Sunk Costs in the Sunken Place
On Monday morning, my laptop refused to accept my password. I typed it in a few times, each time more carefully than the last, making sure caps lock wasn't on and that I was typing it correctly. I used an external keyboard. I typed slowly. Each time I
Everyone is Talking and No One is Listening
When was the last time someone listened to you? I mean really listened, in a way that made you feel understood and valued. When you could say "I feel heard" and really mean it? If you're as online as I am, you might have said "
Does it Matter How the Sausage is Made?
For the first three and a half months of this year, I spent a not-inconsiderable amount of time and energy preparing to be deposed as a fact witness for a civil case against my former employer, about the harm social media does to teenagers. The specific case isn't
Are You Better Than ChatGPT?
The other day, during an unexpectedly deep conversation, a stranger made a confession: Only that morning, just before we met, she'd felt so uncertain and in need of guidance that she asked ChatGPT for advice. Hold up. Before you judge her, do me a favor and pause for
Intelligence, Incentives, and Iron Men
Twenty-two years ago I submitted the thesis for my first graduate degree. This is the same thesis I mentioned back in February, the one I wrote when I still loved critical theory and when I still thought there was a place for me in academia. Neither that love nor that
We Just Weren't Made For These Times
A few weeks ago I went to see my favorite doctor. I have quite a few great doctors, so this is a higher bar than you might imagine it to be. For those who don't know, I have a chronic illness. The details are unimportant but it does
The Internet Was Fun Once
If you had to pick, what would be your Golden Age of the Internet? The moment when you thought, oh my god YES, and were hooked. How long did it last? Where was it – what platform or community? What did it feel like? Who did you befriend there? Do you
April Is Once Again the Cruelest Month
Two years ago, on a beautiful April Wednesday not unlike today, I got laid off from my job at Instagram. If you've never gotten laid off but have always been curious what the experience is like, here's the closest approximation: Think of a time when you
Don't Tweet Back in Anger
When something sets you off, where do you feel it? I don't mean emotionally. I mean: Where do you feel it in your body? Maybe this is a weird question to you, something no one has ever asked you to think about before. Me, I first feel it
The Great Validation Pact
Many, many years ago, I read a novel called Fool on the Hill. It's by Matt Ruff, whom you may know better as the author of Lovecraft Country, the novel that was optioned for the HBO series. Fool on the Hill was Ruff's first novel, which
