Res Extensa #4: On Legibility — In Society, Tech, Organizations, and Cities

The web also needs diligent people so that the idea of what the web is and what it does remains legible to everyone. This applies to being able to read the systems and social environments the web creates so we know what’s real and what’s not, but the call for legibility should also humbly apply to writing legible code and designs systems that are e... See more

In the social context, legibility means that others can understand you in terms of a shared conceptual vocabulary by slotting you into types; and precisely because it is shared, this understanding can be weaponized against you. Being legible means being vulnerable to deconstruction by your peers into connotation laden, broadly understood boxes, and... See more