Note to Self

Note to Self

Note to Self is Back and We Start with The Big One: Kids and Screens

Apr 23 • 36 min

The tech show about being human returns with an all new season. Host Manoush Zomorodi kicks things off with the latest on the battle between kids and parents over their screens: do we know how kids are impacted by tech? Does it make them less empathetic?…

Note to Self is Back!

Apr 22 • 1 min

Note to Self helps you navigate the digital age by making sense of its most undervalued component: humans! With all new episodes coming every Tuesday, host Manoush Zomorodi investigates the very personal role technology plays in our lives and how we can…

Rice Bunny: The Me Too Movement Comes to China

Feb 22 • 26 min

This week we’re discussing government censorship in China, #metoo and cryptocurrency. Endless Thread is hosted by Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson, and is made by WBUR.

Dear (Data) Diary

Jun 25, 2018 • 26 min

Long-distance friends Giorgia Lupi and Stefanie Posavec spent a year tracking the little things in life. Thanks yous, coffees, complaints, street sounds. And each week, they turned their small-scale data collections into whimsical hand-drawn postcards. On…

A Different Kind of Streaking

Jun 20, 2018 • 17 min

With former Google designer Tristan Harris, who explains how far Silicon Valley will go to capture and control your eyeballs. And Snapchat artist CyreneQ, who makes her living drawing on her phone all day. For real. ———- For the next several weeks you’ll…

Your Metadata is Showing

Jun 7, 2018 • 20 min

We asked you guys to send us photos. Then we gave them to Andreas Weigend, veteran of Xerox Parc, former chief scientist at Amazon, to see what he could deduce. A lot, it turns out. A little Google image search, a little metadata, and we can find where…

Whose Bot Army Is Following Manoush?

May 16, 2018 • 19 min

Generic usernames, no photos, no tweets. This week, we investigate the dozens of mysterious accounts following Manoush on Twitter. Plus, what makes a good bot – and a bad one. ———- For the next several weeks you’ll hear the “Best of” Note to Self in your…

The Fourth Amendment Needs Your Attention

May 2, 2018 • 22 min

This week, the Supreme Court cases that defined privacy for the digital age. Because the founding fathers didn’t write the Bill of Rights with the internet in mind. ———- For the next several weeks you’ll hear the “Best of” Note to Self in your podcast…

Is the Opioid Epidemic a Tech Problem?

Apr 18, 2018 • 26 min

We visit the Dark Web, where you can get heroin, fentanyl and oxycontin shipped right to your door. This week, the link between online drug markets and America’s opioid crisis. ———- For the next several weeks you’ll hear the “Best of” Note to Self in your…

How To Have No Filter

Apr 4, 2018 • 19 min

Today, listener stories and tips: we wrap up our No Filter series of conversations about how women live online. From YouTube megastar Lele Pons to iconic artist Barbara Kruger, we heard a joyous mix of vulnerable confessions, utter defiance, and (for…

No Filter: Jasmyn Lawson

Apr 3, 2018 • 18 min

The woman behind some of your favorite gifs takes us to the future. See what being a woman on the web may look like. We couldn’t close out No Filter, our series on women owning it online, without profiling Jasmyn Lawson, former culture editor at Giphy.…

No Filter: Barbara Kruger

Mar 30, 2018 • 28 min

The iconic artist talks to Manoush about our curated selfies, owning a font, and why we all need likes. Plus, The Cut’s editor in chief Stella Bugbee. If you missed the other episodes of No Filter earlier this week, go back! Instagram megastar Lele Pons,…

No Filter: Christiane Amanpour

Mar 29, 2018 • 27 min

The CNN anchor talks to Manoush about sex, wearing a “uniform,” and staying profesh on air and online. Plus, Call Your Girlfriend co-host and Cut contributor Ann Friedman, who almost fell out of her ergonomic chair when she found out she’d be in the same…

No Filter: Amy Sherald

Mar 28, 2018 • 27 min

Her portrait of Michelle Obama went viral. Painter Amy Sherald dismisses the haters. “Some people want their poetry to rhyme.” Plus, Allison P. Davis, Senior Culture Writer at The Cut, on how picking Amy was like Michelle Obama choosing her own Instagram…

No Filter: Trace Lysette

Mar 27, 2018 • 22 min

The Transparent star talks to Manoush about the political nude selfie, her #metoo moment, and constructing her self online and IRL. Plus, how her life as a young trans woman prepared her to confront Jeffrey Tambor and live her truth. With Noreen Malone,…

No Filter: Lele Pons

Mar 26, 2018 • 21 min

Every day this week, a new episode of our series, No Filter: Women Owning It Online, with New York Magazine’s The Cut. Five conversations with badass women. Some old, some young. ALL have bent the internet to their will. And trust us, you don’t have to be…

Why We Need No Filter

Mar 21, 2018 • 24 min

We kick off our new series, No Filter: Women Owning It Online, with New York Magazine’s The Cut. Because since the #metoo movement, we’re all rethinking what it means to be a woman in the world. But what about what it means to be a woman on the web?…

My Digital Revolution

Mar 20, 2018 • 45 min

Stories of life online, told live. We teamed up with Generation Women, a monthly event where women from their 20s to their 80s share stories on a theme. For this episode, the theme is My Digital Revolution. Tales from the wellness editor at Teen Vogue,…

Am I Normal?

