How Big Tech is Ruining Your Attention

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  • Опубліковано 30 січ 2023
  • Then & Now is FAN-FUNDED! Support me on Patreon and pledge as little as $1 per video: patreon.com/user?u=3517018
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    Some Sources:
    Jenny Odell, How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy
    James Williams, Stand Out of Our Light: Freedom and Resistance in the Attention Economy
    Tim Wu, The Attention Merchants: The Epic Scramble to Get Inside Our Heads
    Adam Alter, Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology
    Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism
    Mark Andrejevic, Automated Media
    Brian McCullough, How The Internet Happened: From Netscape to the iPhone
    Thumbnail by Peter Cuthbertson
    / petearts

КОМЕНТАРІ • 524

  • @ThenNow
    @ThenNow  Рік тому +210

    Ironically, I did not pay attention to the fact that the usual Patreon supporter credits are inexcusably missing from the end of the video. HUGE apologies and an even bigger thank you to all the Patreons that made this video possible. I've tried to make up for this mistake with a Patreon-only update about upcoming videos. If you want to read it and future updates, join the Discord server, and support Then & Now you can do so here too:
    www.patreon.com/posts/78012879?pr=true

    • @elainealibrandi6364
      @elainealibrandi6364 Рік тому +24

      That's because you were paying attention to what you were doing. Great video!

    • @antoineralic01
      @antoineralic01 Рік тому

      What's the Link to you discord server.

    • @sushipsychose
      @sushipsychose Рік тому +3

      ohhh noooooo! not the usual patreon supporters!

    • @unreliablenarrator6649
      @unreliablenarrator6649 Рік тому +5

      I go walking or biking alone, usually in the evening or night when I have time. The trick is the motion makes you focus on situational awareness on one level, while freeing you mind to wander or contemplate on another level. It puts you in the here and now, and the endomorphies your body produces as a product of exercise is calming.

    • @dansamarco1610
      @dansamarco1610 Рік тому +3

      I hate to be that guy, but "corrosive" is misspelled on the transition card at 19:21

  • @cristibajereanu582
    @cristibajereanu582 Рік тому +408

    This video is literally a masterpiece, I am glad i paid 27 minutes of my attention.

    • @cristibajereanu582
      @cristibajereanu582 Рік тому +12

      @@SimonLloydGuitar ok, boss

    • @bldbar118
      @bldbar118 Рік тому

      True

    • @BritAltie
      @BritAltie Рік тому +4

      @@SimonLloydGuitar ok, boss

    • @swmtothemoon6660
      @swmtothemoon6660 Рік тому +2

      @@SimonLloydGuitar literally is a figure of speech, so he literally means literally.
      Edit: she?

    • @dann5480
      @dann5480 Рік тому

      🤬🤬🤬🤬

  • @pwalshofficial
    @pwalshofficial Рік тому +339

    This is a very important topic I think about on a daily basis. I think we're going to look back on social media as something that was far more damaging than we all realized at the time. I'm trying to take the steps to minimize my usage, but it feels impossible at times. We all know we're addicted and managing that is a daunting task.
    Edit: I didn’t make this comment asking people to patronize me about how “easy” it really is to minimize your screen time. Everyone’s experience with this shit is different. Save your comments. Good for you if you can easily get off your phone. I really don’t care.

    • @lvl99paint
      @lvl99paint Рік тому +69

      the hardest part about kicking social media is that EVERYBODY is addicted to it, so to limit your usage or quit altogether disconnects you from a lot of people.

    • @LameBushido
      @LameBushido Рік тому +4

      This is just how technology has always developed. We have to adapt or there needs to be some intervention on a government level like asbestos or lead removal

    • @antoineralic01
      @antoineralic01 Рік тому +3

      Well know two things, it's just a tool, and it's an A.I. Stimulant of thought forming apps, make to mesmerize you. In a magickal way, 'The power of attention is needed ot perform the craft within your beliefs.

    • @sushipsychose
      @sushipsychose Рік тому +14

      @@lvl99paint Yes however you also realize how superficially you were connected to the people you "lost"
      ngl it does feel lonely sometimes but most of it is just fear of missing out and you just don't miss out on anything, you just crave that illusion of being in touch that social media addiction gave you

    • @wnklee6878
      @wnklee6878 Рік тому +3

      @@lvl99paint It is like a drug, once hooked you will not be able to quit.

  • @clusterstage
    @clusterstage Рік тому +30

    we are literally "paying" attention when we pay attention

  • @TheFlamingBridges
    @TheFlamingBridges Рік тому +39

    I was recently hacked and banned from a certain popular social media platform. It took me a few weeks to adapt but after that I was realizing so much of what you are saying here.

