Real Life: Audio Edition Real Life Magazine

Beauty technologies are often judged by their results. Like other tech gadgets, however, their meaning lies as much in their designs, their histories, and the performance of their use. Beauty can be thought of as a process, not an end — the opposite of optimization. 
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Compared to earlier technologies of escape, parasociality offers something closer to direct interaction — a more powerful illusion of connection. Parasocial escapism is not so much a retreat from intimacy into consumerism, but a way of consuming intimacy as a product. 
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For those who came of age with the social internet, a long digital trail lingers behind one's every move. Memes that riff on the idea of "not being perceived" get at something deeper than they seem to: namely, a vision of the internet free from compulsory body awareness. 
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The "conspiracy wall" meme offers a cinematic interpretation of how conspiracies spread. However, it is ultimately misleading: those who subscribe to the kinds of theories peddled by Alex Jones and the like are not looking for logical explanations, but rather for permission to feel how they want to feel. 
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The U.S. Department of Commerce is developing an approach to defining people's trust in AI. But rather than define trustworthy systems with respect to their consequences or differential impacts, it focuses on how they are perceived by “users” (not whom they are used on) and does not bother to ask if the systems themselves are worth trusting. 
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Ted Kaczynski’s most significant contribution to the work of 20th century anti-industrial thinkers is the fact of the bombings. In refusing to grapple with that, contemporary apologists fail to capture a difficult truth: that the decision to uplift his message roughly vindicates his conviction that violence was an ugly but effective medium. 
Read more essays on living with technology at https://reallifemag.com and follow us on Twitter @_reallifemag.