Your Happiness Was Hacked
Why Tech Is Winning the Battle to Control Your Brain - and How to Fight Back
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Your Happiness Was Hacked
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Narrated by:
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Alex Salkever
About this listen
Do you feel in control of your life or enslaved by your devices? Have you risked your life texting and driving? Do you sympathize with a test group of students who endured painful shocks rather than be separated from their phones?
Digital technology is wonderful, but it's making us miserable, say former tech executives Vivek Wadhwa and Alex Salkever. There's a reason Apple CEO Tim Cook told the Guardian he won't let his nephew on social networks. We've become a nation of tech addicts - although it's not entirely our fault, and it is possible to enjoy the benefits of technology while taking our happiness back from the bots.
Wadhwa and Salkever describe the applied neuroscience techniques developers are using to make their products so insidiously habit-forming and, drawing on the latest research, detail the negative impact of technology in four key areas: love, work, play, and life.
There are dozens of vivid examples. Online dating apps like Tinder encourage users to evaluate people like products, leading to superficial, unsatisfying relationships. Workers check their email an average of 77 times a day, wreaking havoc on productivity. Children now spend nearly twice as much time playing inside with their screens as they do outside in the natural world - is it any wonder childhood obesity is a problem? The light from the devices so many of us look at right before we go to sleep suppresses the production of melatonin, a hormone vital for sleep and healthy organ functioning.
But there's a way out. Wadhwa and Salkever lay out simple common-sense ways to disrupt developers' efforts to get you hooked, including six simple questions to help you decide what role any given technology should play in your life. Ironically, they even describe some emerging technologies designed to give users more control.
Get back to making technology serve you, not the other way around!
©2018 Vivek Wadhwa and Alex Salkever (P)2018 Vivek Wadhwa and Alex SalkeverListeners also enjoyed...
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-
Story4 out of 5 stars 137
In 10 chapters, composed of 10 "commands", Rushkoff provides cyber enthusiasts and technophobes alike with the guidelines to navigate the digital new universe. In this spirited, accessible poetics of new media, Rushkoff picks up where Marshall McLuhan left off, helping listeners to recognize programming as the new literacy of the digital age - and as a template through which to see beyond social conventions and power structures that have vexed us for centuries.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Good book, but with some crazy ranting
- By Bjarne on 02-05-15
By: Douglas Rushkoff
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The Formula
- How Algorithms Solve all our Problems…and Create More
- By: Luke Dormehl
- Narrated by: Daniel Weyman
- Length: 7 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 447
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 389
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Story4 out of 5 stars 388
A fascinating guided tour of the complex, fast-moving, and influential world of algorithms - what they are, why they’re such powerful predictors of human behavior, and where they’re headed next. Algorithms exert an extraordinary level of influence on our everyday lives - from dating websites and financial trading floors, through to online retailing and internet searches - Google's search algorithm is now a more closely guarded commercial secret than the recipe for Coca-Cola.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Not about algorithms. Not an original book.
- By Landon Rordam on 12-02-14
By: Luke Dormehl
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Technically Wrong
- Sexist Apps, Biased Algorithms, and Other Threats of Toxic Tech
- By: Sara Wachter-Boettcher
- Narrated by: Andrea Emmes
- Length: 5 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 149
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 136
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 137
Buying groceries, tracking our health, finding a date: whatever we want to do, odds are that we can now do it online. But few of us ask how all these digital products are designed, or why. It's time we change that. Many of the services we rely on are full of oversights, biases, and downright ethical nightmares. Chatbots that harass women. Signup forms that fail anyone who's not straight. Social media sites that send peppy messages about dead relatives. Algorithms that put more black people behind bars.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Pretty good but not complete
- By Casey on 10-29-17
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The Filter Bubble
- What the Internet Is Hiding from You
- By: Eli Pariser
- Narrated by: Kirby Heyborne
- Length: 7 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 309
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 255
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Story4 out of 5 stars 251
In December 2009, Google began customizing its search results for each user. Instead of giving you the most broadly popular result, Google now tries to predict what you are most likely to click on. According to MoveOn.org board president Eli Pariser, Google's change in policy is symptomatic of the most significant shift to take place on the Web in recent years: the rise of personalization.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Now in the top 3 best books I've ever read
- By Brian Esserlieu on 05-26-11
By: Eli Pariser
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Becoming Facebook
- The 10 Challenges That Defined the Company That's Disrupting the World
- By: Mike Hoefflinger
- Narrated by: Nicholas Techosky
- Length: 7 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 88
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 72
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Story4 out of 5 stars 74
Facebook's founding is legend: In a Harvard dorm, wunderkind Mark Zuckerberg invented a new way to connect with friends...and the rest is history. But for the people who actually molded this great idea into a game-changing $300 billion company, the experience was far more tumultuous and uncertain than we might expect. Mike Hoefflinger was one of those Facebook insiders.