  • @suzannecarter445
    @suzannecarter445 Рік тому +73

    As usual, your video was worth the wait. You may not post often, but you put real time and effort into each one and we appreciate it.

  • @rigelb9025
    @rigelb9025 Рік тому +119

    I wish to thank the attention economy for bringing this video to my attention, and making the title & thumbnail sufficiently enticing for me to click on it, and for making it just short enough so as to allow me to watch it in its entirety, whilst managing to maintain most of my attention until the very end. I'm not gonna lie, I didn't learn much from it I didn't already know, but it was certainly a refreshing pit-stop along the information highway. I will say this though : I did find your opening statement to be a bit unjustly glib, for as much as this current high-tech world of ours is obviously not without its unquestionable & dire downfalls, our individual & collective mental health isn't as cut-&-dry as that. Our brains have great elasticity and can adapt to all sorts of external shifts, though sometimes painfully so. But just as you, I'll be the first to advocate for going outdoors as much as you can & make it a point not to throw all of your time & energy into the vast, gaping void of online activity, just to name one (albeit a major one these days). But as long as you're able to strike a balance in how your time & attention is spread out and that you are able to maintain a sane level of personal detachment from the virtual world, it can absolutely & definitely be used as a source of great enrichment and entertainment in your own individual bubble. Lest, of course, the thread of endless distraction become the path to ultimate destruction.

    • @justinlanan2565
      @justinlanan2565 Рік тому +5

      totally agree with this. My main takeaway was to live a life where you are wanting what you want to want. If that's not the case then you need to consciously intervene into your own flow of attention and realign things.

    • @rigelb9025
      @rigelb9025 Рік тому +1

      @@justinlanan2565 Yeah, that does kinda make sense.

    • @knuxuki1013
      @knuxuki1013 Рік тому +2

      You get it! That's what's needed, a balance. Never on just one path

    • @zidanelionheart
      @zidanelionheart Рік тому

      Badass here

    • @rigelb9025
      @rigelb9025 Рік тому

      @@zidanelionheart True.

  • @quintessenceSL
    @quintessenceSL Рік тому +80

    One of the worst things about the attention economy is the deception from the players (it's not even hyperreal at this point but outright psychosis). With DECADES of information about nearly ever facet of a persons life, you'd think simple things like searches and bit you are definitively not interested in would be clear.
    Instead you are wound down through a maze of possible intents, even with this vast data set worth billions, until hours are wasted or you give up in disgust.
    It's a manipulated reality, really not that far removed from 1984.

    • @knightdtd
      @knightdtd Рік тому +12

      The algorithms behind the attention grabbing machinery don't have that much memory. The thing that empowers them moreso than the data is the advancement of behaviorial psychology opening backdoors into the human mind, enabling unprecedented degree of subliminal hypnosis and making the victims willingly obey the manipulation over their own will.

    • @ezachleewright2309
      @ezachleewright2309 Рік тому +2

      I don't quite understand. What do you mean by "searches and bit you are" and "possible intents"?

    • @ily9402
      @ily9402 Рік тому +2

      @@ezachleewright2309 i think they just worded their sentence weirdly i think they ment "bits your definitely not interested in" like, things your not interested in and maybe they ment possible interest??

  • @supermrzzzzz
    @supermrzzzzz Рік тому +6

    Smartphone addict here. This device through which I am typing my comment is more addictive than crack. Often I focus on important stuff I get distracted by a notification on my phone which starts me looking at it and ends with mindless scrolling. It’s corrosive! Thanks to this video, I turned off almost all notifications on my iPhone settings. Not yet ready to give up my iPhone and live in the woods, but hopefully I’ll get there eventually. I need peace with myself.

    • @CT-pv9gu
      @CT-pv9gu 11 місяців тому

      I swear screens, especially the iPhone, is more addictive than drugs. It’s not classified as a drug but it should be. We’re missing out on real life…

  • @T_Dot94
    @T_Dot94 Рік тому +19

    It's like you get better with every episode. Production quality, writing, editing, music.

  • @Andrew-rc3vh
    @Andrew-rc3vh Рік тому +12

    I realised all of this years ago. I studied psychology in my spare time as a kid. I live in a conservation area though so billboards are banned. If anyone tries to put any of this stuff up it often gets ripped down. If you do not pay attention to the consequences then you will become stupid.

  • @hisownfool1
    @hisownfool1 Рік тому +16

    When your phone rang during the video, I tensed up. It was a fitting illustration of the toll of the attention economy.

