Life is pretty bland today! Indeed, we're the cozy spectators of homogenization through globalization, pushed by a series of ephemeral trends, one dying after another, and carried by consumer society. It's as if the cultural vibes all seem to walk in the same direction. What is this direction? Where did novelty go, have countercultures... more

Every so often we need to regroup and give shape to our scattered ideas, turning them into well-structured paragraphs so that they make sense. From simple observations of events to shower thoughts. That's what I'll try to do in this article, swapping heavy words for a lucid mind. more

Is someone that is subjectively experiencing something more knowledgeable than someone who didn't or currently isn't? Are analytical external observers sometimes more adept at understanding what is happening than the persons that are currently deep in the experience? more

After writing a whole book about internet and narrative control I want to share what I personally do, in my own limited ways, to try not to get stuck in bubbles. The book covers a lot of ground on this used up road, especially in the last part, but let's be practical instead. This isn't meant to be didactic but only informative of my r... more

Our mini internet study has come to an end. In this series we've seen the new actors and spaces introduced by the internet, the actors using them, from the new economies, to netizens in between, to state actors. We've also took some reflective time to understand why we can be susceptible to biases and why we have so much difficulties ... more

We can attempt to patch things, use tools and software as countermeasures, to add laws and regulations, or to let the market decide, but in the end we are at the center of everything. If we are facing difficulties with the medium it's because we haven't matured enough to handle it properly. Right now we're still in the process of ... more

When free market and regulations fail, when the laws of rights can't properly protect anyone and trust has eroded, we're left only with ourselves. In that scenario, tech is seen as the savior of the internet, the weapon and armor of choice for everyone, building and selecting software that resolve issues. For social media platforms an... more

The market and corporate self-regulation have their limits. They cannot in themselves be sources of morals and ethics. This is the realm of laws, the legislations that governments make are the real arbiters of duties and rights. The governments, as state entities, can impose the rules that should be followed to be able to act on their territori... more

In this last part of the series we'll go over the adaptations we are undergoing to remove the frictions we have with the internet — anything to make it better suited for us. We'll take multiple perspectives, primarily the ones of users, societies, and others that are encountering the issues we've seen related to this new communica... more

The internet brings with it technological advancements that reminds us of dystopia that sci-fi writers have written about. So let's go beyond what we've tackled so far and project ourselves in hypothetical futures to posit bigger consequences. The two archetypical stories of dystopian futures are Brave New World by Aldous Huxley and 1... more

Nobody likes to be put in a box, nobody likes to be paralyzed. In a world where the individual is put first, we want to feel in control. Yet, we are lost in a whirlpool of chaotic and clashing ideologies, memeplexes and absolutist templates. Who are we, how should we define ourselves? This makes us distrust any form of authority and renounce cla... more

In this part of the series, we'll explore the bigger picture and the generic issues and 'ill effects' on societies that are brought by the emergence of the internet or accelerated by it. We'll begin with a look at three inter-related subjects, a general social paralysis, an apparent sentiment of homogeneity, and the relation ... more

To be a netizen means to be part of the online social sphere. There's no way around it, to have a voice and participate people have to join a platform, which comes with its own limitations. The rules of the platforms are the rules of the information society but the platforms adapt more to fit us than we adapt to them. Anything happening on... more

Humans are prone to manipulations by their own experiences and biases. Let's review what are some of the cognitive biases and cultural weaknesses that make us fall for all sort of things on the internet. We've already looked at coercion, deception, and other types of persuasion principles in a previous sections. In the following two w... more

Since ancient times, nations have tried to write history from their own point of view. As they say, history is written by the victors. Today, the speed of the internet allows rewriting the narrative in real-time, and state actors will certainly take advantage of this. Namely, there are two ways, or generations, of state information-control pract... more

The internet is a new resource and when introduced in our social structures it has fueled the construction of utilities around it. Like any tool it has no effects on its own but only through its usages. In particular, it has altered our capacity of communication making it interactive, multimodal, asynchronous or synchronous, global or local, man... more

The artifacts we've previously seen have given rise to new types of economies, tools, and arsenals that can be used by different actors for different incentives. Let's start by focusing on the economic aspects by looking at actors such as social media platforms, newspapers, and advertisement companies. Life in an information society is... more

