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I find the idea that more information can actually hinder you to be pretty fascinating. This is not something I consider everyday. I wonder what other situation

I find the idea that more information can actually hinder you to be pretty fascinating. This is not something I consider everyday. I wonder what other situation/ scenario would this be applicable to? I also notice people getting upset over down votes once in a while. High karma users definitely command a certain respect. All in all, I like how HN down votes comments from even high karma users if it's out of touch with the topic or is a meaningless vent. Hope that continues.

danso 10y ago
I believe information-filtering/overload to be the core challenge and driver of inspiration when it comes to how humans understand the world. The amount of information in the world (particularly, that we store and transmit) has increased exponentially, but our attention spans have not. `More information != Better` is evident in contemporary web design, not just the seemingly retro-because-why-change aesthetic of HN (I say "seemingly" because I don't think HN's design motivation is out of curmudgeonly inertia). Look at the single-column experiences of Facebook and Medium versus what existed in the early 2000. Hell, look at the latest startup unicorn, Snap, in which information is mostly vertical photos and videos, and in which it is impossible to even review a history of past content. The entire premise of data visualization is to simplify information. I'd argue that data, in general, is predicated of simplifying the world. Think of how many times you've read a survey or poll or study and thought that it was wrong because you, personally, aren't anything like those in your age group. Or, if you've ever applied to college or a job, how your GPA/SAT/ACT score, or previous salary, doesn't reflect the depth of your knowledge. The benefits of reducing information seems to also be inherent in our current biological state. The vast majority of what the human eye can see, in terms of total area, is relatively low resolution (i.e peripheral vision). The psychological tendency to rely on first impressions has been posited to have positive implications for survival. The perceived spottiness in human memory is also thought to be not just a physical limitation, but actual feature: http://articles.latimes.com/2011/may/29/opinion/la-oe-bar-memory-20110529 http://articles.latimes.com/2011/may/29/opinion/la-oe-bar-me... ---- On a sidenote, I'll admit to paying attention when I'm downvoted. But that's a reflection of how rarely I get downvoted and how little I downvote other people. And I think that in itself is a reflection of HN's moderation and decorum (don't use downvotes just because you disagree). OTOH, I don't get angry. When I get downvoted on HN. I have a general faith that it was because I screwed up -- e.g. I'm not as funny/witty as I think I am, or I was unnecessarily rude to someone else. And generally, that's the case and I've felt that that feedback has made me a more considerate writer over time.
- onion2k 10y ago
  I have a general faith that it was because I screwed up -- e.g. I'm not as funny/witty as I think I am, or I was unnecessarily rude to someone else. Karma on HN and my fear of getting downvotes has had a chilling effect on my willingness to post humorous remarks. This is probably a good thing.
- 781278181 10y ago
  > `More information != Better` is evident in contemporary web design. In a way it is. On the other hand I found the original Yahoo page with just about 100 blue links very readable and navigable. I wonder if the art of speed reading has been lost. Navigating the web for me was much faster around 2000 than it is now. Too many sites have proprietary and byzantine procedures of interacting with them (example: click on a button before being able to enter something in a web form).

danso 10y ago

I believe information-filtering/overload to be the core challenge and driver of inspiration when it comes to how humans understand the world. The amount of information in the world (particularly, that we store and transmit) has increased exponentially, but our attention spans have not. `More information != Better` is evident in contemporary web design, not just the seemingly retro-because-why-change aesthetic of HN (I say "seemingly" because I don't think HN's design motivation is out of curmudgeonly inertia). Look at the single-column experiences of Facebook and Medium versus what existed in the early 2000. Hell, look at the latest startup unicorn, Snap, in which information is mostly vertical photos and videos, and in which it is impossible to even review a history of past content. The entire premise of data visualization is to simplify information. I'd argue that data, in general, is predicated of simplifying the world. Think of how many times you've read a survey or poll or study and thought that it was wrong because you, personally, aren't anything like those in your age group. Or, if you've ever applied to college or a job, how your GPA/SAT/ACT score, or previous salary, doesn't reflect the depth of your knowledge. The benefits of reducing information seems to also be inherent in our current biological state. The vast majority of what the human eye can see, in terms of total area, is relatively low resolution (i.e peripheral vision). The psychological tendency to rely on first impressions has been posited to have positive implications for survival. The perceived spottiness in human memory is also thought to be not just a physical limitation, but actual feature: http://articles.latimes.com/2011/may/29/opinion/la-oe-bar-memory-20110529 http://articles.latimes.com/2011/may/29/opinion/la-oe-bar-me... ---- On a sidenote, I'll admit to paying attention when I'm downvoted. But that's a reflection of how rarely I get downvoted and how little I downvote other people. And I think that in itself is a reflection of HN's moderation and decorum (don't use downvotes just because you disagree). OTOH, I don't get angry. When I get downvoted on HN. I have a general faith that it was because I screwed up -- e.g. I'm not as funny/witty as I think I am, or I was unnecessarily rude to someone else. And generally, that's the case and I've felt that that feedback has made me a more considerate writer over time.

onion2k 10y ago
I have a general faith that it was because I screwed up -- e.g. I'm not as funny/witty as I think I am, or I was unnecessarily rude to someone else. Karma on HN and my fear of getting downvotes has had a chilling effect on my willingness to post humorous remarks. This is probably a good thing.
781278181 10y ago
> `More information != Better` is evident in contemporary web design. In a way it is. On the other hand I found the original Yahoo page with just about 100 blue links very readable and navigable. I wonder if the art of speed reading has been lost. Navigating the web for me was much faster around 2000 than it is now. Too many sites have proprietary and byzantine procedures of interacting with them (example: click on a button before being able to enter something in a web form).