Nick Carr has written a note on the automation of social life. It’s hard not to find his writing provocative. Generally, his arguments boil down to some sort of reductio ad absurdum. He pushes the apparent logic behind some phenomenon until it no longer makes sense.
In this case, he wonders whether it makes sense to automate your social life. Is it good for it to be more efficient? Well, in the extreme, not always. For instance, imagine trying to run your marriage or time with your kids on an efficiency model.
However, efficiency is great for that quick call to let someone know you have re-routed and will be ten minutes late. It’s great for sharing photos. So, while I won’t run my honeymoon on an automated efficiency model, it’s nice for the day-to-day humdrum.
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