Sublime
An inspiration engine for ideas
Choosing the music that soundtracks our lives can be part of how we process who we are. But Spotify’s ideal mode of lean-back listening feels different, less an act of choosing than testing one’s tolerance, how much one prefers the sound of “Deep Focus” or “Brain Food” to nothing at all. It follows that a population paying so little conscious
... See moreLiz Pelly • Mood Machine
They seemed to be unable to pull themselves away from their devices, flicking through and through and through, thanks in part to the code he had designed.
Johann Hari • Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention--and How to Think Deeply Again
As machine gamblers tell it, neither control, nor chance, nor the tension between the two drives their play; their aim is not to win but simply to continue.
Natasha Dow Schüll • Addiction by Design
Evoking the scene that Lola recounted at the start of this chapter, Adams told me of his own style in the field. “I go out there and sit down at a machine. I turn to the person next to me and say I design these things, that’s why I’ve been sitting here playing this machine next to you for twenty minutes, because this is what I do. Let me show you
... See moreNatasha Dow Schüll • Addiction by Design
Reflecting on this email from a Sublime believer:
Consuming media has become a massive time-suck for humankind. Only decades ago, the average person had one source of information, if any — the newspaper. Journalists chronicled happenings relevant to their community. And that was it. Someone got married, someone is selling their house, someone died,
... See moretype of game that is developed to make as many steps as possible with bright lights and dopamine // capitalism turning your attention into profit//unwilling work//preying on addictive methodology//
When it comes to the state of suspended animation that gamblers call the zone and the industry calls continuous gaming productivity, an uninterrupted flow of play funds is as important as the speed and duration of the play activity itself.
Natasha Dow Schüll • Addiction by Design
Among the many things we talked about, she told me she spends most of her waking hours plugged into some kind of device: Instagramming, YouTubing, listening to podcasts and playlists. In session with her I suggested she try walking to class without listening to anything and just letting her own thoughts bubble to the surface.
Anna Lembke • Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence
As adults, we are hardly ever unreachable; seldom away from a screen of some kind; rarely not being solicited or sold to. From this perspective, the school administrators are merely giving students a lesson in reality, exposing them to what is, after all, the norm for adults. But where did the norm come from? And how normal is it?