Coffee With Tanya - Vol.23
Talking about: China Solar Wall, Spices for Coffee, AI+Human Trends 2025, Imagination by Darwin, Innovations, January in Hostory
Talking about: China Solar Wall, Spices for Coffee, AI+Human Trends 2025, Imagination by Darwin, Innovations, January in History.
New Year! New Month! Hello 2025, let's go 🔥
Here’s what we have on our menu for today:
- Food - Spice up Your Coffee With These Goodies 🌶️
- Tech - China Solar Great Wall 🇨🇳
- Creativity - Darwin's Theory on Imagination 🧠
- AI - The Human + AI Dance 🤖
- Innovation - 2024 Top Innovation Picks 📡
- Word bites - Aletophobia 🔡
The world of reality has its limits; the world of imagination is boundless. // Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Five Spices of Coffee That Level Up Your Brew ☕
Well, it's about time we talk about coffee ❤️
The engine! Yeah yeah, I know it's the heart, but you got the point...
Everyone has their own style, preferred brew, morning, noon.
But has there been a time you felt something was missing? I'm not talking about the scenery and "I wish I could drink this now in Tuscany". But the coffee itself...
Ever wondered if it could do more than just wake you up?
While everyone's obsessing over fancy coffee machines and the "best" and "selected" beans in the world, scientists have been quietly studying something way more interesting: how ordinary kitchen spices could turn your daily cup into a brain-boosting powerhouse. 🤯
These five common spices might be all you need. We're talking about:
- Cinnamon: Not just for lattes. Research shows it's packed with antioxidants that help your brain cells manage stress. Think of it as a tiny shield for your memory.
- Ginger: This spicy root isn't just for upset stomachs. Studies hint it might help you stay focused and clear-headed. Just a small pinch could make a difference!
- Turmeric: Here's the golden ticket - literally (I actually use it everywhere I can)! It contains curcumin, which some experts believe encourages new brain cell growth. Plus, when mixed with black pepper...
- Black Pepper: Plot twist - it's not here for taste! It helps your body absorb turmeric's benefits up to 2000% better. Talk about teamwork.
- Nutmeg: The quiet achiever. Early research suggests it might help protect your memory. I love this one in my orange cake 🍊 together with cinnamon, and not just on Christmas Eve.
Sometimes the smallest things can make the biggest change and they're hiding in your spice rack.
So which are you going to try out? Let me know!
Here's a video of one of my favorite coffees!
China's Solar Great Wall: When Wisdom Meets Tech 🌞
I love scrolling through Perplexity on the Discover page sometimes.
Lately, I found this newest mega project!
While everyone's buzzing about AI and crypto, something mind-blowing is happening in Inner Mongolia and called the "Solar Great Wall" project.
Picture this: a wall of 196,000 solar panels stretching 400km through endless sand dunes, with an average width of 5km! This is called a "photovoltaic sea" transforming one of Earth's harshest environments. 🤯
Remember how the ancient Great Wall protected China from invaders?
This new wall protects against a different threat: climate change. Under these panels, they're pioneering sustainable land use, growing crops in what used to be barren sand. It's not just a power plant - it's a complete ecosystem transformation.
If thinking Kintsugi (read more here), this project is healing damaged landscapes, making them more valuable than before.
By 2030, one section alone will generate enough clean energy to power millions of homes in Beijing.
Sometimes the biggest innovations aren't in Silicon Valley - they're where ancient wisdom meets future tech.
Next stop... The Pyramids? 🛝🤔
Darwin's Secret Notes on The Power of Imagination 🧠
Have you ever thought about how imagination is crucial to our lives?
Alright, here's something interesting.
While reading The Marginalian, I found this piece with Darwin's personal notes (yeah, that Darwin..), which made me question how we think about human evolution and creativity.
Darwin believed that our ability to imagine is key to our evolutionary success and is even more important than reason.
Out of all our fancy human traits, Darwin was obsessed with one that nobody talks about - our imagination.
Let me break this down:
- Imagination is survival, not fluff: Before we built tools, we had to imagine them first. Before we made a fire, someone had to dream it up 🔥. Darwin saw imagination as a survival tool, not just an artistic thingy.
- Nature is a creative genius: Those famous Galapagos finches (the bird)? Darwin realized nature itself experiments, mixing traits like ideas in a brainstorm. Our brains do the same thing.
- Empathy starts with imagination: Imagining what others feel makes us more moral and compassionate, something Darwin saw as key to being a decent human.
- Don't let your brain become a fact machine: Darwin admitted he regretted not reading more poetry or listening to music - because when he stopped feeding his imagination, he lost happiness too.
