Imagine that you, as a philanthropist or activist who wants to help spread democracy across the world, read about a country described as a “flawed democracy.” The report describes the problems that country is facing in this way:  low levels of trust in political institutions and the media; institutional gridlock; excessive influence of lobbyists, interest […]

​​I write a lot. I’ve finished just shy of 150 articles so far this year between Lifehacker, PopSci, WIRED, and PCMag, an average of 25 articles a month. I love it.  The best part of being a freelancer, to me, is that I don’t have to do anything but write. Yes, there is a little […]

“Technology makes everything more complicated,” an elderly relative said to me. It’s hard to argue with.  In this specific situation she had paid to reserve a parking spot that, it turned out, she didn’t need. She tried to get a refund only to find out that’s not possible—all you can do is try to sell […]

The internet used to be exciting—its potential to make the world better seemed endless. In the early 2010s it felt inevitable that innovation would make us happier, more productive, more connected, and all-around improve our lives.  It doesn’t feel that way anymore.  Some technologists blame the media for this. I’ve worked in the media too […]

The more you learn about a subject the less capable you are of understanding what the average person knows about it. In journalism this can result in articles that are incomprehensible to anyone who doesn’t have the proper background. It can also result in information not being published because it seems too obvious.  For example: […]

If you want to understand America, spend some time in thrift stores. These are monuments to our collective excess—a museum of the things we’ve collected and discarded.  I love digging through the electronics shelves looking for potentially useful adapters or devices. I also get most of my clothes from the racks there, mostly for environmental […]

Writing isn’t just my job—it’s how I think. When I’m not sure what I feel about something I start typing. I put down ideas, contemplate whether I agree with what I just wrote, and in this process figure out how I feel.  A lot of my blog posts start as me playing around with ideas. […]

It’s one of those patterns you can’t stop noticing once you think about it.

Only you can protect your privacy from Jeffery Goldberg, Editor of The Atlantic

Imagine a Budweiser Super Bowl ad where the Clydesdales can talk and they spend the entire two minute ad discussing how much they despise country music, pickup trucks, and Christianity. The tagline: “Budweiser: we hate everything you hold dear”.  What do you think that ad would do to Budweiser’s market share?  This is basically the […]