15 ms·
Cal Newport on Why We'll Look Back at Our Smartphones Like Cigarettes
- keiferski 8y agoNot a great analogy. A better one would be the automobile, IMO. Incredibly freeing and powerful, but pushed by actors for ethically dubious reasons and capable of massive negative societal effects if left unchecked.
- owens99 8y agoYes, but automobiles aren’t addicting. I believe a better title would be about “today’s smart phone” assuming we will still have smart phones in the future but they won’t be designed to be addicting anymore.
- emiliobumachar 8y agoAutomobiles are not addictive in the medical sense, but consider that, all else being equal, heavy car users will, much faster than others, lose the capacity to walk long distances.
- AceyMan 8y agoThis, so much. I take transit and cycle everywhere. Even with the bike and bus there's lots of walking to and from bus stops. When I am out with colleagues and we want to go somewhere even a half a mile away people are all "that's soooo far..." No wonder e-scooters are so popular. (And I suspect lots of their user base are smokers.)
- telotortium 8y agoI suspect (I'm a non-obese non-smoker) that far more obese non-smokers get winded by walking such a distance than non-obese smokers, at least until they're fairly old. Also, in walkable cities, I see quite a few smokers but much fewer obese people. If we're talking about hiking hills, it balances out a bit more, although I think the obese would still be at a disadvantage. Losing some of your lung capacity doesn't matter too much until you do intense exercise, but obese people always have to expend extra effort to carry their weight around.
- Dylan16807 8y agoPeople take the freedom of moving faster in a car, then get houses that are so much further away from everything that the time savings disappear and they are completely trapped using the car for everything. It's not addiction but it's close in a lot of ways.
- Dumblydorr 8y agoI doubt we will launch a massive campaign against phones unless they kill literally hundreds of thousands like smoking has. It's more likely we will have to for vaping or marijuana use, if they turn out to cause cancer in the millions now using those daily.
- uxisnotui 8y agoTexting while driving comes to mind: https://www.nsc.org/road-safety/safety-topics/distracted-driving/research https://www.nsc.org/road-safety/safety-topics/distracted-dri...
- monkeynotes 8y agoEating while driving is also a huge part of the distracted driving problem. Food also causes numerous other health problems; obesity, diabetes and so on. If we all work really hard we can come up with dumb reasons to ban almost anything. Politicians make careers out of this sort of thing.
- mrfusion 8y agoI always liked the idea of simply banning distracted driving. Why have the law play cat and mouse with new technologies.
- leetcrew 8y agounfortunately the law has to balance principle with practicality. it's hard to imagine a way of detecting a wide range of distracting behaviors without some sort of pervasive surveillance. would you be willing to accept a camera in your car than an LEO can tap into at any time?
- mrfusion 8y agoThat’s definitely true but why should it be any harder than detecting someone texting? From a practical standpoint, how about if your car is weaving back and forth they Get checked out.
- chrisweekly 8y agoRelated tangent: Newport's book "Deep Work" is excellent. It makes a strong case that deep work is increasingly rare, valuable, and meaningful. But it goes way beyond the "what" and the "why", providing the "how", in the form of specific, pragmatic, actionable guidance for achieving just that. Anecdotally, it's been very helpful for me.
- _Microft 8y agoI can confirm/agree with that.
- Numberwang 8y agoDidnt someone do a summary of that book in like a single page somewhere? As in, there were good ideas but it could be summed up to a short paper. I can't find the link now.
- StavrosK 8y agoI found that you could do the same for many business books, and had made a site to provide summaries of the books. What sparked me to do it was reading "The No Asshole Rule", which was so devoid of actual content that it could be summed up by its title. It was full of anecdotes and statistics that ended up drawing the wrong conclusion.
- Something1234 8y agoWhats the site?
- deweller 8y agoCigarettes are a flawed analogy. There is no such thing as a "healthy" use of cigarettes. But I would argue that smart phones can be used in a healthy way. And I would also argue that the phone itself is not the problem. The problem is the reliance on the endorphin hit that comes from a new IM, like, post, etc. Some app makers have optimized their platform for engagement and have consequently made this highly addictive for many people. But this addiction is much easier to break for most people than an addiction to something like say cigarettes (or even sugar).
- DisruptiveDave 8y ago> But this addiction is much easier to break for most people than an addiction to something like say cigarettes (or even sugar). Physically? I presume you're right. But here's the problem; you don't need cigarettes to accomplish any other expected, daily task in your life. You need your phone for a whole bunch of useful tasks that aren't health-depleting. I once read someone explain eating disorders in a similar way. You still need to eat, so you can't simply kick the root of your problem out of your life forever.
- everdrive 8y ago> You need your phone This is debatable. What can you really do on your phone that you can't do on a PC?
