James Hart on bitpunk.fm

Nice one, Josh. I think platforms are so into numbers because they’re concrete and scalable. (Bonus points: they can be attached to our concept of our own social worth!) Used to be, we had enough real-time experiences and relationships that we could see digital metrics in their proper context. Now, though, it’s often all we focus on, and so the numbers do double duty—they define meaning for themselves and for real life. (For example, sunsets only count if our photo of them gets a minimum number of likes; we’re sad if it doesn’t. The numbers can now redefine that memory for us.) I’m glad we’ve become more literate with respect to the dangers of online numbers, but platforms still play their games of course. All the more reason to get away from the screens for a healthy amount of time each day.