from Hacker News

In the last few days, I’ve been feeling quite depressed. I don’t know how others feel about this, but it’s quite a shock that this is reality. We’re in the middle of a pandemic, yet it seems nobody wants to admit it, address it, or fight against it. Walking along my university aisle, sitting and waiting for the doctor, riding the train, or even driving my car—everywhere I go, everyone seems locked into their smartphones, chasing the next dopamine hit while doom-scrolling through "social media." What does this have to do with social media? The interaction is anything but social. I miss the days when Instagram was a place where you shared a slice of reality, not just generated content designed to grab your attention in the fastest way possible (to match your shrinking attention span) and satisfy your dopamine cravings.

Even though I work in the research area of algorithms and complexity, I love interdisciplinary exchange. The most affected people I’ve met are teachers. They can’t seem to get a handle on the problem: the attention span of children in the classroom is too short. Even if you can debate modern teaching methods, we’re currently raising a generation that isn’t used to paying attention to anything for long; they’re accustomed to being entertained like a king by his court jester. I don’t see technology as the enemy. I’ve learned to love the discipline in all its facets and wouldn’t want to live without it. It’s an enormous advantage—it can bring us closer together and allow us to exchange information more quickly if we use it properly. Nor do I want to demonize social media. I want to raise awareness that algorithms designed solely to manipulate your attention span and keep you on a platform as long as possible can’t be good for humanity. Thinking needs to shift more toward human-centered design; our collective attention needs to focus on this problem. I’d like to hear your opinion. I appreciate the community here, and your perspective might help me come up with new ideas.