Mar 14, 2018 • 24 min

Mona Chalabi, data editor at the Guardian, takes the numb out of numbers. She joins Manoush to talk about stats versus stories, how data defines normal, and average testicle size. That one’s an interactive iPhone chart. For real. Her hand-drawn…

What to Think About Before Posting Family Photos

Feb 28, 2018 • 26 min

We asked how you share personal photos. Here’s what we learned from your 1,200 (!) answers. Psychologist Guy Winch joins Manoush to untangle our mixed posting emotions. Because our grams are complex. A trans listener is thankful his parents didn’t post…

Have Dating Apps Killed Romance?

Feb 14, 2018 • 24 min

Real OKCupid message: “Hi, good evening, nice photos. You are not fat.” It’s rough on dating apps. Can romance survive? Eric Klinenberg wrote Modern Romance with Aziz Ansari. This week, he joins Manoush to make the case that dating apps have killed…

Help Us Collect Political Ads on Facebook

Feb 7, 2018 • 12 min

Let’s build a database of political Facebook ads. Just in case someone needs to check on them later. Like, say, if the Russians bought thousands of ads to sway an election. Manoush’s privacy girlfriend, ProPublica’s Julia Angwin, is back with a challenge…

Meet an Online Emotional Escort

Feb 6, 2018 • 26 min

We all need someone to tell (or text) our stories to. Even if they’re paid to text back. This week, Manoush meets an Invisible Girlfriend, earning pennies a message to create fake love. And an utterly wonderful man using the service for an entirely valid…

How to Find the Right Amount of Screen Time

Jan 31, 2018 • 24 min

Screen time is a daily battle. Between kids and parents, between ourselves and our better judgment. But maybe it doesn’t have to be. There is a better way. Manoush gets the answers from Anya Kamenetz, NPR education correspondent and author of the new…

Dear Manoush: The Advice Episode

Jan 17, 2018 • 31 min

Is there a secret solution to information overload? Can random accounts ever truly be erased? How do I stay connected if I break up with social media? It’s Manoush’s brain, distilled into actionable pearls of wisdom. Plus, meet the woman behind the Note…

Dan Harris Knows All Your Excuses for Not Meditating

Jan 3, 2018 • 27 min

People have a lot of excuses for not meditating. Eight, in fact. Dan Harris knows them all. And he can help. ———- Subscribe to our Wednesday morning newsletter for info on new episodes, our must-reads, and the news you need to get just a little geeky.…

Search Inside Yourself For Peace and Joy

Dec 27, 2017 • 24 min

Let’s create some calm as this year ends. It all starts with one deep breath, led by Google employee 107. This week, we revisit Manoush’s lovely interview with Chade-Meng Tan, who retired at 44 to meditate and search for world peace. Because these days,…

Look Into the Future with Black Mirror

Dec 20, 2017 • 37 min

The creators of the Netflix hit Black Mirror on predicting the future, Twitter as a massive role-playing game, and nostalgia for meh. As season four of the Emmy-award-winning show approaches, we revisit Manoush’s conversation with show creators Charlie…

Alexa, Is Amazon Taking Over The World?

Dec 13, 2017 • 23 min

The tradeoffs we don’t see when we shop on Amazon. Why the answer isn’t to cancel your Prime. And yes, I bring Alexa’s new camera into my bedroom. ———- Subscribe to our Wednesday morning newsletter for info on new episodes, our must-reads, and the news…

“You Deserve to Die” and Other Fun Conversation Starters

Dec 6, 2017 • 28 min

People say mean things to Dylan Marron online. He takes that as an invitation to call them up and make friends. This week, the benefits of talking to our haters, and why it’s good for the country as well as the soul. ———- Subscribe to our Wednesday…

Let’s Check The Tape

Nov 29, 2017 • 27 min

An incomplete list of the objects listening to us: Siri. Alexa. Google Home. With so many recordings, the transcribed life isn’t far off. For better or for worse. This week, one intrepid woman records every minute of her life for three days. She captured…

