plugged life

The Case for Ambiguity

These days it seems imperative to have an opinion — one that is clear, informed, and impassioned. Silence can be…

Escape the Echo Chamber

The social media echo chamber has been reverberating with astonishment at how…

A Note On #Techies

“We should interrogate the code of cyberspace as we interrogate the bills of…

In 2013

A year dethroned. 

For all its messiness, 2013 was a strangely awe-inspiring year. It was the year I found…

Let’s Be Real 

Our daily observations are often riddled with emotion. Even the most scientifically-rooted of us are subject to bias. So it’s important to be aware of the temptation to fit data into existing beliefs that don’t necessarily reflect reality.

Down The Rabbit Hole We Go

I’ve developed a theory that if people can’t sit through a 30-minute meal without touching their phones, they are OSDs (Over-Stimulated Disturbances). Sounds a little like LSD, and appropriately so; our phones are quickly turning us into walking drug addicts.

The Value of Social

I’ve been on a “social media cleanse” since Monday. Not a full-out purge, just a mini-cleanse to rejuvenate. (That person on a juice cleanse…at the bar? That’s me.)

I’ve removed the Facebook and Instagram apps from my phone. It means I’m still able to go on these…

Check-ins, and being present

I had a Foursquare account. At first it was fun, checking in everywhere I went, tracking where I had been, competing with friends to be ‘Mayor’ of a location. Harmless fun.

Then I started to take notice of something unexpected; almost as if I were…

Isolation in a Digital World

It started with a simple suggestion.

When I was teaching in Italy two summers ago, one of my host Dads suggested that I check into a nunnery. Something told me this wasn't a compliment. I didn't think spending all day with 8-year old Italian children…