Big Algo(rithm)

- Our Monkey Brain’s Final Boss - a compilation of my own personal opinions [a repost]

In the modern age, where everyone and everything is clamoring for your attention, time, and money, it’s next to impossible to make fully conscious and active decisions. This isn’t a new concept, arguably it’s spanned back decades. However, in the last decade, specifically the last couple of years, we’ve seen a modern culture switch in a way that, I would argue, hasn’t happened since the industrial era.

The biggest perpetrators of the modern age [and by modern age I mean the modern internet] are algorithms. Social media platforms and beyond, in their current state, corrupt the mind. By tailoring themselves to your own personal niche interests, it is a constant state of stimulation.

Humans are driven to want stimulation. We’re animals, and our hardware—the brain—has barely evolved in the last couple of thousand years. At the rate at which the world has been changing, especially with the endless rabbit hole that is the internet, we haven’t given our brains and bodies the time to evolve along side our inventions.

I’m not saying that the internet and technology is bad. I’m not sure I know enough about how it functions to say that. But what I do know is that it's rare to walk down the street and see someone not glued to their phone or have headphones in. Sometimes, even when people are together, one or both will be staring at their phones.

It’s isolating.

Everyone is in the little bubble.

Be honest—when was the last time you made an actual real connection with someone you just met, or how often does that actually happen?

This is the first time in human history that the whole entire world is available to us, but that also makes the whole world subjective. Compare your interests to your friends; you’re not going to agree on everything, you shouldn't. You are your own unique person. And what our modern algorithms are doing is intensifying and accelerating that personal uniqueness.

I want to emphasize that I don’t have a problem with people being unique. I’ve been told I’m “unconventional” my whole life. I think that people should embrace their authenticity. Authentic people move society forward.

At the same time, there has to be a way to be your own authentic self and still engage in social situations.

That’s what’s at stake.

Living on your phone, which is what most of us do, is too isolating. Communicating and socializing online just isn’t the same as doing it in person.

And humans are social animals. We need socialization. And we just aren’t getting it, and we don’t know what that’s going to do. We talked extensively about how damaging it was to the youth to be isolated during COVID, but what about us?

Where is the empathy for ourselves? Most of us are just big iPad kids.

I’m not blaming people. I’m not calling anyone a terrible person; that would be so incredibly hypocritical. I’m as addicted to my phone as anyone. It’s our brains and the way our technology has been formulated to be addictive.

That’s the problem.

What’s even worse is it’s an addiction that’s normalized.

Addiction: a chronic mental health disorder that involves a compulsive need to do or use something, despite the negative consequences.

Moderation is not something that we humans are naturally good at. The recommendation to reduce the negative impact “distractions” or addictions have is to remove them entirely; you can’t be distracted by something that isn’t there. But you can’t get rid of the internet. While you don’t need a phone or social media, you are ostracized for not having it. It’s the modern way to communicate, to catch up with loved ones, and to tap into culture.

Ironically, both getting rid of social media and keeping it harm your ability to actively participate in the culture.

And culture is essential to humanity.

And therein lies the problem.

Most of the time 100% removing your vice from your life has an overwhelming net positive effect, but how can you only 60% remove something and not instinctively fall back into your impulses or at least use brain power to be tempted?

I don’t know the answers to these questions. I’m not a psychologist, but I can’t help but notice the root of this social dysfunction is the lack of being active in choices. So I’m making the effort to be more active in my choices and setting up safety nets for when I fall into habit. Because I will. Because I’m human. But the important thing, I think, is prioritizing active engagement in the world.