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Product design in the no-code era, cryptocurrency regulations in the USA, and psychedelic microdosing vs. placebos


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Greetings all,

In this week’s episode of Ventures, designer/developer Perry Azevedo (https://www.linkedin.com/in/perryazevedo/) and I discuss the importance of a co-founder team having product and design capabilities, the nuances between “product” and “design”, examples from products that Perry and I have built together, and the future of UX design in the era of low-code/no-code applications.

Check it out: Building a co-founder team with product and design capabilities, and the future of UX in the no-code/low-code era :: with Perry Azevedo

Clarifying cryptocurrency regulations in the USA

For quite some time, because of the lack of clarity around how the USA may or may not regulate certain blockchain-related ventures, much of the innovation in the space has occurred formally within other countries.

I’m excited to see lawmakers propose a bill that would “create a working group to evaluate U.S. cryptocurrency regulations with input from the SEC and CFTC.”

“The ultimate goal of the legislation, called the “Eliminate Barriers to Innovation Act of 2021,” would be to clarify when the SEC has jurisdiction over a particular token or cryptocurrency (i.e., when it is a security) and when the CFTC has jurisdiction (i.e., when it’s a commodity).“

This will be helpful.

Placebo vs. psychedelics

While microdosing physissibin has been all the rage the past decade or so, a recent study showed that “anecdotal benefits of microdosing can be explained by the placebo effect.”.

This is a blow to the microdosing community. From this article in Science:

“The benefits are real,” says lead author Balázs Szigeti, a neuroscientist at Imperial College London. “But they are not caused by the pharmacological effects of microdosing.”

This is unfortunate, but there may be a silver lining. I’m personally a fan of the potential for psychedelics to aid in a variety of mental and physical health conditions, but the fact that placebo can cause similar benefits is overall good news for humanity.

I’ve heard countless folks in both the psychedelics and wellness communities describe how deep meditation, for example, can create altered states comparable to mild forms of psychedelics.    

So, there is a call-to-action for all us here. What are your psychedelic placebos?

For me, fly fishing, kiteboarding, skiing, and outdoor activities that get me into flow states - combined with meditation & silent thinking time in the mornings - are key components of my mental and physical health. I get a fair amount of push-back from colleagues that try to set meetings with me in the mornings, but my auto-do-not-disturb setting and hard-blocks on my calendar have been extremely important for my overall health. I’d highly recommended carving out dedicated time for indoor and outdoor flow-state activities if you can. I know it’s not always possible, but it’s an important goal for us all to strive toward allowing all humans - including ourselves - to experience this.

Have a great rest of your week!

~Will