A bumper edition of readings and videos this week. Enjoy!

• “Without the prison, the beatings, what would I be?”: The Guardian interviews Ai Weiwei, the Chinese contemporary artist and activist.
• The college lecture is dying: First of a four-part series exploring the tech-driven future of higher education in America.
• The case for stock buybacks: Professor Alex Edmans on that oft-maligned use of corporate funds.
• Why the bears are wrong: James Stent says China’s banks are unlikely to collapse despite continuing fears over bad debt and shadow banking.
• Soros hatred is a global sickness: For a new generation of nationalists, the investor has become the perfect villain.
• History’s lessons: Professor Nancy Koehn uses the perspective of time to tell the stories of ordinary people who, despite the odds, achieved extraordinary things.
• Byju’s: Profile of education entrepreneur Byju Raveendran in Forbes India.
• The scandalous friendship that shaped Adam Smith: Jonathan Knee reviews Dennis Rasmussen’s new book, “The Infidel and the Professor.”
• Klarman’s Baupost plans to return some investor money: The hedge fund expects to return capital for the third time in its history because it doesn’t see enough opportunities in the market.
• Market update (August 2017): Andrew Clifford of Platinum Asset Management discusses how the firm is positioning itself in the current market environment.