Just went/still going through a vicious residential downsizing. In multiple boxes of cables, only IEEE488 and Centronics plug types didn't give me nightmares to toss. Oh, and the remaining spool of 300-ohm TV antenna cable. Kept some RG59 and associated tools, don't really know why.
Might have missed it but was disappointed to see no mention of externalized costs like the scraping burden imposed on every IP-connected server. From discussions on HN this sounds quite substantial. And again, why exactly should the few AI companies reap all the value when other companies and individuals are incurring costs for it?
Early seventies here, can extend and confirm your observation. Also flying cars, artificial intelligence, fusion power, equitable wealth distribution, ...
Exactly. I used to stack printouts on the floor in layers. Top one was active, bottom one was swap. If you walked too fast past my cube, you'd trigger a context switch.
Our interfaces have more modalities than before but they are disconnected from both physical and emotional reality. Buzzes and dings and flaps are nothing like hearing a happy shout from a friend or feeling the 'clunk' of an actual motor starter engaging.
I totally agree with OP that the 'flat' visual style is appalling. (And gray-on-gray text is an obscenity.)
I don't want my computer's interface to be overtly "emotional". I don't want it to have the same effect as "a happy shout from a friend". I want it to be unobtrusive and functional, so that I can pay attention to the message my friend recorded with their happy shout that is actually real. And I prefer my cars quiet because I want to keep my focus on the environment.
And what do you mean, disconnected from physical reality? I listed the examples where I pay with my wrist, squeeze my earbuds, draw with a pencil. I also snap photos and take videos, record with voice memos, send a pin with my location. I track AirTags, I identify plants by pointing at them, I learn constellations by aiming at them. Computing is more connected to physical reality than ever.
The two best experiences I had with touch were the the Sony WH-H900N [0] and Procreate on Ipad. The headphones had a touch surface where tap was play/pause and swipe up/down manipulate volume and swipe left/right change track. Due to the large surface, it was easy and quick to do these actions and natural.
Another good experience was shaking my phone (an Android Motorola) to turn the flash light on and off. Another great natural movement is taking my iPhone and transfer the playing music to an Homepod by tapping on the two together.
For almost everything else I loathe touch devices. While older ones may be clunky visually, they are far more ergonomic. Yes, my phone can do a lot of stuff, but the whole process for a specific one is always clunky and companies go out of their ways to block you from altering the UX.
Further to the Hygiene Hypothesis based approach, add exposure to cattle. They are another common factor during evolution and have a microbial footprint unlike common pets. Over years there have been a number of studies on this, sorry to not have a list of URLs. Take your kids -- and yourselves -- to visit farms and petting zoos.
And my anecdotal input: grew up on a livestock farm, also spending a lot of time in woods and river. No allergy problems at all. Moved to a city and had annoyance-level problems ever since. Decades of observation lead me to suspect particulates (engine soot, tire dust, etc.) as significant antagonists beyond the more commonly cited biological villains. Any chemical with a big-enough stretch of molecule to match what an immune cell is using as its search key.
A "small picture" local observation of impact: Big construction firms and projects scoop up all available workers and materials (concrete, for example) with year-long exclusive contracts. Individual homeowners with small projects, such as updating a bathroom, are generally screwed. Horror stories abound, search if interested. Years-long delays, projects started then abandoned, etc.
DIY is great IFF you have tools, capabilities, willingness to ignore building code requirements for licensed workers, ...
Definitely for anyone living in an environment that contains animals. Vastly more so for anyone connected to the Interwebs. Soooo many videos of animals responding to music by dancing. Trying to portray this as "science" is more than just irritating, it is fodder for the anti-science population to advance their garbage positions.
If you are a professor somewhere and this is all you can come up with to publish, might I suggest you need to find a different line of work. Everyone has the right to _try_ becoming whatever they want but there is no right to success at it.
