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Derek Thompson

@DKThomp265k followers

Substack author. Plain English podcast host. Abundance co-author. Contributing writer at The Atlantic.

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1Jul 20, '22What happened is scientists discovered chlorofluorocarbons were bad for the ozone, countries believed them, the Montreal Protocol was signed, and CFC use fell by 99.7%, leading to 44.3×0178k29k3.8k
2Oct 15, '232023 study: “Our thesis is that a primary cause of the rise in mental disorders is a decline over decades in opportunities for children and teens to play, roam, and engage in other36.2×5.1M14k2.7k4k
3Dec 12, '23What is HAPPENING here? Between 2012 and 2023, it appears that average OECD reading, math and science scores have declined consistently. This is not (just) about pandemic learning 35.7×5M5.4k1.2k1.5k
4Apr 14, '24Homicides are plummeting. In all 10 cities with the most 2023 homicides—for which we have data—homicides are falling. The pandemic crime wave is crashing hard. If these percentage 34.5×4.8M6k2.1k768
5Aug 28, '24Lots of directions to go with this, positive and negative, but I will just point out: There is a genre of 21st century male “I have perfected the game of life” routine that essenti30.1×4.2M41k1.1k4k
6Apr 11, '24What’s the best explanation for why all these schools turned against the SAT around the same time and why they all re-embraced standardized testing at roughly the same time? (Besid29.6×4.1M8k3702k
7May 24, '23I don't think China has figured out any technological magic to building stuff. I think they're like: "It's a train station, Michael. What could it cost, 15,000 man-hours and 20 dig28.8×4M7k419385
8Feb 27, '25Holy crap. Pancreatic is one of the deadliest cancers. New paper shows personalized mRNA vaccines can induce durable anticancer T cells that attack pancreatic cancer. 75% of patien28.7×4M38k5.4k4.7k
9Sep 25, '25~me and my female friends think the male loneliness crisis is pretty funny~ is fine group-chat fodder, but it's a weird thing to keep in a lefty essay that's ostensibly trying to f24.3×3.4M4.4k2231.1k
10Apr 24, '24New paper from Norway: Banning smartphones in school - significantly decreased doctors visits for psychological symptoms and diseases among girls - reduced bullying among both gend21.7×3M16k3.8k4k
11Mar 18, '23This is the chart that has launched a thousand takes. The conclusion seems obvious: Everything the govt touches goes to infinity in price. Everything pure capitalism touches goes t20.8×2.9M7.5k1.3k3.6k
12Jun 23, '25I think it's rude to over-generalize, but my opinion of a lot of left-wing media is unfortunately well-summarized by these two facts: 1. The Chapo guys refused, repeatedly, to talk19×2.7M7.1k348755
13Jul 21, '25Yes. Writing is not a second thing that happens after thinking. The act of writing is an act of thinking. Writing *is* thinking. Students, academics, and anyone else who outsources18.6×2.6M29k6.5k12k
14May 22, '24New Harris-Guardian poll: - 56% say US is in recession (reality: 7 straight quarters of positive GDP growth) - 49% say stocks are down YTD (reality: S&P500 up 12%) - 49% say un17.5×2.4M4.7k1.4k863
15Apr 5, '23This is just silly. If NPR receiving less than 1% of its revenue from federal government programs makes it "state-affiliated media," does Tesla accepting a $465m loan from DOE and 17.4×2.4M18k2.3k247
16Dec 15, '23Amazing chart. 1. Teens' self-reported relationship with parents is near an all-time high and has generally increased since 2000 2. Teen satisfaction with life generally rose in be15.9×2.2M4.3k5081.4k
17May 19, '23Pretty wild if the story ends up being that big pharma was doing clinical trials on diabetes medication and sorta kinda accidentally discovered a weight-loss miracle drug ... and t15.1×2.1M11k9271.5k
