s19e07: Decide What’s Important; Tacit Admission

0.0 Context Setting

Friday, 22 November 2024 in Portland, Oregon. A cold and wet day, with on-and-off again rain.

I have something like at least three unfinished fragments that I got super excited about but now am not sure how I’ll finish them. It’s irritating.

A quick reminder that my dance card is open, so if you've been meaning to work with me, get in touch!

0.1 Events

Nothing to report at this time.

1.0 Some Things That Caught My Attention

1.1 Decide What’s Important

Okay, so here’s the deal. Say you’re a social network. Say you’re one that’s really big. Like, really, really big.

I mean, let’s just say it’s Facebook or whatever the EU decides is big enough that day (I am sympathetic to the EU regulating based on vibes, to be honest).

At some point, you’re big enough that the decisions you make about your “algorithm” i.e. deciding what content is displayed are societal-scale. Thumb on the scale [sic] type stuff.

But you didn’t start out that way. Say you started out as a way to text people what you had for brunch, or you started out as way to rate the attractiveness of women on campus.

Are you supposed to make