One my children asked me about what causes cigarette addiction. I didn’t know, and so, I did some online research. The short answer: dopamine. Nicotine creates the release of dopamine (more here). Dopamine is one of those magical neurotransmitters. It creates feelings of pleasure and well-being. You feel great and self-confident when dopamine is plentiful.
Category: Brain hacking
Moving to North Dakota
A high school classmate, Doug Stagnaro, has moved. He and his family have gone from Montgomery County, Maryland (1MM people) to Mylo, North Dakota (20 people). Yes, 20 people. He bought a 20-acre farm. His neighbors are mostly Mennonites. The local public school, from kindergarten to senior year of high school, numbers 41 students. New neighbors
Taking Risks
I’ve been thinking a lot about risk these days. Totally Awesome Dude Matt Lauzon and I spent a 1/2 day fly fishing, about which we’ve been emailing for some time and were able to swing finally (a photo from him up top). Matt has started two companies thus far. We talked about risk as we went
Living in the Moment
I read with great interest Brad Feld’s post today on his personal reactions to Robin Williams’ death. As you know, Brad and his team at Foundry are super-successful VCs. And, Brad lives a very transparent and authentic life, sharing through his blog his conundrums, problems, joys and victories. It is direct, raw and super-interesting prose
‘At Peleliu and Okinawa’
I just finished reading Eugene Sledge’s book, With The Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa. It is an unvarnished account of his time in the Marine Corps during WWII, fighting some of the gritiest battles in the campaign against Japan. It’s a very courageously-written book about what life was like as an infantryman and the
A Moment in Time
We fortunately had a very smooth flight back home. We are glad to be back at our house, but are feeling a bit subdued, as we miss our Backroads guides and the other families with whom we grew very close while biking in France. But, that is the price of friendship, I told my children. It