18Aug 8, '25Like everything ⁦@jburnmurdoch⁩ makes, this chart is amazing. The sharp decline in conscientiousness and rise in neuroticism among young people is astonishing. But also of note: li15×2.1M6.1k1.2k2.7k
19May 28, '25New SF public school plan would - eliminate homework and weekly tests from counting toward semester grade - allow students to take the final exam multiple times - convert all B gra14.5×2M5.8k8491.1k
20Nov 20, '23Americans at ~every level of income say they need a 30%-50% raise "to feel happy." Make $50k? "I need about 75k." Make $75k? "I need about 100k." Make $150k? "I need 200k." Make $213.6×1.9M6.4k5971.3k
21Nov 7, '24For the first time since WWII, every governing party facing election in a developed country this year lost vote share, via @jburnmurdoch 2024 Democrats are the red dot. Absolutely 13.6×1.9M10k2k3k
22Jul 9, '24Where I am: 1. Biden is running consistently behind not only Trump but also swing-state Democratic senators, suggesting he faces not only an R vs. D problem but a Biden-specific pr12.9×1.8M5.8k896605
23Jun 20, '25Some personal news. Today, I’m leaving The Atlantic after almost 17 years and moving my writing to Substack. It would be convenient, for the purposes of crafting an exciting depart11.8×1.7M6.7k265711
24Jul 5, '23The Netflix revolution and streaming media is, for now, one of the most successful profit-destroying interventions in modern business history11.7×1.6M6.2k828404
25Aug 8, '25I think a fun running series would be something like: What's that business's actual "business"? EG: Airlines don't make money by flying ppl around. The profits come from credit car11.1×1.6M5.4k3222.2k
26Jul 24, '23Incredible snapshot of upper-middle-class college anxiety. Elite colleges have affirmative action for the very, very rich. Lower income students, who are less likely to apply, have10.4×1.5M5.4k626803
27May 13, '23It takes less than two seconds to see that Musk’s framework — I’m a free speech absolutist … unless anybody threatens to shut off Twitter access, in which case, I’m for or against 10.1×1.4M12k1.3k190
28May 10, '22The optics here are exquisite. No notes.10.1×046k3.9k880
29Oct 5, '25This sweaty online lust to obliterate the judicial system and declare martial law is genuinely disgusting stuff.10.1×1.4M8.4k1.5k547
30Apr 16, '24It's "interesting" to watch the right-wing outrage sausage get made. 1. Judge: Trump can attend son's graduation if trial is on track, but no official ruling yet. 2. Trump (lying):9.8×1.4M6.1k1.2k289
31Apr 12, '25Imagine trying to manage a supply chain right now. Every 48 hours, the White House is announcing, or un-announcing, or re-announcing, or creating massive carve outs to, a new trade9.7×1.4M21k3.5k742
32Feb 14, '24I wrote about the collapse of face-to-face socializing in in the 21st century. From 2003-2022, American adults reduced socializing by 30%. For teens, the decline was nearly 50%. Th9.6×1.3M4.3k1.1k2.1k
33Jul 6, '25Life in 1776: - heat is such a luxury that Thomas Jefferson can’t write in deep winter bc his ink freezes (one reason perhaps why Independence Day is in July) - nighttime darkness 8.7×1.2M11k1.2k2.6k
34Aug 2, '24Harris now leading in PA/MI/WI in @NateSilver538's latest. Up 1.1%pts nationally.8.3×1.2M3.4k523179
35Sep 16, '24re: Scientific American's endorsement of Kamala Harris for president I wish I saw more scientists grappling with the tradeoffs at stake here. In fact, a 2023 paper found that the j8.1×1.1M6k636544
36Mar 11, '23Here’s what I don’t understand about this line of criticism. The CEO of SVB wasn’t under a rock. He was … a director at the San Francisco Fed! The idea that Fed policy snuck up beh7.5×1M4.3k480114
37Sep 26, '25New study: Research shows liberals have worse mental health than conservatives. But what if you ask about "mood" to avoid possible conservative stigma around "mental health" issues7.4×1M4.4k4831.2k
38Apr 17, '25We really did it. We took a growing US manufacturing economy, declared it broken, started a trade war, and ... broke US manufacturing. In last 48 hours: - Philly Fed Survey: "New o7.3×1M13k3.3k1.8k
