Alf Rehn | Lightnews

Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · 27d

Fascinating read on the Tony Blair Institute and the cozy relationship it seems to have with Oracle. Might be extra interesting for Finns, as this is where the former PM went to work.

www.newstatesman.com/politics/202...

Inside the Tony Blair Institute - New Statesman

Who really benefits from the former PM’s tech evangelism?

www.newstatesman.com

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Sep 26

Well, masculinity needs to develop with the times…

(But why is there no Grumpiest Cat Dad-category? Both our cats would vote for me in that category...)

www.trendwatching.com/innovations/...

Mars Petcare and People magazine redefine masculinity with new Sexiest Cat Dad category

Temptations partners with People to spotlight Cat Dads, tapping into shifting values around caregiving, emotional intelligence and masculinity.

www.trendwatching.com

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Sep 23

On my Substack – Creative Class Contrarian – I continue with the more educational, and often snarky, explanations and analyses of common innovation terms, models, and tropes.

alfrehn.substack.com/p/12-the-5-m...

#12 – The 5-Minute Innovator: The Double Diamond

This is part of a series, "The 5-Minute Innovator", which describes concepts and theories in the field of innovation without jargon and in no more than 1200 words, which you can read in five minutes without being a speed-reader.

alfrehn.substack.com

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Sep 16

RIP Robert Redford.

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Sep 11

New format for my Substack, yet the snark remains. Now with curious curation and a very angry essay.

alfrehn.substack.com/p/11-the-new...

#11 – The New New Newsletter - by Alf Rehn

“Mathematics—this may surprise you or shock you some—is never deductive in its creation.

alfrehn.substack.com

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Sep 11

Kommentoin (vähän) Ruotsin ja Tanskan "kulttuurikaanoneja" ja näiden roolia. Ainakin sain hieman suitsuttaa Carl Barksia!

yle.fi/a/74-20181987

Kiistelty lista Ruotsin kulttuurin merkkiteoksista julkaistiin – ”Suomessa tällaista ei tehtäisi”, sanoo professori | Kulttuuricocktail | Yle

Ruotsissa koottiin hallituksen esityksestä lista sadasta tärkeimmästä kulttuuri-ilmiöstä. Kohuttu projekti kertoo suomalaisprofessorin mukaan poliittisen kentän muutoksesta.

yle.fi

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Sep 10

Finally! Jellybeans that taste like gravy, sweet corn, and gravy, for when KFC doesn't give you diabetes quite quickly enough! Thanks, #innovation!

www.yardbarker.com/lifestyle/ar...

KFC Jelly Beans Turn Fried Chicken and Gravy Into ‘Sweet’ Treats | Yardbarker

Like Bruce Wayne putting on his Caped Crusader suit when he sees the Bat-Signal, like Rohan answering the Beacons of Gondor, I have been summoned. I too will rise to the challenge.

www.yardbarker.com

Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Sep 5

Charming piece on "obstacle parenting", which I suspect will go megaviral. Expect a book deal, parents misinterpreting this in awful ways, and a backlash.

thewalrus.ca/my-job-as-a-...

My Job as a Parent Is to Make My Kids’ Lives a Little Harder | The Walrus

Obstacle parenting is about cultivating focus and endurance, two skills lost in the ChatGPT era

thewalrus.ca

Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Aug 26

Happy and proud (with a side-order of humbled) to have been selected to serve on the board of directors of University of the Arts Helsinki, home to the Academy of Fine Arts, the world-renowned Sibelius Academy and the Theatre Academy.

www.uniarts.fi/en/articles/...

Hanna Kuusela, Leena Niemistö and Alf Rehn selected to the Uniarts Helsinki Board | Uniarts Helsinki

The University Collegium has appointed three new members from outside the Uniarts Helsinki community for a four-year term from 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2029. The newly selected members are Hanna…

www.uniarts.fi

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Aug 22

A powerful, and needed, defense of the em-dash in writing, as well as an exposé of how people think it's a special sign of AI writing are uncultured buffoons.

www.theringer.com/2025/08/20/p...

Stop AI-Shaming Our Precious, Kindly Em Dashes—Please - The Ringer

Human writers have always used the em dash. In fact, it’s the most human punctuation mark there is.

www.theringer.com

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jul 31

Imaging being so unpleasant a person that you manage to turn people against an entire industry. It's almost impressive.

gizmodo.com/elon-musk-is...

