Prescient predictions. Puns as superpower. How words make you feel. Lying on the rise (honest!). Reading more. Reading, writing, thinking. Notice stuff.
“If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.”
– Mark Twain
1. “Networks of strangers connected by self-interest and technology”
David Foster Wallace Tried to Warn Us About these Eight Things – Ted Gioia – (The Honest Broker)
The amazing part is simply this:
He wrote that in 1993, at a time when most people had no awareness of the Internet, but he might as well have been talking about Instagram, Facebook, and the other pervasive social media apps of our current moment.
The list of thoughts reads downright prescient. Depression, loneliness, the motivations of the platform owners … it could have been written today.
It’s well worth reading and reflecting on.
Do this: Be intentional about your screen time.
#depression #loneliness #screen-time
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2. “Puns serve a greater purpose.”
Can Puns Save Democracy? Probably not. But maybe a little? – A.J. Jacobs – (Experimental Living)
I appreciate a good pun. I’m not great at creating them, but I know a good one when I hear it.
Jacob’s lighthearted point is that they force us to think, and that’s a good thing. They point out the ambiguity of language, preparing us just a little more when that ambiguity pops up in non-punish situations.
Puns (and wordplay in general) might make us smarter citizens because they alert us to the ambiguity and slipperiness of language. They train us to be wary of democracy-eroding propaganda.
English can be an incredibly ambiguous language, and that power can be used for good, or evil.
Do this: Pay attention to language and how it’s used.
3. “The next time you feel good, resist the urge to interrogate it.”
How To Overcome Negative Thoughts: 4 Secrets From Philosophy – Eric Barker – (Barking Up the Wrong Tree)
A fascinating exploration of how the language we use — imprecisely at that — colors how we think about ourselves.
You think your inner monologue is you? It’s not. It’s a propaganda machine run by a committee of childhood wounds and cultural expectations. And that voice keeps chattering away with all the fervor of a conspiracy theorist at a municipal zoning meeting.
The premise is that very often simply taking the time to re-frame our thoughts into more objective, and accurate terms, can make a dramatic difference in how we see ourselves.
Do this: Watch your (inner) language.
4. “There’s simply less friction to lying today.”
The “Liabetes” Epidemic in America – Tom Greene – (Wit & Wisdom)
Lying is not a victimless crime. It corrodes trust—the basic glue that holds relationships and institutions together.
Is it any wonder that the institutions we once relied on are falling apart? Those even at the highest levels set so many examples daily that it’s become not just accepted, but expected. These “role models” are showing us, and our kids, how inconvenient truths can be simply sidestepped with a more convenient lie.
And it’s not just “them.” With lying so commonplace, it works its way even into the best intentioned individuals. The solution?
… the simple discipline of saying what’s true, even when it costs us. That’s the kind of self-control that builds families, institutions, and nations worth trusting again.
Do this: Maintain discipline.
5. “Reading as pure, unadulterated pleasure”
How To Read More – Anne Trubek – (Notes from a Small Press)
Begin by removing the word “should” from your vocabulary. Read because you want to and read what you want to. Once the implicit “shoulds” are gone, it becomes a lot more fun.
Trubek covers several thoughts and techniques on how to make reading easier. She admits not all will apply to everyone, but those that apply can help remove barriers. One example I adopted some years ago:
Stop reading a book you aren’t enjoying or don’t feel like reading.
No one said you had to finish every book you start. If it’s not doing it for you, stop and move on. Make reading fun again.
Do this: Read. (I know that reads like a “should”, but I’m really hoping it’s a “want” that I’m reminding you of.)
6. “Writing and reading are the twin pillars of deep thinking”
“You have 18 months” – Derek Thompson – (The Argument)
18 months is when many tech prognosticators say that AI will take over a majority of jobs. The article’s subtitle says it all:
The real deadline isn’t when AI outsmarts us — it’s when we stop using our own minds.
All indications are we’re accelerating the process, not of artificial intelligence, but actual illiteracy. Student’s are graduating from high school and even college without ever having read a book. Think about that for a moment (if you still have the attention span).
So what should our children study in an age of thinking machines?
…
It’s the patience to read long and complex texts; to hold conflicting ideas in our heads and enjoy their dissonance; to engage in hand-to-hand combat at the sentence level within a piece of writing — and to value these things at a time when valuing them is a choice.
Do this: Teach your children well. Please. (And maybe read a book.)
#literacy #reading #writing #thinking
7. “The subconscious needs feeding”
Five short thoughts – Oliver Burkeman – (The Imperfectionist)
The thought that caught my attention was this: “To generate ideas, get better at noticing.”. Specifically,
The most important thing is just to get into the habit of noticing things and making some record of them.
Note that’s a two-step process: noticing, and recording. The first is certainly on the decline as we live ever-distracted lives. The second is a hard habit to establish and stick to — even though it can be as simple as a “commonplace book“, physical or digital.
Do this: Notice.
Random links
- Will No One Rid Me of These 3 Hour Podcasts?
- This Is How To Avoid Being Scammed: 8 Secrets From Experts
What I’m reading now
- Tiny Experiments: How to Live Freely in a Goal-Obsessed World – Anne-Laure Le Cunff
- Creative Intellegence – Greg Storey
- The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume One 1929-1964 (Audio)(re-read)
My Reading List – everything I’ve read since 2021.
My Sources Page – the common sources I scan/read regularly.
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