39Sep 23, '25I love how the FDA statement on Tylenol looks like the top was written by RFK Jr and the bottom was written by very annoyed scientists overruling him Top: Tylenol associated with i7.1×988k13k1.6k1.8k
40Jul 6, '23The US has the fastest growth rate of any G7 country. And the US has the lowest annual inflation of any G7 country. And Americans hate it!7.0×984k4.9k1.3k312
41Jul 12, '19"How Couples Meet" chart, updated July 20196.7×015k7k1.1k
42Jan 8, '25I wrote the cover story of the February issue of The Atlantic. It builds on a lot of reporting I did throughout 2024, and I'm really proud of it. It’s called: THE ANTI-SOCIAL CENTU6.4×896k4.3k1k2.5k
43Sep 18, '25The Biden administration working with social media companies to throttle what they considered COVID misinformation might or might not have been legally principled, but it did at le6.2×868k5.5k503655
44Apr 2, '25Nobody knows what’s going on. You’ve prominent Trumpsplainers saying the goal of the tariffs is to raise trillions in revenue and move us off income taxes. You’ve got folks who see6.0×835k4.5k572436
45Oct 15, '25What makes me most angry is that there's nothing Americans "get" from destroying USAID in a way that directly results in the death of the world's poorest children. It barely even q5.8×812k9.7k2.1k1k
46Mar 18, '24Austin is building housing like crazy. Rents are down 7%. But rather than frame this achievement as a win for renters—or for the arg that housing prices respond to supply growth—WS5.6×784k7.7k1k487
47Sep 12, '23The most interesting secret of "Blue Zones"— places where ppl live extra long lives—appears to be, sadly, improper record-keeping. The number of ppl living 100+ years just happens 5.6×782k4.9k549575
48Feb 8, '24it's funny/sad/astonishing that we're in a situation where trump's multiple indictments were political advantageous to him, and biden's exoneration is politically terrible for him5.1×711k5.9k1k230
49Oct 23, '25The idea that "We're in another Gilded Age" is thrown around a lot, and sometimes it's lazy and vague, but nakedly corrupt quid pro quo between plutocrats and bureaucrats—say, a co5.1×706k5.3k626460
50Jul 27, '20I wrote about “Hygiene Theater”—how restaurants, gyms, and subways have wasted millions of dollars on fancy cleaning plans to defeat a mostly airborne plague and made Americans mor5.0×013k4.8k1.2k
51Dec 24, '24New study: An analysis of 400 occupations found that taxi and ambulance drivers had the lowest proportion of deaths from Alzheimer’s—raising the possibility that constant stimulati5.0×698k5.8k6351.9k
52Jul 15, '23I’ve really enjoyed Twitter, was never on Team Hellsite, and originally rooted for Elon to succeed. But this is a disaster. High debt, negative cash flow, main biz down 50%, annual4.7×659k4.2k337118
53May 8, '25The war against mRNA research is genuinely insane. The mRNA COVID vaccines were a spectacular success at reducing severe illness among adults. Their benefits outside of COVID remai4.5×626k6.3k850513
54Nov 15, '251. Raise tariff 2. Collect bribes 3. Reduce tariff It's really that simple. The challenge with describing the economic strategy of the Trump admin is that it's not an "economic" "s4.5×622k9.2k3.1k982
55Mar 5, '25I have no idea how this affects Musk’s behavior in Washington, but the situation with Tesla is - total unit sales declined in 2024 - meanwhile, he did his very best to alienate Dem4.1×579k4.4k523366
56Apr 3, '25approaching, and surpassing, frightening level of Veep4.0×557k7k6791.1k
57Jul 28, '24One effect of Joe Biden stepping back in the race is that even though we’re not getting the full mini primary, there is suddenly a lot of attention being paid to Democrats who are 3.8×536k7.5k588192
58Apr 24, '25Gutting scientific funding and scaring away talented immigrants while raising the cost of manufacturing stuff in America is, genuinely, like something we’d be forced to do after lo3.7×514k4.5k894470
