Against Entropy
I'm Sumit. I build search and retrieval systems at Microsoft, read more than is probably healthy, and tinker with things that catch my attention.
Worth a look
Curated reading
Library
Curated articles on mental models, decision-making, and clear thinking. Annotated and AI-enriched for deeper reading.
Browse library →Visual learning
Explainers
Interactive visual explanations of entropy, Fourier transforms, Heisenberg, how transformers work, and more.
Explore →Personal writing
Thoughts
Essays on systems, learning, and the slow work of making sense. On why entropy wins, how ideas regenerate, and what scales.
Read →Recently added to the Library
Browse all →psychology
Making a product that Marl loves - Inverted Passion
Consumer products, especially those seeking mass adoption and growth, often optimize for the "Marl" persona—users with short attention spans and a craving for instant gratification—leading to gamified experiences over deep utility.
psychology
Science of habit building
Habits form through repeated, rewarding actions in stable contexts, reinforcing cue-response loops. They can be influenced by environmental changes, specific intentions, and consistent practice, while breaking bad habits involves disrupting automaticity through mindfulness and replacement behaviors.
mental models
A Technique for Producing Ideas
An idea is a new combination of old elements, and generating them is a systematic, trainable, 5-step process involving intentional data gathering, mental digestion, subconscious processing, an 'aha' moment, and critical refinement.