Good Things to Read/Watch

Worth Reading

• Henry George - Progress and Poverty
  timeless 19th-century book which provides a genuinely useful explanation for how wealth, capital, and labor interact. makes the case for a Land Value Tax specifically, and a tax on finite natural resources more generally.
• Eliezer Yudkowsky - Rationality: From AI to Zombies
  i disagree with the vision offered by most rationalists, but this particular piece gives some compelling explanations for why things are the way they are.
• Charles Stross - Accelerando
  a fast paced and relatively concise view of one possible future. neither explicitly utopian nor dystopian: just "what could things look like if technological trends continue" through a cyberpunk lens.
• Cory Doctorow
  vaguely cyberpunk, but often looking at one particular development (distributed manufacturing, cloning, human-level AGI) and thinking about the unexpected effects.
• Terry Pratchett
  incredible wit, good natured fun that points out some silly human tendencies without being too overt about it.
• Brandon Sanderson
  vivid storyteller and excellent world builder. my favorite is his Mistborn series.

Worth Watching

Studio Ghibli still represents the peak of animated film, as far as i'm concerned. remarkable pacing, captivating worlds & artstyle, and adventurous. my favorites are:

• Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
• Spirited Away

besides Ghibli i've enjoyed a few other short-running anime/films:

• Madoka Magica
  deconstruction of the "magical girl" genre. starts out slow and mysterious, then accelerates through some ambitious twists as you and the characters begin to learn what's really happening in the world. watch it if you're a softie who likes bittersweet (but satisfying) endings.
• Made in Abyss
  amazing character- and world-building, great artwork, and an adventure-driven -- but dark -- plot that left me contemplative.
• Frieren
  proves that there's space for slow-paced, reflective story-telling.
• Kill la Kill
  unbelievably over-the-top, tropey, and a bit low-budget, but Studio Trigger leans into these things and makes something that's so absurd you can't forget it.

runners up:

• A Place Further Than The Universe
  a short exploration into making sense of death and finding purpose when you have nothing to anchor to. will make you cry.
• Nichijou
  short, hilarious and sometimes over-the-top skits which build on eachother over time. good, simple fun. it's a crowded genre but Nichijou is the best in class.
• Zombieland Saga
  it's got some likable characters, a fun theme, and a good deal of unexpected turns. given it centers around zombie popstars, you'd think it'd stand out more, but in the end it's just a well-executed slice-of-life (with great music).