the difference between ‘craft’ and ‘success’

The way I see it, there are two paths to get work done. In Path 1, I am anxious and agitated. I have tunnel vision. I am self-focused. There’s a constant heaviness in my chest and a lump in my throat. I am doing-doing-doing, like a hamster in a wheel running a race to nowhere. […]

The Future of Humanity: Losing and finding ourselves again

We live in some interesting times. Digital technologies effortlessly connect us to strangers and loved ones all over the world. Artificial intelligence and automation is becoming smarter and more capable, reducing the need for human labor or even human-to-human interaction. Planet Earth is teetering on crisis – climate change threatening famine, war, natural disasters and […]

What if people run out of things to do? Automation, Basic Income and the “Purpose” problem

Imagine this. Your basic expenses are covered. You don’t need to work anymore. You have Monday to Friday free. Nowhere you need to be. Nothing you need to do. You can live (reasonably) comfortably. You have all the time in the world. Now what? With the rise of automation and technological advances, some researchers predict […]

Addictive technologies and the race for our attention

Let me start with a confession. A (not-so) well-kept secret. In the five years since I’ve started this blog, this is the first post I’ve written about technology. The very first. This might make me a terrible computer scientist. Or it might make me a really focused one. Let me explain. Researcher Dr. Eric Baumer […]

A beautiful, honest mess

I’ve been pondering the nature of spaces. How their design can make us feel the way we feel, and the subtle ways our environments can impact what we do and how we interact with each other and ourselves. Take where I’m at right now. A Starbucks in Calgary, Canada. It’s -20°C outside, cold wind and […]

The next right thing

It has been one month since I’ve moved from Switzerland to Germany. A month since I defended my PhD dissertation on cultural barriers in globally distributed teams, and how the computer-mediated technologies we use can reveal invisible cultural values and cultural differences (see my 20 minute defence presentation here). The PhD feels close, yet far […]

This creative life

Doing a PhD (or any kind of creative endeavour, really) is like signing up for a continual ass-kicking. Yup, you’re gonna get your butt whomped. Hard. You pour your heart, your ideas, your energy and your time into this project which spans years, which frankly, in the end, may or may not pan out the […]

Hot off the press! The PhD student revealed

The PhD student is a mysterious breed. Seemingly normal on the outside, the PhD student functions effectively in daily life, though secretly suffers from a variety of odd and somewhat peculiar symptoms, including (but not limited) to the following: 1) Short-lived waves of euphoria (e.g. “Hooooly cow, I’m brilliant!!”), followed by an all-encompassing self-doubt and loathing (e.g. “What is this crap?!! What idiot came […]

My first year abroad

I’ve been living in Zurich for a little over a year now. Since I’m a big fan of reflection upon one’s own life, given this momentous occasion, I thought I’d share some of my favourite memories and experiences in my first year abroad. On my first night in Zurich, I remember getting into bed, turning […]

Synthesizing “happiness”

Do you ever wonder why you’re here? What the purpose and meaning of life is? Whoa! Too deep, I haven’t even had my morning coffee yet! Alright, so I don’t even drink coffee, but I do ponder these philosophical questions every once in a while. The same internal answer always seems to appear: “Well, I […]