In this last section of our first part about artifacts and places, we'll explore memes, internet memes, and cults, their definitions, how they have transformed and crisscrossed, their relationship, their role as communication vectors, and the extreme forms that they can take. Meme is a word that comes up in many conversations. It can refer ... more

The internet is littered with nuggets of information, some made of gold and some worthless. From this mine we can extract meta-information, inferences that can lead to more lucrative valleys. Two of the most talked about are personal data and models, also known as statistical trends visualizations, big data analysis, and predictive studies. Let... more

With the advent of smartphones, social media platforms are on the rise. Let's step back and try to understand what social media are, not by citing events and instances happening on the different platforms, nor the countless consequences but by describing the characteristics of this new informational channel. We'll go over the rest late... more

Our journey begins with three terms, propaganda, influence, and persuasion. To most, they sound like synonyms but each convey a different concept. Like any form of communication the internet can be used as a channel for them. What does communication consist of? The very broad domain of communication studies — with multiple sub-disciplines such a... more

To no one's surprise, the internet has permeated all aspects of our lives. All other means of communication have dwindled in comparison, even though the technological behemoth is relatively young (around 50 years old as of 2021). Worldwide, according to statistics from 2019, people spent an average of 2 and a half hours a day on social medi... more

Finally, The project about mapping wild mushrooms in Lebanon is out! The project consists of a map with wild mushroom specimens, their locations, along with pictures and descriptions of them. It is based on the only two research papers on the topic I've found, Joseph Thiébaut research paper Champignons observés dans le Liban et la Syrie de... more

How would you describe yourself? How do you usually talk about yourself? Do you feel like you are the writer of your own narrative? Who are you? more

Collapse, the word that is on everyone's lips in Lebanon. What does it mean, will Lebanon fall or survive, and what does the future have in store? "We can predict everything, except the future", I hear someone say, but can we at least get some possibilities. more

Time can be measured in all sorts of ways, some more accurate than others, but the perception of its flow varies widely depending on the subjective experience. That's the distinction between physical and psychological time. Psychological time is influenced and influences our cognitive systems. It influences how we act and respond to infor... more

In this article I'm going to pose a not so novel compatibilistic idea about the so-recurrent philosophical discussion of free will and determinism. However, this can apply to any topic where reductionism is over-used. Let's get started. more

This article is about nothing surprising but may act as a reminder to anyone that wanders online or that manages a community. There's too much already written about the subject of echo chambers so what I'll do is list ideas that I find interesting but that aren't mentioned enough. more

This article is about a rarely discussed component that resides in the background of our lives. No word clearly describes this phenomenon as it's a fusion of different ideas. We blueprint ourselves according to media that display extravagant versions of winners and losers. The profiles on social media are facade created around individuals... more

It's not uncommon to hear, from persons that relocated to a new country, discussions related to the dissatisfactions with the new land they've set upon or the land they've just left behind. Apart from the stifling reply, "they're just not used to it", what else is hiding behind this phenomenon. Let's dissect t... more

There may exist someone in your entourage, someone you may care deeply about, or maybe even yourself, that is being crushed by the real and raw perception of themselves. They may appear to an external observer as someone who expresses a lot of self-deprecation or negativity, but the observed categorized this as realism. We often hear the senten... more

It has become rampant nowadays to find many persons misinterpreting or skewing evolutionary psychology studies to praise or blame the stance they fancy or despise. The slants are non-sense and blot this relatively new field of social science by conflating it with bigotry and excruciatingly non-scientific arguments. Many of the pernicious indivi... more

Hello fellow readers, This is the first post of 2017, let's recap what I've been up to since the start of the year. Show me how you spend your day and I'll tell you what you care about more

We take actions based on our unconscious mind, we follow our unspoken norms and taboos. For a little while we may think we are original or creative, but we aren't — at least not following the definition we attributed to the terms. This is not uncommon, everyone thinks that they are innovative. A positive illusion or just the opposite, let&... more

What if you could see your life from a third person point of view. What if you could get closer to yourself. Who are we anyway? more

You're hungry on your way home and are thinking of passing by a restaurant, to sit down, relax, and eat, but there's an uncertainty feeling emerging. Why is it so uncomfortable to eat alone in a restaurant? At first glance it seems like an appropriate solution, You're hungry, tired, and there's someone there waiting to cook ... more

