As you might have noticed as keen readers of the Weekly Filet, I love in-depth profiles of materials our modern world runs on. This isn’t quite that, but similar: A conversation about small inventions with big effects on our modern world, from the nail to the spring to the lens. Insightful and entertaining.

From Weekly Filet #442, in May 2023.

99% Invisible: Nuts and Bolts

99% Invisible: Nuts and Bolts

99percentinvisible.org

💔 Some older links might be broken — that's the state of the web, sadly. If you find one, ping me.

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Explore collections

Making Sense of the Climate Crisis 41 links Making Sense of Artificial Intelligence 39 links All-time favourites 20 links The Stuff Our Modern World Runs On 13 links The Art of Thinking (Differently) 28 links Bingeworthy Podcasts & Episodes 36 links Stories, too good to put down 16 links

Book recommendations

2025 Book Club Books curious minds wished they discovered sooner Our most popular crowd-curated book recommendations thus far. Read the post →

Book Club illustration

Weekly Filet Book Club All recommendations from previous editions, at a glance. Find your next read → 📚 David's Bookshelf The books that shaped how I see the world and inform how I think and act. Browse the bookshelf →