Be wary of weaponized services. The things that are out to grab you by the leg and pull you under the water for a very long time—the algorithms (a.k.a. computer code that learns what you like or presents you with highly enticing clickbait). YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Netflix, and more. Be careful of these things because…
In my experience, weekends with too much screen time are not satisfying. If I lock away my phone and internet, I feel like I’m resting my brain. Watching YouTube doesn’t rest my brain. I’ve spent 10 hours watching YouTube on a Saturday before and felt awful afterward. I think I totally fried my brain. On the…
Are smartphone apps tools or drugs? A proper tool is passive, and it waits for us to use it, much like a hammer sits and waits in our toolbox. The hammer doesn’t actively seek anything from us, and it doesn’t use psychological tactics to take hold of our attention. On the other hand, many social…
With some reluctance, I log in and look at the daily screen time for my smartphone. It tallies up the numbers and reveals 5.5 hours a day. I start to feel guilty and resentful. What else could I be doing with all that time? Those 5.5 hours add up to ~2,000 hours or 83 days…
YouTube is one of my favorite websites, but it’s also my favorite way to put off important tasks. I feel disappointed after YouTube binging because I have other things I need to do. We have many choices for our “content diet” in this digital era, but my diet has too much YouTube. How do I…
Sometimes I’m dazed after using my smartphone for too long. I switch between YouTube and other apps in an endless loop. My head starts to hurt. I feel like an addict. What’s happening? Why do I feel so drawn to this miniature computer? Dopamine is a big reason why. What is Dopamine? Dopamine is a…