- skilled 8y agoAh, yes -- the "healthy" card. Good one! Makes you wonder what if "healthy" meant no phones at all... dang! I was fortunate to have a childhood without phones, and if I ever have kids myself I want to give them the same experience no matter what it takes.
- keerthiko 8y agothe classic "we didn't have nice things when I was a child, so I shall socially constrain my children's options in a completely different era in the same way arbitrarily" style of parenting. I'm sure your kids will be grateful and excited /s
- baxtr 8y agoI don’t buy the analogy. Do we look back at TV saying the same thing? Granted we have to learn how we can live in balance with smartphones and the always-in mentality. Compared to cigarettes there are a lot of positives things you can do with smartphones.
- grawprog 8y agoYeah. People have been saying it for a long time about tv. At least as long as I can remember. https://www.forbes.com/sites/tarahaelle/2015/12/02/heads-up-couch-potatoes-tv-really-does-rot-your-brain-it-seems/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/tarahaelle/2015/12/02/heads-up-... https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/does-tv-rot-your-brain/ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/does-tv-rot-your-...
- randomsearch 8y agoTV isn't the same, as it doesn't contain the same tight feedback loop of reward and punishment as social media.
- baxtr 8y agoTV isn’t the same? you mean like smartphones aren’t the same as cigarettes?
- rchaud 8y agoIt's the difference between one-way and two-way methods of communication as well as past events vs live events. TV shows are static, they are completely unchanged by your personal opinion as you watch it. You cannot submit a comment on a TV episode, nor is there any mechanism for the episode to reflect the impact of your comment (likes, replies, etc.) In fact, even FB/Twitter/IG aren't "real-time". They don't show all the likes as they're coming in. They specifically delay showing the full number so you have a reason to come back and re-check. If you see a higher number of likes, you're going to come back again to re-check.
- checker659 8y agoI think we'll look at headphones / earphones like cigarettes as well.
- ChrisLTD 8y agoCan you expand on that?
- superhuzza 8y ago- Common habit - Probably more damaging to our ears than we expect - Damage is cumulative and takes a while to show the effects
- bregma 8y agoI find my smartphone is incredibly hard to light and always goes out unless I draw on it really hard. Also, until I switched to a brand that used USB-C for its charger cable I seemed to put the wrong end in my mouth the first time every time.
- ape4 8y agoThose Popsockets are held with two fingers like a cigarette.
- everdev 8y agoIf you look at city photos pre-iPhone people are walking with their heads up (no one is looking at their phone). Not a judgement, just a stark contrast from ~10 years ago.
- bluedino 8y agoposts old timey photo of everyone on a train reading the newspaper
- lm28469 8y agoWell, between smartphones, desk jobs, lack of proper physical activity there is definitely more people with rounded shoulders and "smartphone necks". And to be honest I don't think anyone read the newspaper for 3+ hours a day [0] It's especially damaging for kids (still growing + somewhat more malleable bones / joints). [0] https://www.emarketer.com/content/mobile-time-spent-2018 https://www.emarketer.com/content/mobile-time-spent-2018
- seandougall 8y agoI was kind of with him right up until this: > But if you ask yourself who's the healthiest person you know, almost certainly they subscribe to some sort of named philosophy that helps them make consistent and value-driven decisions about what they eat and how they move. Maybe they're vegan or paleo. Maybe I’m an outlier, but that tends to be more true of the least healthy people I know. Named philosophies with strict rules give you far more opportunities to measure your failures. It’s too easy to slip, notice you’ve slipped, and figure, “well, I’ve done that much, I guess I’m just off the wagon today.” (Not to mention that vegan and paleo both leave room for some wildly unhealthful decisions without breaking the rules.) It seems like his philosophy isn’t as strict as that, though. I like the approach in large part because it isn’t like going vegan or paleo. As with so many things, it’s all about finding moderation and an approach that you can stick to sustainably.
- skohan 8y agoThat could be a result of selection bias as well though. People who are already healthy are probably less likely to reach for extreme diets than people who are unsatisfied with their health.
- Void_ 8y agoHealthiest person I ever knew was my gradma. She sure as hell wasn't vegan or paleo. She was Catholic and she was practicing the virtue of temperance every day. We often adopt lifestyles, we do certain things, in order to become healthier, fitter, smarter, richer... She wasn't doing it because who she wanted become. She was doing it because of who she was.
- kevin_thibedeau 8y ago> She wasn't doing it because who she wanted become. She was doing it because of who she was. So she would have had no problem stopping such behavior without fear of repercussion? If not then the motivation is not solely self directed. Many people are engaged in virtuistic pursuits because of fear or selfishness. Their outward actions can't always be taken at face value.