Elon Musk Is So Unpopular, He May Be Hurting the Entire EV Industry

Liberals are losing interest in all EVs, thanks to Musk.

gizmodo.com

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jul 24

Is Banksy a woman, and patriarchy just refuses to see it? I'm not sure I buy the argument completely, but there are some pretty solid points made here.

Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jul 22

RIP Ozzy.

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jul 22

Observing ChatGPT Agent trying and failing to navigate Microsoft's ridiculous UI and security clusterfuck, and it honestly looks exactly like what I imagine the future's going to be – clumsy IT-systems frustrating other clumsy IT-systems.

Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jul 18

So, it seems I'm going to go see Bob Dylan in October. That's nice! Did want to see the man before it get late, too late.

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jul 15

Innovation never sleeps, nor does it take any holidays. Here's the latest issue of my #innovation Substack. This time it's social innovation, in five (5!) minutes (or less).

alfrehn.substack.com/p/10-the-5-m...

#10 – The 5-Minute Innovator: Social Innovation

This is part of a series, "The 5-Minute Innovator", which describes concepts and theories in the field of innovation without jargon and in no more than 1200 words, which you can read in five minutes without being a speed-reader.

alfrehn.substack.com

Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jul 11

Just saw Superman with the young son. Sheer. Cinema. Joy. Run, don’t walk, to see this!

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jul 9

Hypernomalization. Learn the term, learn about it, learn to use it. It will be one of the defining terms of this era. Hypernormalization.

www.theguardian.com/wellness/ng-...

Systems are crumbling – but daily life continues. The dissonance is real | Well actually | The Guardian

If everything feels broken but strangely normal, the Soviet-era concept of hypernormalization can help

www.theguardian.com

Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jun 30

Out now, and so am I. Out of here, that is! Time for some R&R.

alfrehn.substack.com/p/9-has-inno...

#9 – Has Innovation Gone Out of Fashion? - by Alf Rehn

TL;DR: Innovation hasn’t died – but it has lost the plot.

alfrehn.substack.com

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jun 16

Just shared the latest issue of my Substack.
alfrehn.substack.com/p/8-the-5-mi...

#8 – The 5-Minute Innovator: Open Innovation - by Alf Rehn

This is part of a series, "The 5-Minute Innovator", which describes concepts and theories in the field of innovation without jargon and in no more than 1200 words, which you can read in five minutes without being a speed-reader.

alfrehn.substack.com

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jun 12

Off to an ephemera-conference on algorithmic organizing at CBS. Such is my rock'n'roll lifestyle.

Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jun 10

On the road again. Tomorrow I will be speaking at the NATO StratCom-conference in Riga, about thinking the impossible and the chaos magic necessary to see ten years into the future. As a warm-up I’m mainlining Grant Morrisson-penned comics.

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jun 10

RIP Sly

Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jun 7

Interesting take on Jordan Peterson, arguing that he, in the end, is just a sloppier version of the caricatured postmodernism he decries.

"Peterson is someone who believes “a woman is a woman” but will also insist that dragons are every bit as valid as lions."

thewalrus.ca/is-jordan-pe...

Is Jordan Peterson Just Making It Up as He Goes? | The Walrus

The culture war’s favourite prophet can’t finish a straight thought

thewalrus.ca

Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jun 6

Let's remember that it's Pride Month, and keep it civil. Two aging queens are having a messy breakup, so what? Unlove is unlove.

Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jun 6

Don't know about y'all, but I feel this idea of rebooting the Tupac/Biggie beef with two old white guys might have been a mistake. Still waiting for Elon to drop the opening lines of "Hit 'Em Up", tho.

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jun 5

I guess the fact that stupid and nasty people will eventually start attacking each other should give one some degree of solace, but it's still just the soothing warmth of a dumpsterfire...

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jun 4

This is a cover of a classic Led Zeppelin song, but sung in Cree. This is the definition of badass.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=PW_d...

Immigrant Song (Sung in Cree!)

www.youtube.com

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Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jun 4

Things I didn't ever think I'd be doing, ever, yet here we are: Preparing a talk for a NATO conference on chaos magic.

Alf Rehn @alfrehn.bsky.social · Jun 3

Realizing that I have no immediate or already missed deadlines for texts/writings. What the hell am I supposed to do now?