The Lawsuit that Could Shine a Light on Cambridge Analytica

Nov 22, 2017 • 26 min

How a single American’s quest for his own digital marketing profile may show us all how our data travels the world. And may even end up in the hands of foreign governments. ———- Subscribe to our Wednesday morning newsletter for info on new episodes, our…

Revisiting Cambridge Analytica’s Role in the Presidential Election

Nov 21, 2017 • 26 min

From March, the first chapter in our look at Cambridge Analytica. We asked the controversial digital marketing firm what services they provided for Trump. And experimented with our own psychometric profiles. Listen to our latest episode to learn about the…

It’s Not Over Nyet

Nov 15, 2017 • 17 min

More spy terms explained, reasonable/sensible coping strategies for when democracy is under threat, and nyet more puns. This week: how to spot a botnet. How psychometrics sells sneakers - and worldviews. And how to make sure you’re not the useful idiot.…

Spy Terms of the Internyet

Nov 8, 2017 • 14 min

Russian spy tactics have gotten an upgrade since the Cold War. This week how they work now: bad actors, active measures, advanced persistent threats. Cyberwar has its own vocabulary. So we got ourselves a tutor. Join Manoush and information warfare expert…

Nyet Just a Conspiracy Theory?

Nov 1, 2017 • 21 min

If talking about democracy getting hacked feels like old news, it’s time to take a fresh look. This week, we separate fear from facts with Noah Shachtman and Spencer Ackerman of the Daily Beast. Good thing they’re funny guys, or this could get really dark.

Where Do I Go Now?

Oct 25, 2017 • 18 min

There was a time humans were guided by stars, not satellite. Now you can beam into robots, or turn on GPS. But when we put ourselves on autopilot we may lose our minds. This week, Manoush outsources her body to a telepresence robot. And finds out what GPS…

Play Video Games for Your Mental Health

Oct 18, 2017 • 28 min

You judge the person playing Candy Crush. Even when it’s you. But that mental fist pump from leveling up has real value. How to stop judging and use games for a strategic reset. With game designer and futurist Jane McGonigal, author of SuperBetter and…

Talking to Myself

Oct 11, 2017 • 22 min

The Replika app chats with you, learns from you, and reflects you back. It starts to become you. And your AI self gets pretty real. Journalist Mike Murphy used the app to create his mini-me, and wrote about it for Quartz. After months of talking to…

I Didn’t See Your Text

Oct 4, 2017 • 15 min

And other fibs we tell our friends, family and lovers. Psychotherapist Esther Perel is back to call us on our bullsh*t. This is the second of our two-parter on how our phones create such intimacy and such distance. Esther’s new book is The State of…

Ghosting, Simmering and Icing with Esther Perel

Sep 27, 2017 • 24 min

Remember being dumped? Now, technology lets us delay, deflect, and disappear. Renowned pyschotherapist Esther Perel is here to help us fall in love better. Esther is the bestselling author of Mating in Captivity and the host of the podcast Where Should We…

Forty Years of Coding In a Man’s World

Sep 20, 2017 • 17 min

Silicon Valley is still a man’s world. And Ellen Ullman, who started programming in 1978, thinks it’s high time for the rest of us to infiltrate. Ellen’s new book, Life in Code, is full of great and awful stories. Her love of the work. The joys of hunting…

Eavesdropping On Epiphany

Sep 13, 2017 • 18 min

José Cruz is a college student, research scientist, and phone power-user. He spent 6 hours in one day on his screen. So he wanted to cut back, make more time for research, reading, and mental drift. And he recorded himself doing it. It was not easy. There…

Attention Please

Sep 5, 2017 • 17 min

We deleted, we unplugged, we took walks. We made choices. We made time. Two years later, we catch up with some of the original Bored and Brilliant participants - some of the 20,000 people who joined our 2015 experiment. Today, that experiment is a book,…

Refresh Your Mind

Sep 4, 2017 • 7 min

To encourage you to #GetBored and find brilliance, we made a weird earworm. It’s an interview about the history of boredom… sound-designed to help you space out. A brain nap. With historian Peter Toohey, and some very soothing, meditative music.

Bonus: Behind the Scenes at TED

Aug 15, 2017 • 7 min

A surprise bonus, because Manoush’s TED talk is online now (!) and she has some behind-the-scenes memories to share from the main stage. To celebrate - and vent (in a good way).

Save the Planet! Part 1: I’m Gonna Take My Clothes Off

Aug 2, 2017 • 9 min

This week, five episodes for five ways we can do better by the planet. First: warm up, strip down. Rethink the air conditioner. With David Biello, science curator for TED.