- 8y ago
- bmj 8y agoRelated: http://www.paulgraham.com/addiction.html http://www.paulgraham.com/addiction.html
- markdog12 8y agoGreat read, thx. > You can probably take it as a rule of thumb from now on that if people don't think you're weird, you're living badly.
- efields 8y agoMost people don't actually want a smartphone. Pain in the ass to keep charged, carry it everywhere, not drop it, not lose it. Everybody generally wants a few core services from their smartphone: send and receive brief messages, directions, ride hailing, listen to a podcast or some streaming service, mobile payments, take photos (perhaps most importantly). Sometimes some people want the distractions available on a smartphone: watch video, read the news, social media, browse the web, read a book. Sometimes some people want to Do Work™ on their phone, but the vast majority of the people don't want that, at least outside of their preferred work hours. I try to do more and more with my Apple Watch/AirPods only, and it's starting the feel like the future depends less and less on having a smartphone. In our Star Trek utopia, your wearable would let you go up to any screen and access your stuff, and these would be in convenient locations, like a public transit stations, cafes, etc. You'd do work on a purpose built machine for the work you do, one with a lot of buttons if you type a lot, one with a stylus and weird knobs if you do precision work. The personal smartphone as it currently exists is this weird mandatory liability we're all burdened with, costly in time, attention, and money. They're worse than cigarettes because at least you can carry on a conversation while smoking.
- scottlocklin 8y agoSome people never got one. People (in physics grad school in the 90s mind you) made fun of me when I had an HP100LX (a pocket sized DOS-5 machine you could carry around) for writing fortran code in microemacs or doing Derive/mathematica trace formulas while away from the terminals. It was also a good PDA and had an ebook reader for killing time on the bus. When I saw people with the early smart phones doing vastly worse than me nerding out on my HP, I knew there was no way I'd get one of those things. I'm on the bloody internet all day as it is for work; no reason to be more connected.
- com2kid 8y ago> Everybody generally wants a few core services from their smartphone: send and receive brief messages, directions, ride hailing, listen to a podcast or some streaming service, mobile payments, take photos (perhaps most importantly). Complete access to a large % of Western civilization's collective knowledge is also kind of nice. Mostly used for restaurant open hours and random Wikipedia articles. But still. Knowing where nearby gas stations are, checking when a store closes, comparison price shopping, checking nutrition facts, there are many uses for a smart phone outside of the ones you listed. And, as always, the long tail is long.
- rekshaw 8y agoI think the right comparison is instagram, not smartphones.
- chatwinra 8y agoMaybe he's on to something. Ban on indoor use of smartphones?
- Proven 8y agoAnother "hought leader".... Some people like their cigarettes and vapes, some like their phones. Nothing wrong with any activity as long as it's done in moderation. If facebook 10 or 15 minutes a day, what's the big deal? Do what you enjoy. Don't listen to academics.
- gnicholas 8y agoI was recently searching for a metal box that I could put my iPhone in when it's time for me to focus on family. After seeing a few vintage cigarette boxes pop up in the search results, I realized that sticking my phone into a box built for cigarettes would be a helpful reminder of how addictive my phone can be. I even considered getting a Camel-brand tin, but decided to get something classier/more subtle.
- fhood 8y agohttps://www.ebay.com/itm/Richmond-Straight-Cut-Cigarette-Tin-Hinged-Allen-Ginter-Richmond-Virginia/202568895397?hash=item2f2a0c0ba5:rk:5:pf:0 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Richmond-Straight-Cut-Cigarette-Tin...
- gnicholas 8y agoYeah I searched Etsy and eBay. It was hard to find one that was big enough for my iPhone 7 Plus and my wife's SE (in a thick case). I eventually found a few brass and bronze candidates that were big enough and quite handsome.
- sonnyblarney 8y agoI think cars would be a better analogy. Something very useful but with negative externalities we did not predict.
- kevin_thibedeau 8y agoThe problem isn't smartphones. It's apps that appeal to addictive persona, be they social media or time consuming games. Use your smartphone as a tool and it serves a purpose without intruding on your life.
- taude 8y agoI'd buy that if all the research into making them addictive wasn't pursued. Just like cigarettes, a lot of people are being targeted by the addictive nature of these devices. Sure, there's some people who just won't smoke, no matter what. But if you look at statistically significant portions of the population, how they were directly targeted by marketing, and then saturated with a physically addictive chemical (constant dopamine rushes that impact the brain in the case of smart phones and apps), well....I'm pretty sure the argument holds up for a large part of the population. Saying "just don't do that' just doens't work.
- anu7df 8y agoAfter buying two of Cal Newport's book, with an honest attempt to read it fully, I decided to never ever buy another one of his "creations". His books can be compressed to 2 pages without ANY loss of information. So much so, that I am left wondering, is this the quality of the work that comes out of Deep Work and such.