  • @chris-cu3kl
    @chris-cu3kl Рік тому +16

    Growing up in this space has always made me prone to addictive behaviors, most pressingly that I smoke weed daily and have extended periods of empty scrolling especially when I am in my own private space. Taking sociology in college, I’m becoming more keen in my own ability to communicate about issues or more accurately how much i struggle to communicate ideas to the closest to me. I really worry about the youngest generation growing up in an internet only further supercharged with fraud and years more of research into how to capture their attention. I’ve been able to recapture my focus on activities that ask of my attention to be remotely playable. I love playing guitar, skateboarding, wrestling, chess, and fighting games for how their long term commitments reward in your own personal skills in the field.

  • @Someone-dy5ui
    @Someone-dy5ui Рік тому +33

    Thinking about being at constant state of attentional oppression is like thinking about being at constant risk of death. You know about it, you keep saying that you know about it, and then forget about it in a few minutes. And even when you actually see it and you start panicing, stress, depression, drama, existential crisis, how is anyone suppose to manage that mental bomb... oh, there is a cat :3. And even even if you don't see a cat, you just start going insane, after which it's just either, again, going back as if nothing happened, or you practically stop being a functional human being.
    Internet became our life. Internet became our personality. Internet became our identity. Internet became us. If the internet will disappear, it's the same as if you loose your memory, or your culture, or your friends: you loose a huge chunk of yourself. Except, internet is our biggest memory, your favorite culture and our single friend. So essentially, you loose all of yourself. You just straight up die.
    Just some psychology to chew on. Now excuse me, but as I typed this, my favorite reviewer just posted a video about Owl House: For The Future. Gotta watch that one.

    • @ganggreeneproductions
      @ganggreeneproductions Рік тому +1

      Let it go

    • @Someone-dy5ui
      @Someone-dy5ui Рік тому +2

      @@ganggreeneproductions the isolation never bothered me anyway

    • @TheResidence.mp4
      @TheResidence.mp4 Рік тому +1

      @@Someone-dy5ui It's funny how a little UA-cam
      Made attention spans so small

    • @techcafe0
      @techcafe0 Рік тому

      @@TheResidence.mp4 perhaps it would be funny, if it also wasn't so tragic

  • @turkblox7634
    @turkblox7634 Рік тому +7

    I absolutely did not expect such a quality, commenting also for the algorithm to pick this up
    Definitely feeling like being aware of things the video is talking about is critical to basically survive on modern times (which is progressively getting worse when it comes to competition for attention and how it wreaks havoc on consumers). Keep it up!

  • @miguelalbarracin9077
    @miguelalbarracin9077 Рік тому +2

    My phone recently broke and I went down to Apple to get it replaced. It took me a while to actually get it reactivated because I just... liked being disconnected. I finally started up again this morning but this time I only installed tools. Music, Maps, Email, Calendar, Bank Apps, and language learning apps. - that's it, really. I'm going to ride it out this way and see how it goes. It's feeling great not getting endless notifications.

  • @userMB1
    @userMB1 Рік тому +35

    i had to rewind a couple of times because my attention wandered somewhere else😆It's a very serious problem. Things have got so bad that i'm reaching for my phone when i'm watching something INTERESTING! like WHY? I like what i'm watching so why am i grabbing my phone to check Reddit or something?! I weep for the TikTok generation who can only tolerate 1 minute videos.💟

    • @asuka_the_void_witch
      @asuka_the_void_witch Рік тому +8

      yeah ive started to go on discord while watching youtube now which.... im disappointed

  • @kenpanderz672
    @kenpanderz672 Рік тому +21

    most people dont even know what its like to have your time and attention to yourself for more than a few waking hours at a time, so they dont even understand how things could be different. thats the sinister part of this: it doesnt even let you know how it could be different, so how could even try to change it? what would a world without advertisements in every nook and cranny even look like? a world where you have "too much" free time? a world where you can actually take the time to think about things for more than the span of shower?
    but your time and your attention *is* money, and you *have* to pay.whether you want to or not. unless you unplug completely from modern society, there is no current alternative. maybe there could be, but it would come at the cost of the very concept of capitalist economics as we understand it

  • @HallsofMnemosyne
    @HallsofMnemosyne Рік тому +14

    Generally, a very useful, and informative, video. But the ending, I fear, was quite disappointing. Let's use technology mindfully & skillfully is a constantly repeated mantra - yet nobody seems to be particularly successful in implementing it. At this point, I don't think this will cut it: the situation has become so chaotic that maxims of the type "why, pay a bit more attention to how you use your mobile phone" or "why don't you go out for a stroll in a nearby forest?" just won't cut it. Because even if you do that, the technological beast keeps on following you, keeps up throwing new tricks your way. And the pace at which it's doing that is becoming more and more frantic.
    I don't know what the solution might be, but ending the video with a few nice-sounding, but - let's admit it - pretty generic quotes, is indeed rather disappointing. It's like trying to treat a cancerous wound with chamomile tea. Perhaps a separate - longer & more specific/concrete - video dedicated exclusively to this topic would be in order?

