The Algorithm

It wasn't always like this.

The screens. The scrolling.

We had the sky and at night the stars would come out.

You could see them back then.

That was before the algorithm and everything that came with it.

We didn't even know what an algorithm was. 

The same way we didn't have the internet.

For awhile it was good, it made things easier.

But we didn't know what it would turn into.

Little by Little

Motorcycle Diaries

Third Eye Blind performing at the Minna Art Gallery in San Francisco

Third Eye Blind is Steph's favorite band. She's always liked them. The lead singer, Stephan, had a Bill Murray vibe about him—super self-aware and dry. He made jokes about San Francisco and called other bands sellouts as they played for a small room of investors and tech startups. It was subtle, perfectly timed and very funny. He seemed genuinely amused by the audience and the scene. At the same time, he was very gracious for the opportunity. I was invited backstage after the show to meet him, and he was VERY cool. 

Everyone knows Third Eye Blinds bangers, Semi-Charmed Life, Jumper, How's It Going to Be... but my favorite song by far is Motorcyle Diaries. It reads like a beautiful poem.

I made several How's It Going to B2B jokes.  

Brain ROT

Phones and social media have been compared to cigarettes in terms of addiction.

I think we'll find out they are MUCH, MUCH worse.

Especially when it comes to brain development.

Children are spending more time online than offline, making it increasingly challenging for them to differentiate between what is real and what is not (we see this in adults, too; remember the Qanon movement?). This cognitive dissonance is leading to more depression and anxiety. 

Although there are a lot of factors here, I think the root cause (in addition to poor parenting) is clear. It's social media.

Social media platforms have been weaponized with algorithms that study habits and vulnerabilities to generate engagement (at all cost). So kids, with their brains not fully developed, spend all day mindlessly scrolling through memes and videos that gradually erode their cognitive abilities, alter their thoughts, and change their behavior. Prolonged exposure to this brain-rotting sensory overload shit distorts their perception of reality and diminishes intelligence. Test scores are waaaaay down, and I think we are just seeing the tip of the iceberg here.

We should have been more concerned when kids were eating Tide Pods or killing each other because of Slender Man. These were warning signs that we all ignored.

***UPDATE***

On June 17, Surgeon general calls for social media warning labels [link]. Nice to see at least something being done... although it might be too little too late.