition in 1867 cemented his fame.

✦Capturing the Crusades✦

But his best shit (an opinion, chill) is the Crusades. In 1877, he brought Francois Michaud’s "History of the Crusades" to life. His work captured a chaotic era, some 800 years before Dorés time.

From 1096 to 1291, the Crusades raged on. It all began in 1095, in the South of France. The Pope’s decree set a new mission in motion: to reclaim lands under Islamic control. A pilgrimage of bloodshed ensued. Damn near everybody wanted in, thousands of citizens and militants answered the call.

Doré's contribution was monumental. He created about 100 plates, each depicting the brutality, nobility, and chaos in the Christians' attempt to claim Jerusalem.

Here are some good ones:

✦The Road to Jerusalem✦

✦The Discovery of the True Cross✦

✦The Massacre of Antioch✦