  • @hahahello7519
    @hahahello7519 Рік тому +21

    For a few years now I was realizing that my attention span was declining. And especially at work it has become quite frustrating. I only read mails during office times, but in the past months a recognized that my attention span has gotten so low, I didn't even open most of those mails. And if I open a few, I wasn't able to read them all because my mind just wanted to speed run the reading process. Watching this video has reinforced my intention to focus harder and getting less distracted, hoping my attention span will grow back in the future. Thank you very much vor this video!

    • @quixotiq
      @quixotiq Рік тому +4

      Learn to read longform books again in print. And focus on every page. It helps.

    • @hahahello7519
      @hahahello7519 Рік тому +3

      @@quixotiq Thanks for the advice! Gonna try it!

  • @DigitalGhost269
    @DigitalGhost269 Рік тому +1

    I love the way u say 'Hooooover' - reminds me of my granny n warms my heart

  • @sfkeepay
    @sfkeepay Рік тому +2

    Actually, the research on attention seems pretty clear: we can only pay attention to one thing at a time. “Multi-tasking” is fallacious - shifting quickly between things significantly lowers performance.

  • @anthonymorales842
    @anthonymorales842 Рік тому +10

    my life is pre digital identity. all of this bombarding of the senses feels like an assault

  • @jayjellobean
    @jayjellobean Рік тому +4

    Thank you so much for this video. Admittedly, it was hard for me to focus and I did find myself looking at my phone, not at all due to the great content. I appreciate the gentle suggestions of connecting with the sky, the ground and refocusing my attention locally. Cheers.

  • @chrishill7797
    @chrishill7797 Рік тому +2

    Brilliant video, you have hit the nail on the head. It’s a frightening state of affairs

  • @LarsRichterMedia
    @LarsRichterMedia Рік тому +5

    It's why I'm trying to get a local arts&culture "movement/thing" going with pop up galleries, workshops, hangouts, jam sessions, dj&dance and whatever people like to do together. If anyone has any insight from personal experience I'm happy to learn from your failures and successes.

  • @SpaceBoomerBill
    @SpaceBoomerBill Рік тому +3

    I really appreciate you listing your sources I am using them now to do a deeper dive.

  • @Christina-sf4py
    @Christina-sf4py Рік тому +3

    This one is so well expressed. I will be coming back to it every now and again. Well done 👏

  • @apophis2129
    @apophis2129 Рік тому +4

    I absolutely love this channel and I have now seen many episodes from them.
    You have progressed so much in your journey!
    I admire your perspectives and creative charm.
    Soon I will be able to provide money on Patreon.
    I hope that one day, I will be able to help or contribute more in some way.
    Your videos are brilliant!

    • @bldbar118
      @bldbar118 Рік тому +1

      Thanks, this is first vid for me. Good to know there is plenty more. :D

    • @Nick51100
      @Nick51100 Рік тому

      This is golden. Just found this channel. I’m so lost in life at the moment this guy has made some proper thought provoking stuff I needed to hear

  • @LordMcKrakenVonLittleBits
    @LordMcKrakenVonLittleBits 2 місяці тому

    All of this is exactly why I got into motorcycling. Swing a leg over, start the bike and go. Your mind is so preoccupied with the function of the machine, the wind hitting your face and the smells of nature that you can truly break free from the world's b.s. No dinging notifications, he said she saids or flashy screens. Just therapy on two wheels. You and the machine.

  • @paulmat7875
    @paulmat7875 Рік тому +6

    I wonder how much market of attention plays a role in uptick of ADHD diagnosises over the last decade

    • @gamer-ff6mh
      @gamer-ff6mh 10 місяців тому

      Bingo. Now you can decipher the cash flow behind this video.

  • @robbiehamilton447
    @robbiehamilton447 Рік тому

    These videos are incredible. The research and referencing is astonishing. Agnes Martin is my favourite painter, wasn't expecting that. One of the best channels on UA-cam.

  • @dirkwyse1609
    @dirkwyse1609 Рік тому +1

    There's something to be said for the hippie mantra "be here now." It's difficult to do, to be in every moment, but it is possible sometimes and worthwhile. The internet is the most un-be-here-now thing ever. Distractions upon distractions upon distractions forever and ever...

