There's nothing wrong with talking out loud in public, but there is something wrong with the government sucking up all those utter instances in a database just in case they maybe want to bust you in five years. Clive Thompson talkyearbust share on social
The amount of writing that people do online is astonishing, and historically unprecedented. Clive Thompson historicallyunprecedentedonline Change image and share on social
Transactive memory works best when you have a sense of how your partners' minds work - where they're strong, where they're weak, where their biases lie. I can judge that for people close to me. But it's harder with digital tools, particularly search engines. Clive Thompson mindlieweak share on social
America has always had tinkerers, including just about any teenager who ever hot-rodded a Camaro. Clive Thompson americatinkerercamaro Change image and share on social
We're dumber and less cognitively nimble if we're not around other people - and, now, other machines. Clive Thompson nimblemachinecognitively Change image and share on social
Personally, I'd love to see more social media firms develop business models that aren't reliant on advertising. If you're a social media firm selling ads, your goal is to get people to interrupt what they're doing all day long so they come and stare at your service as much as possible. Clive Thompson socialreliantstare share on social
More than any other modern tool, computers are a total mystery to their users. Most people never open them up to fix them or to see how they work. Clive Thompson workmysterymodern Change image and share on social
Truly huge artistic collaboration on the Internet seems to work only if the gang has a well-defined objective. Clive Thompson objectiveganghuge Change image and share on social
I don't think the Internet has replaced cities in any significant way, nor really could it. Cities are dynamic - and deeply seductive for the people who flock there - because they broker all sorts of fantastic and useful connections, cultural and economic and social. Clive Thompson economicdynamicseductive share on social
Plays are frequently infected with ideas that came from actors or even sound engineers. Some Shakespeare scholars wonder whether some of the Bard's lines came from onstage improvisations by actors. Clive Thompson playscholarfrequently Change image and share on social