Mission before self. Disagreement is necessary. Yes, AI can make you smarter. Human-to-human telepathy. Silence is not always golden. Dare to act your values. 90% of the internet is fake.
“Blessed is the man who, having nothing to say, abstains from giving us wordy evidence of the fact.”
― George Eliot, Impressions of Theophrastus Such
I’ve been listening to The Collected Stories of Arthur C. Clarke as I’ve been on some road trips of late, and I have to say I’m enjoying the heck out of it. Clarke is one of the classic foundational authors that really turned me on to the genre when I first dipped my toes in <mumble> years ago. I know there’s a difference of opinion as to whether listening to an audiobook is the same as reading. In my opinion it’s not, of course, but it definitely has strengths as well as weaknesses, depending on what it is you’re reading/listening to. In my case it’s wonderful for non-fiction on the road.
I certainly advocate for reading more, and I do mean the real words-on-paper kind of reading (or words-on-screen — I love my Kindle as well). But sometimes listening can be a useful alternative in situations where your eyeballs are otherwise occupied.
1. “Great leaders put their missions above their egos”
Why We Fall for Narcissistic Leaders, Starting in Grade School – Adam Grant – (New York Times)
The piece talks a lot about narcissism, of course, but the more interesting thoughts are around why we continually fall for them.
The greater the societal instability, the more people wanted a leader who projected physical dominance and strength. That’s the allure of a narcissist today.
In other words people look for a strong, competent leader, and a narcissist is more than willing to present themselves as such, regardless of the facts. The essay touches lightly on solutions. The most realistic, even though very unlikely to be implemented by said narcissist, is to deal with the underlying cause: the social instability.
Yelling “you’re wrong!” at the opposition never helps, of course.
Do this: Understand the reality of the underlying causes.
#narcissism #social-instability
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2. “It’s very easy for me to be kind of a judgy asshole”
The Personal Value of Conversations Across Serious Disagreement – Elizabeth Barnes – (Daily Nous)
This feels important because it’s something we no longer seem to do: engage with people who disagree with us. Barnes describes a very positive relationship with someone with whom she disagrees strongly on many issues. Because we tend to avoid these discussions, the strength of our own position is weakened.
And trying to understand an argument is step 1 in the process of making a good case for why that argument ultimately doesn’t work.
Or, perhaps, if you’re truly as open minded as you think, changing your mind. Sadly we seem to be so afraid of that possibility that the discussions simply never happen.
Do this: Have those discussions.
3. “Writing would produce shallow thinkers”
How to Use AI to Make Us Smarter – Hana Lee Goldin, MLIS – (Card Catalog)
I’ll admit, it’s one of my pet issues: AI doomerism. I’m not saying that AI is perfect, but that it’s much more nuanced than that, and that we have so many examples of <insert technology here> doomerism to learn from. When Socrates predicted that this new thing called “writing”, for example, would harm our thinking abilities, he was both right, and way off the mark.
Writing made possible an entirely new kind of thinking that oral memory couldn’t achieve: it accumulated knowledge across generations and gave individuals the ability to reason at a scale no single mind could sustain.
That same kind of thinking is happening in many corners with respect to AI.
… the quality of our engagement with any information source determines the quality of our thinking. AI didn’t change that principle; AI made the stakes measurable.
The article includes many examples of using AI in an active, rather than passive, fashion, improving the quality of both the engagement, and our thinking.
Do this: Use AI actively, not passively.
4. “A miraculous and intimate act of human-to-human telepathy”
On God and LLMs – Cal Newport – (Blog)
Another perspective on writing, this time more closely related to what it implies when what was once a uniquely human distinction begins to be something AI can do as well. Newport doesn’t have answers, per se, but does have an interesting observation, once again in the “we’ve been here before” category:
But one thing that seems clear is that the newly emerging field of digital ethics (in which I’m currently active) is in the same place today as bioethics was five decades earlier
I suspect that digital ethics will be a very busy field in the months and years to come.
Do this: Consider the ethics — they’re not nearly as black and white as you think.
5. “Most people aren’t misunderstood, they’re just silent.”
Just f**king say it – almostawakeadam – (TikTok)
Just fucking say it. Not the watered-down version. Not that I hope they pick up on it bullshit. The real thing. You like someone? Tell them. It hurt? Say it. You need something? Open your mouth. Use your words. Most people aren’t misunderstood, they’re just silent. And shocked when nothing changes. We hint, we dodge, we act chill while quietly keeping score. That’s not peace, it’s fear. But yeah. Say it with grace, because honestly, without kindness, it’s just aggression.
So say the thing. Even when it’s uncomfortable, especially then.
I don’t normally pull from TikTok (though this comes via Facebook as well), and I don’t normally quote the entire item, but this spoke to me. We’re trained so trained to be passively aggressively polite that we forget what it means to be honest and clear while still being kind. The result is that we think we’re asking for something, and we’re hurt when no one realizes it, or we’re shocked that people don’t understand how we’re feeling, even though we never actually told anyone.
Do this: Be clear. Be honest. Be kind.
6. “Many of us have learned to stay silent as the safe choice.”
How to be defiant – Sunita Sah – (Psyche)
A completely coincidental continuation of the previous theme, Sah looks at understanding why we so often stay silent when we know better.
I define defiance as acting in accordance with your true values when there is pressure to do otherwise.
All too often we set aside those core values. There are costs.
… the costs of staying silent are delayed and diffuse: a growing sense of resentment, an eroding sense of self, the slow accumulation of a life shaped by other people’s expectations.
Naturally it’s often a delicate balance depending on the specifics of the situation, but in general we can speak up safely more often than we do.
Do this: Act in accordance with your true values as much as you can.
7. “90 percent of what you see on the internet is advertising in disguise”
The Feed Is Fake – Lane Brown – (New York Magazine)
It’s something I’ve noticed: my Facebook Reels and Instagram feed are full of clips of other shows or creators collected (curated?) by third party accounts flooding social media. Turns out it’s the latest technique used to shape popular opinion without people realizing it.
When nobody knows what’s actually popular, the appearance of popularity matters more than popularity itself.
I see this as a much larger problem than is even outlined here. We cannot trust the information being presented by social media. Be it an advertising campaign, a stealth “clipping” campaign as described in the article, or something else entirely, it’s being used to manipulate us, not inform us. (And this goes well beyond social media: your favorite “news” sites are doing the same kinds of things.)
Do this: Be skeptical, always. It’s going to get worse before it gets better.
Random Links
- A Non-Exhaustive List of Sources for When You Need Real Information, Not Just Content – Gold, from Card Catalog.
- Your Life in Weeks – a “Wait But Why” classic. A great perspective on your life.
What I’m reading now
- Good Writing: 36 Ways to Improve Your Sentences – Neal Allen, Anne Lamott
- The Way of Kings: Book One of the Stormlight Archive – Brandon Sanderson
- The Collected Stories of Arthur C. Clarke – (Audio)
- The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark – Carl Sagan
My Reading List – everything I’ve read since 2021.
My Sources Page – the common sources I scan/read regularly.
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