  • @davidhull9510
    @davidhull9510 Рік тому +5

    It made me turn the phone off and meditate, but I feel asleep

  • @AliveBoldTV
    @AliveBoldTV 8 місяців тому +1

    When I was studying psych in undergrad, I realized very quickly that the skills I was learning could be used for good or evil. And marketing was the evil. I still hate it until this day.

  • @2.7petabytes
    @2.7petabytes Рік тому +2

    Edward Bernays had a huge part to play in what we see today as well. Check out The Century of Self. It was eye opening, scary and enraging to me. Great video!

  • @markuskosmo
    @markuskosmo 10 місяців тому

    Even though there's not much here I don't already know, it's a great video that works well as a reminder to value my attention and think about what I pay attention to.
    I read part of Stand Out of Our Light as curriculum for ethics (I study philosophy at the university), and it was very interesting and enlightening!

  • @FelixSkura
    @FelixSkura Рік тому +12

    Our aimless and desperate expressions on these platforms don’t do much for us, but they are hugely lucrative for advertisers and social media companies, since what drives the machine is not the content of information but the rate of engagement.

    • @sweetdrreemz
      @sweetdrreemz Рік тому +5

      Yeah, I never commented in youtube before. But a few years ago, I decided to start doing it. Then you realize that, youtube isn't someplace you can meet people and make friends and build community (you can build community, maybe, if that's your aim: to get paid as a creator). Ultimately these comments are probably just analyzed by AI to predict trends, train AI, etc.. Nobody will read my crap; and, even if they do, they'll forget about it in 5-10 minutes, like I do...
      It's a solid case for depressingly pessimistic nihilistic futility; but, then again, I'm on youtube being told about how youtube's goal is to maximize the attention I pay to it. lol How's that for ironic..

  • @ammarahmad9976
    @ammarahmad9976 Рік тому +11

    I wonder if this guy has any idea how articulate and mesmerising he is

  • @westvincent7766
    @westvincent7766 Рік тому +2

    It is nearly impossible to not live without the amazing and taken for granted technologies we have. You can create discipline by setting deliberate intentions and rituals such as a tech-free Sabbath once a week; on a Sunday for example. One day where you disconnect from digital tech and reconnect with your heart, body and mind... I've been doing this for almost a year and it has been freeing in so many ways
    This way you don't get as stressed and anxious, knowing you can return back to the digital sphere, with a refreshed mind and body

  • @nicholasdawn9940
    @nicholasdawn9940 3 місяці тому

    Hats off to you, comrade, for your enduring commitment to deep thought in shallow times; meaning in a maze of empty signifiers; courage amidst the horrors.

  • @jonrice2827
    @jonrice2827 Рік тому

    Absolutely brilliant video, writing, visuals audio all awe inspiring.

  • @sisterursuline
    @sisterursuline 8 місяців тому +1

    This channel is fantastic! I’m surprised you don’t have more subscribers, but please keep making these great films.

  • @aydanabdullayeva3990
    @aydanabdullayeva3990 Рік тому +1

    your editing is getting better as well

  • @StennMathis
    @StennMathis Рік тому +2

    I threw out my TV for good 20 years ago, haven't read a newspaper in just as long....A few months ago my 'smart' (who's smarter, me or the phone?) broke, smashed screen...And since then i have a phone where i can either txt or call, no apps....Oh well...It really feels good, true reconnecting.

    • @pigeon_the_brit565
      @pigeon_the_brit565 Рік тому

      how do you watch youtube then

    • @StennMathis
      @StennMathis Рік тому

      @@pigeon_the_brit565 Stop trying to be clever. I have a laptop but my UA-cam time is extremely limited during an average day (artist/sculptor/antique dealer/martial artist/ upcycler of old furniture...), I have very little time for UA-cam or what's online in general...Too much living to do and i'm only gonna be here once

    • @pigeon_the_brit565
      @pigeon_the_brit565 Рік тому +2

      @@StennMathis I was just working off the information you gave me, and its a legitamate question

  • @Shortary
    @Shortary Рік тому

    Great video, may I also ask where you get your music from? The ambients on this video are perfect.

  • @wa5657
    @wa5657 Рік тому +4

    i did not pay enough attention to this video as i've listened to it while doing my job.... but the parts that i did soak in were great stuff, as always!!

  • @DerekSpeareDSD
    @DerekSpeareDSD Рік тому +1

    Shunryu Suzuki stressed the importance of the Zen practice of "sitting" and doing so with an empty mind. I have contemplated on that for two decades and understand that by doing this our mind diffuses itself of the static and noise all around us - especially now - so that we can attenuate our thoughts clearly and with great focus, hopefully, "perfect focus". That, I believe was Suzuki's goal: so that we contemplate life and ourselves with perfect clarity and understanding. The only way to do so is to "tune out" all the noise both within our own minds and without our bodies. You make this point similarly at the end of your good video...
    Zig Ziglar: The true mark of genius is the ability to focus on the task at hand.

