Christmas Mailbag!

Is Elon Musk actually smart? Will HS2 ever be properly finished? Do I like Dominic Cummings? And more!

Photo by Lydia Matzal on Unsplash

Hello! Usually it would be time for Odds and Ends, a weekly round-up of interesting links that I’ve seen this week. But… there’s just one problem. I have no links to share, because I’m on holiday in New Zealand - and have spent virtually no time scrolling on my phone.

To prove my point, here’s a photo of me on a volcano that doubled for part of Mordor in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

One does not simply walk into Mordor (there’s actually a ski-lift just out of shot).

So in lieu of some links, I instead present to you my first ever mailbag post. These were all questions sent in by readers a few weeks ago - and now here’s my reckonings as a response.

Joel: I would still like an answer about how smart Elon Musk is! Is he, for instance, a genuinely helpful and problem-solving part of his rocketry and Tesla teams? Does he FULLY understand the tech, or is he just an informed investor/dabbler?