The Band Theory of Societies

An extended physics metaphor for politics

Sep 25 • 

Venkatesh Rao

16

Gaslit Courage

When the impulse to virtue becomes an attack vector

Sep 20 • 

Venkatesh Rao

13

5

Hysteresis and the Mark-Makers

The American center-left through the lens of Pierre Bourdieu’s theories

Sep 5 • 

Venkatesh Rao

20

2

Memento Salis

Prolegomena for any future digital saltspaces

Sep 3 • 

Venkatesh Rao

11

4

August 2025

Dark Age Stylesheet

Developing a visual style guide based on James Gunn's Superman

Aug 30 • 

Venkatesh Rao

17

1

A Tale of Four Supermans

A design history of the Superman franchise

Aug 30 • 

Venkatesh Rao

8

Towards the Cosmopolitan Supergrid

From Subprime Globalism to Cultural QE

Aug 27 • 

Venkatesh Rao

11

7

July 2025

Summer 2025 U.S. Vibe Brief

A contemporary sentiment and vibe map of the US with o3

Jul 26 • 

Venkatesh Rao

11

1

Tripwire Minds, Clockwork Days

There is no healthy lifestyle formula for creative production

Jul 10 • 

Venkatesh Rao

7

June 2025

Prompting is Managing

No, LLMs aren't creating “Cognitive Debt”

Jun 19 • 

Venkatesh Rao

88

4

May 2025

A Random Walk Down Meme Street

Living in cultural index-fund Mary Sue civilizations

May 1 • 

Venkatesh Rao

26

11

April 2025

Autoamputation Flow

How AI Is Changing Human Nature

Apr 12 • 

Venkatesh Rao

56

2