  • @DaseinClimbs
    @DaseinClimbs Рік тому +9

    New Then and Now, what a good day!

  • @lalalala1448
    @lalalala1448 22 дні тому

    Thank you so much for your work!

  • @etiennelearning913
    @etiennelearning913 Рік тому +3

    Really great. Funnily, I'm having a real off day from my usual day which consists of quite a lot of stuff which requires resisting the attention grabbing of my phone.
    Today, I just couldn't hack it after terrible sleep and was resigned to a morning of watching pointless shit on UA-cam. This came up on my feed and decided to click in the knowledge that my watch through rate of videos longer than 2 minutes when I'm in this mood is probably in 0 point something percentages, and that I'd almost certainly click away in a few seconds
    Ended up watching the whole thing. Again kind of funnily because of the massive effort you clearly put in to put quality stuff, which has always been the case, but also now the production value and little details to actually keep attention going are so strong. Even subtle things like on the few occasions there was a wall of text, the fact it slowly transitioned from brighter to darker sort of helped my brain, which is now in constant need of something going on visually, to stay with it and not click off.
    Although in different moods it may be a slightly different story, I absolutely needed for that high production value to be there for me to stay on with it, regardless of how interesting the actual ideas you were putting forward were.
    Seems to reflect well what you were saying about the attention economy, if we're all used to that cacophony of stimulus then our deeper wants of being informed and challenged are likely to be subverted by the desire for that addicting cacophony to remain present.
    It makes me reflect on how this may filter out smaller, more thoughtful content creators.
    If we're all getting used to the insane production values of extremely well funded content then any smaller creator has the choice it seems of either putting their stuff out without that, knowing that most people have acclimated to that level of stimulation and will probably not watch it all. Or put in the huge effort to keep it engaging sonically, visually but still challenge us to be attentive to the message as you have here as a kind in between but must've taken absolutely ages without a wealthy team funding it.
    Anyway, I'm very grateful for this, changed the course of my morning and made me feel like typing a comment which I don't do much.
    Keep it up!

  • @v3g499
    @v3g499 3 місяці тому

    Im so glad I once stumbled upon your channel on UA-cam. Great video ❤

  • @user-ms4ef8xz9t
    @user-ms4ef8xz9t Рік тому +2

    I cancelled my cable TV a couple of years ago. I just could not see the logic of paying anyone to pump commercials into my home. Then there was the sorry state of cable news.... No regrets, and I'm saving $200 a month!

  • @karenguzman8293
    @karenguzman8293 Рік тому

    "it's about using technology in the right way, so it works for us, not the other way around" was my favorite part of this video, I think it shares a lot with what people in Humane Center of Technology is looking for, thank you for sharing this important information for the better knowledge of everyone about how to adapt ourselves to technology in the right way.

  • @davidhull9510
    @davidhull9510 Рік тому

    Really good video thsnx for that!

  • @vishalnangare31
    @vishalnangare31 8 місяців тому

    Thanks sir and T&N team, 🙏

  • @jiji1946
    @jiji1946 Рік тому +2

    attention isn't stolen..... it's given away!

  • @gilberttello08
    @gilberttello08 9 місяців тому +1

    Very informative -- from Philippines

  • @DavidMartins1
    @DavidMartins1 Рік тому

    You really hit the nail on the head with this one.

  • @dandylandpuffplaysminecraf8744
    @dandylandpuffplaysminecraf8744 10 місяців тому +1

    I think the public is catching on. At Canada Post yesterday I was presented with a survey I asked the staff “How accurate do you think these surveys are?” They snorted and gave a side eye.

  • @phaedrussmith1949
    @phaedrussmith1949 Рік тому +4

    This was intense. I need some Soma.

  • @MV-vv7sg
    @MV-vv7sg Рік тому

    Attention has cropped up in my recent reading. Specifically Wittgenstein’s Philosophical Investigations:
    We can talk of the shape of a vase and have our direction lead someone to focus on that and exclude it’s colour and size etc and likewise somehow have them focus only on colour and nothing else. §33 has more on this.
    Then in §34:” I always do the same thing when I attend to a shape…” “And we do here what we do in a host of similar cases…”
    This isn’t found in our gesticulation or Immediate language. We don’t point to colour and not shape? We have an ability higher than the description of Language or pointing.
    It is built into our understanding to be able to divide up our attention.
    As you put it, attention is how we do everything, it’s our perception. And perception is the only tether between reality and that which experiences it: the mind. Perception, therefore attention, is absolutely everything. It’s our time, a measure of our value. And today we are stolen of it like a murderer steals someone’s life.

