How much information do we really need? As you know that we live in an information bubble designed specifically for each individual based on our likes and dislikes. Facebook, Twitter, and Google, they are all showing us information that they know we are going to like.
For someone who spends almost all day on the internet, this means that I am getting article suggestions throughout the day. These suggestions are derived from my interests, and are written by professionals who have mastered the craft of writing catchy headlines.
For example, if I open my Facebook timeline right now I will see a dozen stories by The Atlantic, Smithsonian Magazine, Quartz, Buzzfeed, Guardian, BBC, etc. Most of these stories will be focused on topics that interest me and all of them will have interesting headlines.
I mean, I love reading about signs of extraterrestrial life as much as any other nerd, but do I really need to read each article speculating about possible signs of water on some faraway moon?
Why I must read every article about developments in Ukraine, ISIS, fossil discoveries, and ancient extinct species?
I love reading and it makes me feel powerful. But for someone who hardly speaks to any person other than my wife, my brother, and my boss, where I am going to use all this information? Its not like I can use these stories as conversation pieces anywhere.
I am also unable to write or blog as often as I would like to. This means I can’t share these stories on my blog. Besides, why would anyone want to read my thoughts about early humanoid species when they can learn about it from experts?
May be I should try to control what I read every day. I was thinking about trying to limit my leisure reading activities to a fixed 30 minutes period. Instead of reading things as they pop-up on my timeline, I should just ignore them till my reading time.
If I decide to read more on what’s actually related to my profession and useful for me, then I should probably read more about why cute kitten videos go viral? Any recommendations on that topic will be much appreciated.
