Choose Boring Technology

The Computer for the 21st Century

one more final edit from me to go The Computer for the 21st Century

Growing up in the online world: a national consultation

We are consulting on further measures to prepare children for the future in an age of rapid technological change. This includes potential age restrictions on social media and other services such as gaming sites and AI chatbots, restrictions on addictive design features and risky functionalities, and better support for parents and families.

36 important life and work lessons a top tech executive learned before turning 30

The days are long but the decades are short.

Technology without Industry

A home for poorly researched ideas that I find myself repeating a lot anyway

A Short History Of The Internet

I am not by any measure old unless you ask my nieces, but I remember when we had no internet and my niece's minds boggle at that, they think I must be ancient. How could you survive without the internet they asked me, in their minds the concept of no internet is pretty much science fiction and the thought of not having internet access scares them.

How to keep learning in the age of LLMs | Oğuzhan Olguncu

Notes on how I keep learning as a programmer in the age of LLMs

Maybe you should learn something

You can learn new things. Pixel art, touch typing, 3d modelling, music, calligraphy, wood working, knitting, a language. Whatever is practical and calls to you, you can learn. In the long term, learning new things is fun and makes life richer in ways you can’t even imagine, and it’s a time investment that will pay dividends for life as these skills never really go away. There are even social aspects, as you’ll quite literally become a more interesting person to talk to.

12 Things Everyone Should Understand About Tech

Tech is more important than ever, deeply affecting culture, politics and society. Given all the time we spend with our gadgets and apps…

Childhood and Education #20: Phones and Screens

We have a respite, so I thought I’d tackle various thoughts on children, phones and screens.

I Started Programming When I Was 7. I'm 50 Now, and the Thing I Loved Has Changed | James Randall

I still love developing but the shifts that AI have brought are tectonic and are forcing me to re-evaluate my own relationship to building things

No need to stop the 'brain rot': Modern kids aren't less intelligent | New Scientist

The idea that the rise of tech means today's young people are less intelligent than previous generations is rife – but wrong, says neuroscientist Dean Burnett

Topics — Real Life

ABOUT TOPICS: Since we began Real Life in the summer of 2016, we’ve run many essays across a range of topics, with a particular focus on the personal and cultural implications of living with technology. Our aim is not to track the news cycle so much as the longstanding social issues that inform and transcend it. We wanted to make it easier to read and explore Real Life beyond our chronological archive, so we’ve created these Topics to gather in one place the work we’ve published on some key themes. More Topics will be added to this page over time.

100 years of whatever this will be

What if all these weird tech trends actually add up to something? Last time, we explored why various bits of trendy technology are, in my o...

Raiza Martin on Twitter / X

If you're 13 right now here's what you should do:Spend all your time reading philosophy, sci fi, poetry, and history. Go to museums and look at every damn thing in there. Watch all the classic films and maybe every single movie made in the 90s. Learn how to write prose,… https://t.co/ut1ochS61a— Raiza Martin (@raizamrtn) November 11, 2025

Our Longing for Inconvenience

People are pining for old technologies—CD players, VCRs, Walkmans. What’s behind our longing for inconvenience?