  • @ericlipps7152
    @ericlipps7152 Рік тому +1

    I'm so glad I watched this I think this could help myself and people I care about.

  • @pedroesteves4671
    @pedroesteves4671 Рік тому

    thank you, very well done.

  • @jennie7
    @jennie7 23 дні тому

    I have the flu right now so I’ve been in bed scrolling online, but I completely agree with this topic. I’ve been making it a point to stay away from technology and enjoy nature, gardening, and reading books

  • @domo2000cc
    @domo2000cc Рік тому +4

    Another compelling video! Such great insight and awareness of the modern stress and pressure currently plaguing humans privileged enough to be living in a wealthy capitalist country.

  • @BlackJar72
    @BlackJar72 Рік тому

    Another thing to consider. If a technology can make itself your sole or primary source of reinforcement for long enough, you were learn that that is where to turn for the next hit while the pull of other potential sources weakens through non-use. In the end this can lead to a real difficulty disengaging as there is the pull of the conditioning to turn to tech combined with uncertainty what to do in its place -- probably more so for those growing up with it before developing other interests. (Source, person insight, but there should be serious investigation into it specifically.)

  • @rawlsrules
    @rawlsrules Рік тому +2

    This has been a pet peeve since the 60s and of course it has only become more enshrined in our world.
    Glad I paid attention to your title.

  • @romulosouzasantos8711
    @romulosouzasantos8711 11 місяців тому

    "Pay attention to how you're paying attention", what a great video! +1 subscriber.

  • @mehcutcheon2401
    @mehcutcheon2401 Рік тому

    Great summary.

  • @Sandfire564
    @Sandfire564 Рік тому +9

    It's so hard to detach from technology since everyone uses it. I still remember the one time I tried to break off for a day was the one day my family tried to contact me and they got mad I wasnt there to answer. That scared me away from trying again lol

    • @theeternalgus9119
      @theeternalgus9119 Рік тому +3

      That’s the problem. We need breaks and the constant “need” to be available is a pain in the ass.
      I actually broke my phone recently and life’s a lil less stressful.

    • @michaelcraig9449
      @michaelcraig9449 3 місяці тому

      Tell then to get real. You want to live like humans did since time began. Call them once a week.

  • @AndySomething
    @AndySomething Рік тому +11

    I've only just listened to the intro but I thought it was similar enough a topic for me to recommend "Everything, everywhere, all at once" which is a banger of a film from last year that deals with that sense of overwhelming noise and stimulus we face from the internet daily making us feel insignificant and lost.

  • @bobbygoestoabyss6624
    @bobbygoestoabyss6624 Рік тому

    Whats the music in the beginning. I heard it before in commercials.... but only a 10 second soundbite.... Would like to listen to the complete song at least once.

  • @_.rifky._
    @_.rifky._ 6 місяців тому

    Thank you sooo much for this video ❤🔥
    Plz consider writing a book... Then and Now... I would read it definitely 💪

  • @Nick51100
    @Nick51100 Рік тому +1

    Wow this video was incredible. New subscriber!

  • @karigrandii
    @karigrandii Рік тому +1

    After you try to quit social media you notice how addicting it is. I was litterally refreshing google search front page because I was so used to get dopamine from my phone. I just opened safari and closed it. It took almost a year to get rid of the rituals of social media. But now I notice I just replaced all that with youtube. I open and close youtube… will I ever get rid of these patterns?

  • @kevinnolan6579
    @kevinnolan6579 Рік тому +1

    Hi, I just want to say on a very very very serious level about something I think holds great importance for - oh! excuse me that's my phone, one second, ("yes, yes, no, sure can do, chat to you later, bye") - sorry 'bout that, anyway what I really want to say is, please stop making these Docs, you're showing the rest of us up man!!! :) So Good!! Excellent work as usual!!! Thank you for this :)

  • @BM-is5ei
    @BM-is5ei Рік тому +4

    The irony of watching this on my smartphone is delicious.

    • @thecoldglassofwatershow
      @thecoldglassofwatershow Рік тому +3

      The irony of watching this on a smart tv while scrolling and reading the comments and responding on my smartphone while also adding videos to watch next on my playlist feels so meta 😩

  • @thekajalflaneur
    @thekajalflaneur Рік тому

    The James Rorty quote is *chefs kiss*

  • @benjamino.7475
    @benjamino.7475 Рік тому

    Continue with the awesome work^^

  • @Standownevil
    @Standownevil Рік тому

    My mom was never involved in my life my entire life but now that she is older I thought I might get to know her better but she is too busy still in TECH NOW! Yep lost out again to distractions for us!!!