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3 out of 5 stars
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mainly a tribute to the success of FB
- By Anonymous User on 10-07-18
By: Mike Hoefflinger
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Do Nothing
- How to Break Away from Overworking, Overdoing, and Underliving
- By: Celeste Headlee
- Narrated by: Celeste Headlee
- Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 882
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 743
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 739
In Do Nothing, award-winning journalist Celeste Headlee illuminates a new path ahead, seeking to institute a global shift in our thinking so we can stop sabotaging our well-being, put work aside, and start living instead of doing. As it turns out, we’re searching for external solutions to an internal problem. We won’t find what we’re searching for in punishing diets, productivity apps, or the latest self-improvement schemes. Yet all is not lost - we just need to learn how to take time for ourselves, without agenda or profit, and redefine what is truly worthwhile.
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1 out of 5 stars
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I almost never leave reviews
- By keli wolfe on 03-03-22
By: Celeste Headlee
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Smarter Than You Think
- How Technology Is Changing Our Minds for the Better
- By: Clive Thompson
- Narrated by: Jeff Cummings
- Length: 10 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 103
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 82
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 84
In Smarter Than You Think, Thompson documents how every technological innovation - from the printing press to the telegraph - has provoked the very same anxieties that plague us today. We panic that life will never be the same, that our attentions are eroding, that culture is being trivialized. But as in the past, we adapt, learning to use the new and retaining what’s good of the old.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Title should be Getting Smarter Through Technology
- By A. Yoshida on 03-10-17
By: Clive Thompson
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Artificial Intelligence: 101 Things You Must Know Today About Our Future
- By: Lasse Rouhiainen
- Narrated by: Rodger Paxton
- Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 47
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 41
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Story4 out of 5 stars 42
Artificial intelligence is changing our world faster than we can imagine, and it will impact every area of our lives. And this is happening whether we like it or not. You might have heard that many jobs will be replaced by automation and robots, but did you also know that at the same time a huge number of new jobs will be created by AI? This book covers many fascinating and timely topics related to artificial intelligence, including: self-driving cars, robots, chatbots, and how AI will impact the job market, business processes, and entire industries, just to name a few.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Completely useless
- By Joe V on 03-29-19
By: Lasse Rouhiainen
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Thinking Machines
- The Quest for Artificial Intelligence - and Where It's Taking Us Next
- By: Luke Dormehl
- Narrated by: Gus Brown
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 61
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 51
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Story4 out of 5 stars 52
When most of us think about artificial intelligence, our minds go straight to cyborgs, robots, and sci-fi thrillers where machines take over the world. But the truth is that artificial intelligence is already among us. It exists in our smartphones, fitness trackers, and refrigerators that tell us when the milk will expire. In some ways the future people dreamed of at the World's Fair in the 1960s is already here. We're teaching our machines how to think like humans, and they're learning at an incredible rate.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Mostly platitudes with no depth
- By Gary on 03-24-17
By: Luke Dormehl
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Now You See It
- How the Brain Science of Attention Will Transform the Way We Live, Work, and Learn
- By: Cathy N. Davidson
- Narrated by: Laural Merlington
- Length: 13 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 112
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 91
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Story4 out of 5 stars 86
When Duke University gave free iPods to the freshman class in 2003, critics said they were wasting their money. Yet when the students in practically every discipline invented academic uses for the music players, suddenly the idea could be seen in a new light - as an innovative way to turn learning on its head. Using cutting-edge research on the brain, Cathy N. Davidson show how attention blindness has produced one of our society's greatest challenges.
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5 out of 5 stars
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3 Reasons to Read
- By Joshua Kim on 05-06-12
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Data-ism
- The Revolution Transforming Decision Making, Consumer Behavior, and Almost Everything Else
- By: Steve Lohr
- Narrated by: Steve Lohr
- Length: 6 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 117
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 100
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Story4 out of 5 stars 97
Coal, iron ore, and oil were the key productive assets that fueled the Industrial Revolution. Today data is the vital raw material of the information economy. The explosive abundance of this digital asset, more than doubling every two years, is creating a new world of opportunity and challenge. Data-ism is about this next phase, in which vast, Internet-scale data sets are used for discovery and prediction in virtually every field. It is a journey across this emerging world with people, illuminating narrative examples, and insights.
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4 out of 5 stars
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More business case than serious analysis
- By Godfried Gubbels on 06-03-15
By: Steve Lohr
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Friend of a Friend...
- Understanding the Hidden Networks That Can Transform Your Life and Your Career
- By: David Burkus
- Narrated by: P. J. Ochlan
- Length: 7 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 132
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 113
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 113
What if the best way to grow your network isn't by introducing yourself to strangers at cocktail parties, handing out business cards, or signing up for the latest online tool, but by developing a better understanding of the existing network that's already around you? We know that it's essential to reach out and build your network. But did you know that it's actually your weaker or former contacts who will be the most helpful to you? Or that many of our best efforts at meeting new people simply serve up the same old opportunities we already have?
