the rise of pseudo-trends

how we created a simulation of language

etymology.substack.com

the non-places of social media

One of the many insidious effects of technological advancement is that more of our places are becoming non-places.

etymology.substack.com

the importance of not knowing

It’s human nature to be inquisitive.

etymology.substack.com

platform logic

how tech companies structure our conversations

etymology.substack.com

67, clip farming, and the panopticon

Last month, Dictionary.com chose “67” as its word of the year, and I’m not surprised in the slightest.

etymology.substack.com

your phone is a fake house

The wooden stairs in my childhood home had a creaky step.

etymology.substack.com

the gooner and the caveman

A man in a gnome hat stands on a soapbox.

etymology.substack.com

feeling without thinking

There are two ways you can look at media: immerse yourself, or detach yourself.

etymology.substack.com

notes on slop

“Slop” is subjectively defined, and yet shares certain universal features: it is always seen as negative, and connotes mass distribution to an ignorant group of consumers.

etymology.substack.com

why platforms are killing the hashtag

Today I write in anticipatory nostalgia for the cornerstone of a more democratic internet—one which is slowly being stolen from us.

etymology.substack.com

the engagement economy

how we replaced attention with its own metric

etymology.substack.com

how to look at social media

a guide for regaining agency in the algorithmic milieu

etymology.substack.com

what the evils of TV reveal about the evils of social media

Any time I think too hard about how social media is affecting us, I always end up back at the television.

etymology.substack.com

neural networks are changing our vibes

Last week, I published two op-eds that initially seem unrelated but actually aren’t.

etymology.substack.com

against content

I’ve always felt that it’s very strange to have “followers” on social media.

etymology.substack.com

stay on your phone

(within reason)

etymology.substack.com

how social media subjugates us

You’re hunched over on the toilet, pants around your ankles, watching me on TikTok.

etymology.substack.com

algorithmic performativity

Chat, we all act differently when we’re being watched.

etymology.substack.com

ALGOSPEAK IS NOW OUT IN BOOKSTORES

oh my god it’s been a crazy week.

etymology.substack.com

I see more stars online than in the sky ✨

At some point in the last century, we collectively began looking at more representations of stars than stars themselves.

etymology.substack.com

social media and the collapse of ritual

Museums have kind of been freaking me out recently.

etymology.substack.com

Algospeak is out in ONE MONTH

mom can you pick me up i'm scared

etymology.substack.com

banality of the algorithm

This Tuesday, my father and I drove up to Bard College to pay our respects to the grave of Hannah Arendt.

etymology.substack.com

why you should be smelling more things

One of the silly little quirks of being human is that we pretend that some experiences are more real than others.

etymology.substack.com

you're literally worshipping your phone

how scrolling becomes a religious act

etymology.substack.com

what the “algorithm” is, what you think it is, and why those aren't the same

Isn’t it so convenient how I can upload a video to TikTok, and then the algorithm immediately understands that you’re my target audience?

etymology.substack.com

the default isn't always best

“I woke up as the sun was reddening; and that was the one distinct time in my life, the strangest moment of all, when I didn't know who I was.”

etymology.substack.com

there is no online authenticity

at the end of the day, everything is slop

etymology.substack.com

substack's discoverability paradox

I don’t think I’ve ever outwardly articulated my goals on social media, so here goes:

etymology.substack.com

algorithms are killing coincidences. what does that mean for language?

Let’s start with the basics: humans do not think like machines do.

etymology.substack.com