When Darwin talks about imagination, he's not talking about art class. He's talking about survival. About evolution.
Think about it. Imagination didn't just change how we create. It changed everything. How we empathize. How we solve problems. How we connect.
The question isn't whether you're imaginative.
The question is: How will you feed your imagination today?
AI in 2025: The Plot Twist Nobody Saw Coming 🤖
Picture this 🖼️
You wake up. Your AI assistant has already sorted through 127 emails, scheduled your day for maximum productivity, and composed a pitch deck that would make Steve Jobs proud. Science fiction?
Nope. Welcome to 2025.
But here's where it gets interesting.
Reid Hoffman (yes, the LinkedIn genius) just dropped a truth bomb in his new book "Superagency" that is making even the skeptics raise their eyebrows. Ready for it?
We've been asking the wrong question all along.
Instead of "Will AI replace us?" the real question is: "What happens when everyone becomes superhuman?" 🦹
Let's see what's hot right now 🔥
- Generative AI isn't just playing around with pretty pictures anymore. It's evolving. Fast. Think personal creative director meets problem-solving genius.
- Agentic AI: Imagine having a team of brilliant assistants. Now imagine they never sleep. That's where we're headed.
- Edge AI: Lightning-fast responses. Zero lag. All happening right on your device. No cloud needed.
- Multimodal AI: These aren't just machines anymore. They see. They hear. They understand context like never before. Sometimes better than we do.
But here's the twist that's blowing everyone's minds:
The real revolution isn't in the technology. It's in us.
When Hoffman talks about "superagency," he's not talking about robots. He's talking about you and me. Everyone. Each of us. Evolved.
Think about cars for a second. They didn't just change how we move. They changed everything. How we live. Where we work. How doctors reach patients. How families stay connected.
That's what's happening now. But bigger. Much bigger.
Sure, there are skeptics. Questions about jobs and about the future.
But here's what they're missing... For the first time in history, we're not just watching the future unfold. We're actively shaping it.
Together.
Human and AI.
What's your take here?
Gary Grossman, Edelman
2024: When the Future Arrived (and It's Pretty Cool) 🚀
Remember when we thought 2020 was going to be the year?
Well, 2024 just showed up and said, “Hold my drink.” Forget flying cars... this year’s innovations are about how we live, heal, and connect better.
In this article you can find all the innovations by topics: Gadgets, Entertainment, Aerospace, Personal Care, Auto, Engineering, Sports & Outdoors, Home, Emergency Services and Health
Here are the most exciting breakthroughs (in my opinion):
- Oura Ring 4!! Number one as I see it... A smart ring that tracks everything from activity to stress, offering deep health insights.
- Qualcomm Snapdragon X Chips: More powerful laptops with longer battery life, shaking up how we work and create.
- Mosquito Protection Tech: A chemical-free fabric that blocks mosquitoes without compromising breathability. Ssmart design.
- FireSat by Google Research: Using satellites to detect wildfires early, saving lives, property, and ecosystems.
2024 isn’t about gadgets - it’s about leveling up with tech and imagination. The question isn’t whether these changes will touch us, but how we’ll use them to evolve and make a difference.
What's your favorite?
Word Bites! 📚🌟
Today we have... Aletohpobia 😴🚗
Atelophobia is an obsessive fear of imperfection. Someone with this condition is terrified of making mistakes. They tend to avoid any situation where they feel they won’t succeed. Atelophobia can lead to anxiety, depression and low self-esteem.
January in History
New year, new stories from around the globe! January moments 🌍
- January 1, 1993 – Czechoslovakia Splits Peacefully 🇨🇿🇸🇰
The Velvet Divorce became official, peacefully dividing Czechoslovakia into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. - January 15, 2001 – Wikipedia is Launched 🧑💻
The world’s largest online encyclopedia was born, revolutionizing how we access and share information. - January 20, 2009 – First Black U.S. President Inaugurated 🇺🇸
Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States, making history. - January 25, 1924 – First Winter Olympics ❄️
The first Winter Olympics opened in Chamonix, France, bringing cold-weather sports to the global stage. - January 27, 1945 – Auschwitz Liberation 🕊️
Soviet forces liberated the Auschwitz concentration camp in German-occupied Poland, a turning point in the Holocaust's grim history.
Ready for February's stories next? 😊
That's all for today... Stay tuned for the next coffee with me in February!
Meanwhile, you can also check my brand new newsletter that is focused on product management, business, tech, and productivity hacks called "The Product Palette", or anything else on my Linktree.
You're one of 93 humans who love to feed their curiosity.
If you have any topics you want me to explore further, please send them to me.