I look on in bewilderment as E-bikes and electric skateboards pass me on the bike path.
Riders utterly motionless, with the exception of their thumbs feverishly swiping away at phones while electric motors whisk them to their destinations.
Tag: thinking
Throughout the Universe
Legal stuff is fun.
I signed a waiver yesterday – the “Released parties” that sent the waiver now have the right to use my likeness “throughout the universe.”
Talk about future-proofing.
The peril of indifference
Indifference runs wild without firm boundaries.
If you wait until you’re in the moment to decide where you stand, you will default to indifference, and eventually, with each passing decision, you’ll find yourself deep in enemy territory, condoning actions you abhor.
Define your positions and values ahead of time, so there’s no thought required when faced with tricky situations.
Question [almost] everything
Question everything.
A mantra of mine that I’m altering today.
Earlier today I caught a glimpse of an abandoned shopping cart off in the woods, and my brain immediately generated a barrage of trivial questions:
- How did that get there?
- Is there anything in the cart?
- Who would abandon a cart there?
- What store could it be from?
- What stores are around here?
- Which stores have blue in their color palette?
I cut off the impulse with one final question: Who cares?
Some questions aren’t worth the energy.
Don’t question everything.
Choose your questions wisely.
Debate yourself
Locked in on a certain position?
Temporarily take the opposing viewpoint and come up with every possible counterargument imaginable.
Pick it apart. Take every angle you can think of to disprove what you think. You owe it to yourself to develop these counterpoints, as they’ll either disprove your original stance, or help you solidify it. Either outcome is acceptable. In the former case, you evolve your viewpoint. In the latter, you have a coherent and competent rebuttal if the position ever comes up in discussion.
Saying you believe something and then immediately relying on anger to defend it is unacceptable.
Develop a full case for your position so you can defend it properly – and respectfully.
How much technology is enough?
Rejecting new technology is often seen as a landmark on the road to old age. It’s a sign – presumably – that one is now incapable of learning advanced tech in their later years.
Or, perhaps, it is merely an awakening – a realization as people age that the technology they grew up with was enough.
The text message has evolved in my lifetime from basic texting capability to sending images, links, stickers, and emojis, but I just hit my limit. A few days ago I received a “Happy New Year” text message, and when I opened it I was greeted with a visual assault of an animation to celebrate the occasion. I was then blessed with a repeat performance when I sent the same words back to the sender. No value added.
So as I start the latter half of this journey we call life, I reflect on those times I’ve criticized elders for their inability to grasp new technology. Reassessing any time I injected the word ‘luddite’ into a conversation, accusing someone of refusing to keep up with the times. Now I wonder if they knew something I didn’t. Did they know something I’m now starting to stumble upon?
Maybe that’s the trick – knowing when we’ve reached the point of ‘enough’ in life, and being content with what that provides.
Maybe future generations will catch on sooner.
Computers are great listeners
They do everything you tell them to do. Even if you don’t realize what you’re telling them to do.
During the pandemic I put a sticky note on my computer that read: “The computer is doing EXACTLY what you’re telling it to do.”
It served as a gentle reminder to find the root cause of whatever I did that was preventing the computer from functioning the way I intended. Fully 100% of the time it was user error – my intentions did not translate properly from brain to screen, and I did not realize it.
There’s a root cause for everything that ails us.
Focus. Find it. Fix it.
Solitaire-y Confinement
A game of Solitaire on an old cell phone of mine held still for 14 years, frozen in memory, obediently awaiting my return.
How long can you hold still?
Tricky Memory
It’s funny how I can recite, as easy as if it were my own name, something I learned in middle school (e.g., the taxonomic system – Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species), but oftentimes while in the shower I can’t remember whether I had just used shampoo 42 seconds earlier…
Generalize wisely
Generalizations are useful.
They can also mislead you.
We derive our generalizations from specific direct or anecdotal experiences so that we can subsequently recall them when our brains recognize something similar. From there, we should use that knowledge as a starting point to form a specific judgment about any new scenario. Generalizations are complex, however, and if we don’t develop and implement them properly, they can feed us false information. In order to prevent misuse we must:
- Avoid adopting the generalizations of others without our own analysis
- Prevent ourselves from blindly assigning our generalizations as fact toward every future scenario
It takes mental work to handle generalizations properly – making it very tempting to disregard these two bullets – but ignore them at your own peril. If you develop any mental statements that follow this structure:
“All [nouns] are [adjective].”
You are morally obligated to validate those assumptions when you apply them to future experiences. Generalizations are merely starting points – general mental models – from which you should then develop a unique judgement about a specific scenario. Otherwise, you may run the risk of misguiding yourself.