59Feb 17, '20How to fix Presidents' Day. 1. The two most common months for presidential birthdays are October and November. 2. So, Presidents' Day should be in early Nov on—hm, let's say—the 1s3.6×015k2k37
60Mar 5, '25The policy chaos, I think I’ll survive. Watching Trumpsplainers rapturously praise each set of tariffs with the same energy they use to praise their cancellation—and then, praise t3.4×481k4.6k405278
61Jun 30, '20Either seatbelts work, or they don't. If you're requiring that they be installed in every car, then let people drive drunk at 100 mph the way the Founders intended. If they don't w3.4×014k2.5k80
62Mar 6, '25Our entire trade policy seems to be driven by our president’s deep fondness for being on the phone. Guy just loves phone calls. The more the better. A whole geopolitical paradigm b3.1×439k4.5k395228
63Nov 7, '243 true things that are hard to keep in your head, but not THAT HARD. 1. Voters hate inflation, and there's been a global incumbency backlash to prove it, which played a huge role i3.1×434k4.4k622676
64Aug 13, '19Barstool's world is covering - the unionized MLB - the unionized NFL - the unionized NBA - the unionized NHL - the unionized MLS ...3.1×013k1.9k48
65Jan 25, '24This sure looks like Republicans saying “the border is such an urgent crisis that … we are going to ensure nothing is done about it for 12 months, while we campaign on the complain3.1×428k4k919103
66Jul 30, '25One lesson of DOGE is that a lot of federal govt spending is sent to old ppl (social security, Medicare) and affluent individuals/orgs (defense, health spending) but the spending w3.0×417k5k608596
67Sep 22, '23The year is 2032. Brock Purdy is 157-0. The entire league still thinks he's a system QB, so the 49ers can retain him on a cheap <$5m/year contract and lavish him with expensive 3.0×416k4.1k14637
68Jul 19, '22On average, time spent - with family peaks at <15yo - with friends peaks at 18 - with coworkers peaks at 30 - with children peaks at 40 - with your partner peaks at 70 - alone p2.9×08.4k1.7k1.8k
69Apr 8, '25Every defense of the Trump tariffs is at odds with the actual underlying policy. Like, how do you go into office thinking "We must build a durable and dependable supply chain that 2.9×399k4.9k918750
70Mar 6, '25Telling Americans we’re gonna abolish taxes and also find trillions of dollars lying around in tariff payments is sort of like telling my kid I stole her nose and found it behind h2.7×374k5.6k850292
71Apr 1, '21TIL: google news occasionally features the author photo instead of the article art 😂2.6×013k38787
72Oct 11, '21I'm a New York Times Reader. And I've Noticed Something.2.5×011k884330
73Jul 13, '25Two weeks ago, Marco Rubio said USAID “has little to show since the end of the Cold War.” Days earlier, a Lancet study estimated that USAID global health programs have saved 90 mil2.3×318k7.5k2.9k594
74Aug 22, '21Wow. Just one poll, but “Welcoming Afghan translators to the US” looks like the most popular and bipartisan policy idea I’ve seen in a long, long time2.3×08.7k1.5k70
75Nov 28, '22There is a 100% chance that this graph is a core reason for America's surge of anxiety and depression. Time spent with other people has plummeted—for every age group, ethnicity, ge2.2×06.9k1.3k863
76Apr 9, '20New @DataProgress poll: - 52% of Americans under 45 have lost their job, had hours reduced, or been furloughed -35% of Americans under 35 now say they don't have health insurance2.2×04.2k2.8k230
77Apr 1, '21So, I wrote about Alex Berenson.2.2×05.9k1.6k657
78Sep 15, '19This paper should be a bombshell. Due to the electoral college and the extreme blue-state concentration of Democrats, Republicans are expected to win 65% of presidential contests i2.1×05.2k2.7k305