Let's start with definitions because the words themselves are not representative of my perspective. I think there's a clear distinction between words. We have different words for a reason, they have different meanings. They might be thought to be synonymous but do have backgrounds, connotations, history, roots, that differ, The gene... more

We are born, we live, and we die. Yet, humans presumptuously want to ply meaning with their existence. What am I — Just a coincidence? What makes me special, am I distinguishable? We're not blind and won't be satisfied with the unlaborious mythological answers. Which are only enough for the simple minds. The essence is there, somew... more

I find it fervently infuriating when someone uses the word passion and degrades it. They degrade the meaning of the word. Passion is the ultimate upgrade of the hobby, a cultivated curiosity. Something you're currently dedicating your life to. You diminish it when blurting that a person that doesn't spend any time outside the "obl... more

This is my philosophy of life. I hope it resonates with you. It's ubiquitous, we tacitly agree to it. The anxiety, the stress, the fear, the conflicts, the mystical, the norms, the religions, reputation, we use those blocks to build walls around us. The cold concrete hurts our hands — We're proud of our construction. Isn't it w... more

Ten years ago we moved to Lebanon. There was a culture clash. In this post I'll explain why some locals go on destructive paths. We all know generalizations have the nasty effect of activating justice warriors. My intention is not to trigger rage, generalizations are what they are, a resonance of the state of mind *we* are living in. Wh... more

Hello fellow readers, This post is a refresh on correlated subjects I've discussed in the past. I'm revisiting them considering the recent media coverage. Social awakening is at the door. more

Hello fellow readers, This article is about driving in Lebanon. I used to spend my whole day walking until I bought a car. Walking was time-consuming and tiresome. On the long run I got used to it and with my "wasted" time on transportation I read books, watched movies, and listened to podcasts. I also had many adventures on my way. ... more

Giving life is not a simple decision, if it even is a decision at all. The world, the societies, are moving fast. Who can tell what the future will hold. Only children and their children will be part of it. I wonder what it would be like to teach someone à la `tabula rasa` — even if I'm still learning to be an adult myself. more

It's 4:45am, you wake up! Rusty, you get out of bed. Man up, drink some water because your mouth is sore. You wash your face with cold water. Then, stand up for 5 minutes, simply looking at the fridge to realize you're still too numb to be able to eat or even to choose a meal... Anyway, you just want to leave as soon as possible. You ... more

Hello fellow readers, In this post I'll depict the most memorable events that happened on my way to work. It's a strange world. more

Hello fellow readers, In this post I'll introduce futurists, some people with a very special occupation. more

Hello fellow readers, In this post I'll discuss a subject that has been nagging me. Justification After Actions I usually write to clear my mind about a topic. These days I can't really keep up with all the things that bug me. This subject is a preparation to a broader subject that I'm preparing to write about. more

Sometimes you need to boost up, to push yourself up. Shia LaBeouf motivational video is pretty good at that, I'll do the same in this post. more

I've been meditating lately, trying to fight the parts of me that aren't in equilibrium. After starting my full time job, my way of life shaped to fit the situation. Beyond the changes, those inner thoughts kept surfacing telling me to stay true to myself. I am far from an hypocrite, but society brainwash system is strong and if you ... more

Hello fellow readers, The last two months I've been extremely interested in evolutionary programming and group dynamics. In this post I'll try to gather some important factors I've noticed repeating themselves across the multiple opinions and examples, and the ones that just seemed noticeably important. more

Hello fellow readers, This post is about an analysis of social changes in 2015. more

About a week ago an instructor at university was asking why most students did not try the step-by-step tutorials at home, or why they didn't at least read it. He then started a speech, trying to understand us and saying that we would not be able to enter the work world easily with this mindset, and asking students what they thought of it. more

Hello fellow readers, I've been away of the social networking scene for a year, after obvious wrong events such as Facebook entering the stock market. This post is a reminder of those horrible, so called, online social networks. Social networks make people look stupid! On a personal level, I've been out for a year and I still feel ... more

Hello people, Yet again, I came up with another _little_ quote. Feel free to use it in any context or to give your opinion about it. more

Hello People, I was about to sleep when I came out with this more