Eight intriguing articles from August.

From spiderwebs in our brains through to AI comedians bombing on stage, this month's Super8 is a positive panoply of ideas, topics and places to wile away the day.

Our latest fresh face, Doug Ross, has put together a rich array of thought-provoking and intriguing pieces that have grabbed the team's attention over the past few weeks. Get yourself a steaming hot cup of joe, put your feet up on the desk and take a break from all the Zooming. The meetings can wait. A compilation of this year's best and most impressive typefonts can't. Enjoy Super8 in August!

1. What I learned about search from listening to two musicians.

Image use

• Read the full article here.
• Created by: Miriam Ellis.
• Contributed by: Sebastian Griffiths.

Quote of the year: "The problem with progress is that people think progress is the new technology…but true progress is human beings flourishing." That's why Miriam Ellis claims that she has found the best conversation anyone has had in 2024 so far. It's a deep chat between music educator Rick Beato and jazz historian Ted Gioia on the impact of AI on the music industry. For Miriam, there are some fascinating takeaways that relate to our relationship with search today and brand trust. Definitely worth reading her thoughts before listening to Rick and Ted's conversation.

2. We need more vitamin products.

Image use

• Read the full article here.
• Created by: Valerie Tetu.
• Contributed by: Stefan Imbesi.

A quick and fascinating take on the vitamin vs painkiller analogy in tech and business. Co-founder of Stealth Startup, Valerie Tetu argues that while startups often focus on creating 'painkiller' products that solve urgent problems, we actually need more 'vitamin' products that enhance and improve our lives over time. Vitamins don't solve immediate issues but create new standards and long-term benefits. Valerie makes the case that by focusing on these types of products, we can shift from merely fixing problems to improving overall product quality and preventing issues before they arise.

3. A collection of design engineers.

Image use

• Read the full article here.
• Created by: Maggie Appleton.
• Contributed by: Bridget Noonan.

Ever wondered what a 'design engineer' does? Designer and developer Maggie Appleton explores the role of those who blend design and engineering to create seamless digital experiences. She outlines how they can iterate quickly between design concepts, research, and coding; making them ideal for prototyping and developing robust design systems. Maggie showcases various design engineers and their public work, demystifying the role of a design engineer while offering some golden inspiration with real examples.

4. An AI walks into a bar... Can artificial intelligence be genuinely funny?

Image use

• Read the full article here.
• Created by: Matt Kenyon.
• Contributed by: Mike McCusker.

"Budget of new Batman movie swells to $200m as director insists on using real Batman." AI wrote that tongue-in-cheek heading, and it's not that bad. In this article, journalist Matt Kenyon explores the potential for AI to compete with humans on the funny scale, with some surprising results. Learnings? In the same way that you can't get much from a comedian when you ask them, "Say something funny," how you prompt AI garners varying results when it comes to comedy.

5. This is good UX writing.

Image use

• Read the full article here.
• Created by: Nick DiLallo.
• Contributed by: Doug Ross.

Plenty is written on this subject, and it's dear to our hearts. But the best introduction we've found recently on the power of language to drive action is this short and sharp article by Nick DiLallo. UX writing applies across all digital experiences, but is so powerful when it comes to helping people achieve their goals, from purchasing products to navigating services. Nick uses clean visuals to bring to life some principles of clear communication and how they can support digital navigation and action.

6. 100 best free fonts for designers in 2024.

Image use

• Read the full article here.
• Created by: awwwards.
• Contributed by: Timocles Copland.

Turn on and tune in to some font therapy. The team from Awwwards have put together the best free fonts for this year. If nothing else, it's just one of those moments where you can bask in the glory of the internet, see some incredible craft at work and find some inspiration for your own branding. Or better yet, apply one or more of these free fonts consistently across a campaign or wider brand refresh.

7. How Google handles JavaScript throughout the indexing process.

Image use

• Read the full article here.
• Created by: Malte Ubl.
• Contributed by: Kurt Smith.

For the dev heads and SEO wizards: here are several myths about Google's capabilities debunked by Vercel, showing how Googlebot can effectively render and index JavaScript-heavy sites. From rendering speeds through to discovery, some fascinating insights are revealed that push back on long-held beliefs. The team also take a look back at the evolution of Google's rendering capabilities and offers recommendations for optimising your JavaScript-heavy website for SEO.

8. The Immune Mind.

Image use

• Read the full article here.
• Created by: Monty Lyman.
• Contributed by: Sarah El-Atm.

Medical doctor, author and researcher Monty Lyman has released two books already, and this year released 'The Immune Mind – the new science of health'. Within this latest release, Monty explores a burgeoning paradigm shift in how the medical field views the immune system. If you didn't know we have an (until-recently-discovered) meningeal lymphatic system encasing our brain... well, you do now. Or that there is a part of our brain named after a spider web. Once you check this book out you'll find out exactly why the industry is getting so excited about what it means that the brain, instead of being a separate organ to our immune system, is actually an intrinsic writer, actor and director in our immune story.