  • @MG-gl7gx
    @MG-gl7gx Рік тому +1

    I'm not sure if anyone has pointed this out, but isn't the picture of James Rorty at 11:33 actually a picture of American philosopher Richard Rorty? (Edit) The website where the image is linked says that james was Richard's father, but the picture is uncannily similar to Richard...

  • @gonzophilosophy7858
    @gonzophilosophy7858 Рік тому

    Great video mate

  • @sushipsychose
    @sushipsychose Рік тому

    20:16 You called him Dershowitz, Finkelstein would be proud

  • @davidgroom5059
    @davidgroom5059 Рік тому +1

    Thanks

  • @schiffelers3944
    @schiffelers3944 Рік тому

    Just 6 minutes in... and very interesting content - however: with the first note about attention - *juggling,* I know this might be more related to how fast we can switch our attention between the single objects we juggle and react to changes on the spot. But technically/practically this shows our attention can be divided up for just more than one or two items. And here I want to connect the second remark, with *linguistics* - My native language is Dutch, *we don't "pay" attention in our language, we "give" our attention.* This "paying" might have more connection to the English/American Capitalistic culture.
    Juggling in Dutch is Jongleren, which could also be split up in jong leren aka learning young.
    We also have a saying: Jong geleerd is oud gedaan. Something learned at a young age will remain with us until we are old. Like riding a bike, once you have learned it - it is almost impossible to unlearn the skill.

  • @bradbell4022
    @bradbell4022 Рік тому

    Adblocker👍Digital tech also provides lots of filters to ensure you only see the information you want to see. I dislike ads, so I don't see them. I dislike the British Establishment, so I don't ever see or hear them. I'm a fan of digital. Also, a tip for FOCUS: watch talking videos at 2x speed. It forces you to pay attention. This may help ADHD or autism spectrum people more than others. I picked up the practice from the Blind👍

  • @susanwilliams4953
    @susanwilliams4953 2 місяці тому

    Great advice Then & Now. "Pay attention to how you are paying your attention".

  • @Cannabonsai
    @Cannabonsai Рік тому +1

    I really resonated with that intro

  • @briannyob7799
    @briannyob7799 Рік тому +1

    The first thing I do when I install most apps is turn off notifications. I'll check stuff when I feel like it. I have a Facebook account, but I think I last looked at it 4 months ago.

    • @naniyotaka
      @naniyotaka Рік тому

      Same. I have notifications turned off on all my devices. If I accidentally leave one turned on, it starts to irritate me right away.

  • @RaxiazRedux
    @RaxiazRedux Рік тому +8

    good thing i don't deal with social media! *goes back to playing various mobile gacha games*

  • @allypoum
    @allypoum Рік тому

    Very good stuff. Who was it who said "all that is solid melts into air"? ;-)

  • @0xzi
    @0xzi Рік тому +7

    Very interesting topic, and wonderful editing of the video. Definitely subscribing, have enjoyed quite a few of your videos even if there's a handful I maybe don't agree with, it's refreshing and authentic feeling arguments you put forward.
    As for the topic - like most things in life I think it's about balance. Using the most simplistic example is taking your camera out into nature: sure snap a good pic or two, there's nothing wrong with that.. but take in the area as well. Don't walk up to a waterfall, take a picture, and leave - something I've seen far too often in my life. Take time and make the effort to actually experience things, or you'll never feel like you can get a break from anything.

  • @hamishmctiaigh4363
    @hamishmctiaigh4363 9 місяців тому

    Id like to sincerely thank the author(s) for this video. Its ironic that this information has to be delivered via the same means that it's warning us against, but its a brilliant overview and analysis of what everyone is exposed to and some have to fight with every minute. Ill definitely re-watch it again before my next digital detox

  • @clusterstage
    @clusterstage Рік тому +1

    In fact ads is no longer sustainable in the foreseeable future (1:41)

  • @wetalksports1128
    @wetalksports1128 Рік тому +1

    Great video

  • @thore2910
    @thore2910 Рік тому +8

    Topic related; Can highly recommend "Stolen Focus" by Johann Hari, pretty good book.

  • @Hollowdude15
    @Hollowdude15 4 місяці тому

    Great video Then & Now and I like your videos so alot :]

  • @Zakariah1971
    @Zakariah1971 Рік тому

    Excellent presentation. Must be from Europe!

  • @wrathford
    @wrathford Рік тому +7

    babe wake up, then and now just posted a new video