I couldn't quite jam on any particular topic this week, so instead I'm going to share some quick half-baked thoughts.
1. Living in the Bay Area I feel exposed to so many mobility startups: Scoot, Lime, Bird, Jump, and more (all layered on top of Ford's GoBikes program). I think that what we're now calling "micromobility" is super important in resolving some of the first/last mile friction, but the clearest solution, to me, is just owning a fucking bicycle. (Maybe an electric bicycle.) They're already disposed towards play and right-to-repair; they're ubiquitous, they're cheap, they're efficient, and they take up very little space. I don't think that dockless/ownerless model does well for nurturing skills, care, and attention. But, classically, it's difficult to drum up excitement for something that is old and ubiquitous. (cc Clive Thompson)
2. Confronted with a given dichotomy, my general impulse is to sublate it. (Thanks, Hegel.) i.e., to the extent that a dichotomy presents a paradox when both poles are valid (due to Law of the Excluded Middle), we can resolve or at least ameliorate this by adding a dimension of conceptual space to our system. I believe this should be a fundamental part of any philosophy/mathematics education!
3. Have there been more recent extrapolations on Oldenburg's "Third Place" theories? Updates for the 21st century, where our phones (or surveillance otherwise) complicate privacy and public spaces? I have been enjoying going to the clubs in San Francisco recently as places to be different selves, and feel like I am finally learning firsthand how important these physical spaces can be. Thinking that the distinction of anonymity in spaces (or disconnection from social or economic context) needs more attention.
4. Interlinked with the above, perhaps, I've been thinking about how I feel too young to have internet nostalgia, but here I am regardless. Like many others in my socio-intellectual spheres, I grapple with how to use the internet mindfully, and many conversations on this revolve around reducing the amount of time and energy invested to online spaces and investing more in the physical spaces we inhabit. I support this, but also credit an incredible amount of my development as an adolescent to a huge investment of energy to talking with strangers on the internet. I got to try out many interests and meet a lot of people despite being bored and stuck in a white upper-middle class exurban single-family home in the Midwest. There is so much value in weird internet spaces, still, but I'm not sure where exploratory conversations can manifest today. For those lucky enough to be in cities or with mobility, third (fourth?) spaces can provide this place to explore identity—but for those without, the internet's social spaces are still invaluable.
Not this, not that, but both,
Lukas
1. Living in the Bay Area I feel exposed to so many mobility startups: Scoot, Lime, Bird, Jump, and more (all layered on top of Ford's GoBikes program). I think that what we're now calling "micromobility" is super important in resolving some of the first/last mile friction, but the clearest solution, to me, is just owning a fucking bicycle. (Maybe an electric bicycle.) They're already disposed towards play and right-to-repair; they're ubiquitous, they're cheap, they're efficient, and they take up very little space. I don't think that dockless/ownerless model does well for nurturing skills, care, and attention. But, classically, it's difficult to drum up excitement for something that is old and ubiquitous. (cc Clive Thompson)
2. Confronted with a given dichotomy, my general impulse is to sublate it. (Thanks, Hegel.) i.e., to the extent that a dichotomy presents a paradox when both poles are valid (due to Law of the Excluded Middle), we can resolve or at least ameliorate this by adding a dimension of conceptual space to our system. I believe this should be a fundamental part of any philosophy/mathematics education!
3. Have there been more recent extrapolations on Oldenburg's "Third Place" theories? Updates for the 21st century, where our phones (or surveillance otherwise) complicate privacy and public spaces? I have been enjoying going to the clubs in San Francisco recently as places to be different selves, and feel like I am finally learning firsthand how important these physical spaces can be. Thinking that the distinction of anonymity in spaces (or disconnection from social or economic context) needs more attention.
4. Interlinked with the above, perhaps, I've been thinking about how I feel too young to have internet nostalgia, but here I am regardless. Like many others in my socio-intellectual spheres, I grapple with how to use the internet mindfully, and many conversations on this revolve around reducing the amount of time and energy invested to online spaces and investing more in the physical spaces we inhabit. I support this, but also credit an incredible amount of my development as an adolescent to a huge investment of energy to talking with strangers on the internet. I got to try out many interests and meet a lot of people despite being bored and stuck in a white upper-middle class exurban single-family home in the Midwest. There is so much value in weird internet spaces, still, but I'm not sure where exploratory conversations can manifest today. For those lucky enough to be in cities or with mobility, third (fourth?) spaces can provide this place to explore identity—but for those without, the internet's social spaces are still invaluable.
Not this, not that, but both,
Lukas