The consequences of taking shortcuts can vary immensely. Mindlessly applying your own generalization across all future circumstances is negligent. Doing the same with someone else’s generalization that you haven’t personally vetted is dangerous, especially when dealing with non-trivial subjects. Used incorrectly, you run the risk of inciting unjustified hatred.
Wield the power of generalization wisely, as the concept is more complex than it seems. Reclaim responsibility for developing your own generalizations, and implement them with care.
Enslaved by time
I am oblivious to the current time as I type these words to you. I eventually made it about four hours before spoiling the feeling of liberation that comes with escaping the grasp of time.
I fought the urge to glance at the computer clock – a gesture I perform frequently out of habit.
I tempered the otherwise uncontrollable desire to constantly check my cell phone clock.
I dodged the myriad devices – all 13 of them – displaying the time throughout my home.
What slaves we have become, to a concept of our own creation. Liberate yourself. Periodically avoid the clocks and embrace your newfound – albeit temporary – freedom.
The earth no longer provides for us…
…at least not willingly.
Let us imagine a world where you can step outside your door and grab something nourishing to eat, at no cost to you, directly from nature. As an experiment, venture outdoors and see what you can find.
Chances are, you won’t find anything.
A home garden doesn’t count in this scenario. Gardens require considerable human input to generate food. We must coax the nutrients from the earth to sustain ourselves, because the earth is stubborn when it comes to growing what humans eat. I’m challenging you to find an unprocessed food source that occurs naturally in the wild that we can simply eat. I’m willing to bet that – excluding gardens and farms – you’d walk miles and still be unable to find a source that can sustain you. Hunters may have better luck, but what about the rest of us?
We’ve been relying on agriculture to sustain us for thousands and thousands of years, so I’m not necessarily surprised by the results of this experiment. What is concerning, however, is that over the course of those thousands of years, we’ve clearly been forgotten by the earth. We decided our way was better, and she has shifted her attention elsewhere to provide for other species.
If there were ever a long-term warning sign – relatively speaking – that our time has come, that our reign as apex species is over, this is it. The fact that this earth no longer naturally provides – in abundance – that which we need to sustain ourselves.
The Beauty of Repurposing
When was the last time you used something for a purpose other than which it was originally intended? In a world where the internet delivers all our needs in 1-2 days, we’ve societally decided that repurposing is no longer necessary. Type – or in some cases merely speak – your requirements into the search bar, and you can find the exact product you require. Click a button and the item appears on your doorstep shortly thereafter.
While the “work smarter, not harder” adage certainly applies here in terms of minimizing effort to solve a problem, we’re denying our minds the opportunity to engage in creative thought. We’re solving the problem in the simplest means possible while disengaging our brains from the process. We’ve reduced what once was an exercise in creative thinking down to a simple question of whether or not we can afford an assortment of options that the internet provides us.
Ignite the creative energy in your mind and creatively solve a problem with something you already have around you.
Have a seat
“Please have a seat in the room at the end of the hall.”
No thanks, I’d rather stand.
Develop. Do. Lead. Leave
Grow your abilities.
Implement those skills to accomplish great things.
Enable others to utilize their skills.
Counsel rising enablers as you sail off into the sunset.
The extinction of darkness
Thanks to advances in lighting technology, we are on a crusade to perpetually light the world – but at what cost?
What nocturnal systems will cease operating once we’ve rid the world of darkness?
Foolhardy Farm Practices
As farms are intentionally set ablaze during conflict, I can’t help but wonder if any other species is so foolish as to knowingly destroy its own food supply…
Expect to Forget. Forget to Expect
Expect to forget.
It’s inevitable. We can’t remember everything – humans have a 0% success rate when it comes to making it through life remembering everything.
We’re human – we’re bound to forget something. We’ll naturally prioritize and maintain in our minds that which is most important, and the other stuff consequently falls off the plate.
So forget your expectations of perfection. Stop convincing yourself that you can get it all – that you can keep track of everything. You will forget. You will fail. And you will be better off for it.
So adjust the bar. Cut yourself some slack. Expect to forget.
Say Please.
I’m always polite when asking something of AI (e.g., “Please” , “Thank you”).
It’s about having integrity and being consistent in your actions, regardless of the recipient…
…I’m also being kind in case the machines ever take over…
The road less traveled
Today I took a new route to a familiar destination, without using a GPS.
- Did I take the fastest route? Probably not.
- Did I use my intrinsic sense of navigation for the first time in a decade? I’d say so.
- Did I view, for the first time, a previously unknown part of a local neighborhood? Yes.
Funny how GPS has turned the road trip into a video game, following a guided path on a screen to a destination (and if you’re like me you try to beat the time by arriving at the destination sooner than predicted).
Your brain knows the way. Look up and enjoy the trip.
brainsbri 