79May 25, '20The largest outbreak in South Korea came from a church. The largest outbreak in France came from a church. The latest outbreak in Germany came from a church. The latest CDC investi2.1×05.3k2.4k216
80Jan 3, '22These graphs never fail to astonish. The COVID hospitalization risk is MORE THAN 10X higher for the unvaccinated—at every. single. age. level.2.1×05.5k2k440
81Sep 20, '19If you wake up on a Casper mattress, hail Lyft to get to your desk at WeWork, use DoorDash to order lunch, and get an Uber home, you've spent the day interacting with companies tha1.9×05.4k1.7k395
82May 12, '20Now that's three CDC studies—from a Chinese restaurant, a Korean call center, and an American choir practice—all finding that talking, laughing, singing in close quarters, in unven1.9×04.1k2.2k486
83Feb 2, '21"Cheese, by far, was shown to be the most protective food against age-related cognitive problems, even late into life" (via @bpmehlman)1.8×04.2k795334
84Jan 10, '20This appears to be Casper's business: Buy mattress at $400. Sell at $1,000. Refund/return 20% of them. --> Keep $400, on avg. ... then spend $290 of that on ads/marketing. ... a1.8×06k1k390
85Aug 13, '25$400 billion of annualized capex for a high-tech "mirror mirror on the wall who's the fairest of them all" interlocutor1.7×233k7.6k304181
86Sep 10, '21In the last 48 hours: - BioNTech announced human trials for cancer vaccines using mRNA technology - Moderna announced promising data on a 3-in-1 respiratory vaccine—a FluRona shot 1.6×05.3k1.3k195
87Sep 30, '19New paper: More than 40% of white Harvard admits are “ALDC”: athletes, legacy, Dean’s interest (donors' kids), or children of faculty Researchers find: 1. 70+% of such admits would1.6×03.9k1.7k235
88Oct 3, '19By a 52-21 margin, Americans think asking Ukraine to investigate Biden is an abuse of power, per USAToday poll. The gap among independents is huge: 45%-16%. It's even close among R1.6×04.6k1.6k63
89May 8, '22I'm confused. I was reliably told that leaking an old Alito opinion was treasonous destruction of a sacred institution, but now the Court's conservative camp is just plainly descri1.4×05k1.1k178
90Oct 29, '21The timeline goes: 1) Florida was relatively spared by early COVID wave 2) By early 2021, its COVID deaths-per-cap were avg 3) There was a round of self-congratulation 4) Delta cru1.4×05.3k963120
91Apr 21, '22This seems pretty important: There's an ongoing collapse in pro-institution sentiment among Republicans—who disapprove of colleges, big corporations, tech firms, media, entertainme1.4×03.9k922358
92Oct 12, '21Kyrie played at Duke University, which has for years had immunization requirements for the flu, Hep-B, measles, meningitis, mumps, polio, rubella, and TD/DTAP/TDAP. I'm trying to i1.4×04.9k1k85
93Jan 12, '21The very emotional discussion right now about whether Twitter has the right to de-platform Trump should widen the lens and see that the list of corporations that essentially came t1.3×04.9k863112
94Apr 23, '21Malaria vaccine!!! I'm gonna try to learn more about this, but a 77% effective malaria vaccine is automatically in the running for Best News of the Year. Malaria kills 400k ppl ann1.2×04.5k92971
95Dec 31, '21It’s impossible to ignore the fact that the Omicron wave—and the reactions to Omicron from officials—has emboldened a group of Americans who were never really Anti-Vax but are now 1.2×04.9k429112
96Aug 14, '19If you work at WeWork, drive home with Uber, and then order food by DoorDash, you're engaging with three companies that are projected to lose about $13 billion this year.1.2×03.8k913107
97Mar 3, '20There are no libertarians in a pandemic.1.1×04k87147
98Apr 13, '21At the risk of being misunderstood in several ways, can I point out that it's a little weird how many people walk around outside with masks, with no one around them at all, and the1.0×04.5k25237
100Apr 22, '21What the hell is going on at the New York Post0.8×03.8k24039

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