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Hello friends,
I’m writing to invite you to a new project that I consider a long-term explanation.

It’s called The Vibes Project, and it’s a free, purely educational newsletter about human nature and popular culture. The project will begin soon and I'd love to have you along for the ride.

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What is it About?

Human nature represents a difficult and fascinating explanation problem. Despite generations of academic research, much of our nature remains a mystery. I'm looking for new perspectives on an age-old question: Why are we the way we are?

I'm interested in how we perceive and connect with one another. We all have unique personalities and presences that others feel. I call these "vibes," like vibrations, that help us navigate social situations and communicate who we are.

I created The Vibes Project to research, understand, and share what I believe is a novel perspective on this experience. I've spent months researching psychology, history, culture, brain science, and social science. While this continues to be essential, I'm synthesizing a variety of ideas to explain experiences that virtually everyone knows and feels.

An Example

We are all aware of the power of “coolness” in our culture. This is an example of a vibe. I want to know: When someone has a “cool” vibe… what’s happening? What is coolness? When and where did it originate? How has it impacted our culture? How does it influence us and our worldview?

Another vibe with similar questions is nerdiness.

These are questions that are rarely discussed but have real power. I want to change that. I want to understand and explain them so we can better understand one another.

A Five-Part Series - You're Invited

The project will soon start with a five-post series on the Roots of Cool. You'll receive one post per week for five weeks. By the end, we will have traced the idea of coolness across continents and centuries leading up to WWII.

You’ll learn about fascinating people and ideas that were not taught in school.

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That's what I have for now. Cheers!

Lee LeFever, Common Craft and Explainer Academy​