The Matthew Effect of Post-Twitter Social Networks
The Matthew Effect was first coined by sociologists Robert K. Merton and Harriet Zuckerman in 1968, who noticed that eminent scientists tended to get disproportionate credit for collaborative research compared
Why the Internet Era Might Be History's Least-Documented Period
Last week, I tried to find some photos from my college graduation. Despite being only fifteen years ago, they proved surprisingly elusive - trapped on a defunct Photobucket account, lost
How We Became the McWorld - Global Culture is Getting More Boring
In the 1990s, we were promised a digital utopia. The internet would be a uniting, democratizing force, they said, bringing diverse voices and perspectives from every corner of the world
You Got Dragged on the Internet. Stop Building a Shrine to It.
“Once the bear’s hug has got you, it is apt to be for keeps.” — Harold MacMillan A pattern, common to the internet in 2024. Someone has a conflict with
The Ego-Legacy Complex: On Ancient Monuments and Modern Malaise
A handful of years ago, I visited the Roman Forum in Mérida, Spain. And I found myself contemplating a peculiar fact: I was standing among ruins that had survived longer
Everything Is Always Getting Worse (Until It Isn't)
A few months ago, I found myself doomscrolling through X (first mistake) when I found a thread about how “everything is getting worse.” The author had assembled an impressive collection
The Doomscroll Industrial Complex: How Anxiety Became a Business Model
We need to talk about the doomers and the attention economy they’ve built. Not because they’re entirely wrong — from climate change to political extremism, a lot of their
How Elite Institutions Launder Legitimacy
A blogger notices something strange about the markets. They write a post about it. No one cares. An economics professor at Princeton notices the blog. Writes a paper. Gets it
Why Your Great-Grandchildren Won’t Be Billionaires
In 1877, Cornelius Vanderbilt had a dying wish: “Keep the money together.” He might as well have asked water to flow uphill. Within a few generations, one of history’s
We Don't Need More Cynics. We Need More Builders.
Cynicism is the cheap seats. It’s the fast food of intellectual positions. Anyone can point at something and say it’s broken, corrupt, or destined to fail. The real
First Steps and False Barriers
I have a stubbornly "anti" disposition. I don't react well to impossibilities. It goes way back - and I'm assuming it has its roots
Big Tech Wants You Trapped. The Open Web Sets You Free
Big Tech designed their platforms to keep you trapped. YouTube, X, Instagram, and TikTok aren't neutral spaces. They're businesses built on capturing your attention and data.