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5 out of 5 stars
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The reality of human networks - How to Navigate, Create & Use them!
- By T.Om on 11-07-18
By: David Burkus
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Average is Over
- Powering America Beyond the Age of the Great Stagnation
- By: Tyler Cowen
- Narrated by: Andrew Garman
- Length: 8 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 380
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 309
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Story4 out of 5 stars 306
The widening gap between rich and poor means dealing with one big, uncomfortable truth: If you're not at the top, you're at the bottom. The global labor market is changing radically thanks to growth at the high end and the low. About three quarters of the jobs created in the United States since the great recession pay only a bit more than minimum wage. Still, the United States has more millionaires and billionaires than any country ever, and we continue to mint them.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Disappointing analysis of future
- By JKBart on 12-10-13
By: Tyler Cowen
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High-Tech, High-Touch Customer Service
- Inspire Timeless Loyalty in the Demanding New World of Social Commerce
- By: Micah Solomon
- Narrated by: Micah Solomon, Sean Pratt
- Length: 6 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 81
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 69
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Story4 out of 5 stars 70
In an age of Twitter, smartphones, and self-service kiosks, high-tech but still high-touch customer service is the answer. Today’s customers are a hard bunch to crack. Time-strapped, screen-addicted, value-savvy, and socially engaged, their expectations are tougher than ever for a business to keep up with. They are empowered like never before and expect businesses to respect that sense of empowerment - lashing out at those that don’t. Take heart: Old-fashioned customer service, fully retooled for today’s blistering pace and digitally connected reality, is what you need to build the kind of loyal customer base that allows you to survive - and thrive.
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5 out of 5 stars
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This is the book that cracks the code!
- By Nick Morgan on 04-30-13
By: Micah Solomon
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AI Superpowers
- China, Silicon Valley, and the New World Order
- By: Kai-Fu Lee
- Narrated by: Mikael Naramore
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 4,338
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,669
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,667
In AI Superpowers, Kai-fu Lee argues powerfully that because of these unprecedented developments in AI, dramatic changes will be happening much sooner than many of us expected. Indeed, as the US-Sino AI competition begins to heat up, Lee urges the US and China to both accept and to embrace the great responsibilities that come with significant technological power.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Compelled to listen at 2x speed
- By LEE on 09-26-18
By: Kai-Fu Lee
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The Procrastination Equation
- How to Stop Putting Things Off and Start Getting Stuff Done
- By: Piers Steel Ph.D.
- Narrated by: Pete Larkin
- Length: 7 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 262
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 178
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Story4 out of 5 stars 173
Using a mix of psychology, science, self-help, and a decade of groundbreaking research, Dr. Piers Steel, internationally recognized as the foremost authority on procrastination, explains why procrastination is dangerously on the rise and tells us how to overcome the destructive patterns that affect our health and happiness to create more positive lives.
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3 out of 5 stars
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A mixed bag with few concrete techniques
- By Sean on 04-05-11
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I'm Afraid Debbie From Marketing Has Left for the Day
- How to Use Behavioural Design to Create Change in the Real World
- By: Morten Münster
- Narrated by: David Bateson
- Length: 9 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 24
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 22
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 22
With more than 50,000 copies sold in Denmark, this book has been on the bestseller list since its publication in 2017. Barack Obama used a secret competitive advantage to win two elections. Companies such as Google, Amazon and Novo Nordisk use the same insight to stir up innovation, increase compliance, improve the work environment and sell more products. And successful management groups in the C20 index have started using it as their preferred strategy. But what kind of insight are we talking about here? The answer is - behavioural design.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great, practical summary of behaviour design
- By Elena on 06-01-21
By: Morten Münster
What listeners say about Your Happiness Was Hacked
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- JRC Systems
- 07-16-24
Younger generations are FF'ed
it's crazy how much we're manipulated for the almighty dollar by the controlling media outlets. Squirrel!
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- jingadad
- 01-11-19
A cautionary and relevant bellwether for our time
The authors provide a comprehensive overview of the ways data is collected via technology interaction and then used to manipulate behavior including influencing votes, targeting advertising, and fostering social isolation. The material is presented at an appropriate level for all levels of technical sophistication.
Some key points are repeated in different chapters, perhaps for emphasis, but the repetition got tedious at times. The social and psychological issues raised will definitely influence the listener to reconsider, limit, or discontinue interactions with social media and technology.
If you like non-fiction and want to learn more about the psycho-social impact of technology, I would highly recommend this book.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- James M. Regan
- 02-10-22
Lengthy
Good information that could’ve been summed into a five minute YouTube video. Alas, seems to be the tale of most books.
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