Save the Planet! Part 2: Whale Poop

Aug 2, 2017 • 10 min

Giant whale turds. A permanent shade over the sun. One is flashier, but that’s the danger of it. This is poopier oceans vs. the climate quick fix. The last episode in our five-part series, with TED science curator David Biello.

Save the Planet! Part 3: Super Powered Sweet Corn

Aug 2, 2017 • 9 min

We’ve made our plants bigger, juicier, and sturdier. Now can we make them better at sucking CO2? And should we? The last episode in our five-part series, with TED science curator David Biello.

Save the Planet! Part 4: Suck It

Aug 2, 2017 • 8 min

First, stick a giant vacuum cleaner onto a smokestack. Inhale the exhaust. Then what? The last episode in our five-part series, with TED science curator David Biello.

Save the Planet! Part 5: Do Over?

Aug 2, 2017 • 9 min

We were going to have to talk about it eventually. No, not Elon Musk (although yes, he does come up). Mars. Planet B. The last episode in our five-part series, with TED science curator David Biello.

Escape From Yahoo!

Jul 26, 2017 • 18 min

It’s 2017, and Manoush still has a Yahoo account. Is her exit strategy an encrypted file in Switzerland? This week, the tech loyalties we keep past their expiration date, and how to move on - technically and emotionally.

Your Mailman Is a Drug Dealer. He Just Doesn’t Know It.

Jul 19, 2017 • 27 min

We visit the Dark Web, where you can get heroin, fentanyl and oxycontin shipped right to your door. This week, we stress out our IT department with our searches and talk to author Nick Bilton about the Silk Road, online drug markets, and the opioid crisis…

Should We Post Photos of Our Kids Online?

Jul 12, 2017 • 23 min

A third of kids are online before they’re even born, thanks to sonogram images posted to Facebook. Is there a downside to all the kid photos we share? This week, we revisit a conversation with Hillary Frank, host of the Longest Shortest Time. And we want…

When Was the Last Time You Peed Without Your Phone?

Jul 5, 2017 • 16 min

Yeah, it’s been a while for us too. So let’s reset. It’s the Bored and Brilliant bootcamp: three quick challenges to make space for brilliance in our accelerating world. Maybe you’ve heard this episode before, but even if you have, a boredom refresher…

We’ve Gained So Much With the iPhone. What Have We Lost?

Jun 28, 2017 • 23 min

Address books, maps, keys. Your Walkman, your datebook. All wiped out by your phone. Along with eye contact and boredom. This week, as the iPhone turns 10, we assess our most enduring love affair: the relationship between us and our devices. With tech…

We See Ourselves in Black Mirror

Jun 21, 2017 • 35 min

Netflix’s Black Mirror is a tweaked reflection of technology’s worst consequences - what show creator Charlie Brooker calls a “sarcastic version of the present.’ This week, Brooker and executive producer Annabel Jones join us for a cheerfully dystopian…

Father’s Day Bonus: Dad As the Lead Parent

Jun 18, 2017 • 34 min

This Father’s Day, one dad on his role as lead parent, and what it means for his career, psyche, and marriage. With Andrew Moravcsik, an accomplished author, academic, and husband to Anne-Marie Slaughter (yeah, the one who literally wrote the book on…

What Sen. Wyden Does When He’s Not Questioning Comey or Sessions

Jun 14, 2017 • 17 min

Besides investigating Russian election interference, Sen. Wyden is tackling government hacking, email surveillance, border device searches, and fighting for your rights online. How did a basketball-playing former gerontologist become your digital champion…

Preview: Sen. Ron Wyden of the Senate Intelligence Committee

Jun 8, 2017 • 2 min

Today, Sen. Wyden hears testimony from former FBI Director James Comey. Next week, he’ll be here on Note to Self. Here’s a sneak peek at our chat about cybersecurity and your digital rights.

Meet the Humans Who Protect Your Eyes

Jun 7, 2017 • 23 min

Rochelle LaPlante keeps horrifying images off the internet, screening photos for four cents a click. Content moderators do an important job. So why don’t employers like Facebook hold them up as heroes? Support Note to Self by becoming a member today at…

What We Learned from Grandpa’s FBI File

May 31, 2017 • 19 min

Our producer discovered an FBI file on her grandfather. Back then, the big threat was communists. Today, it’s terrorists, Occupy and BLM. Maybe even you. And the surveillance methods are a lot less analog. Support Note to Self by becoming a member today…

Ed Snowden Says a ‘Very Very Dark Future’ Is Not Inevitable

May 17, 2017 • 25 min

With all the news of leaks, national security, and hacking, who better to talk to than Ed Snowden? So yes, Manoush and Ed tackle the NSA, privacy, and ransomware. But also identity, the self, and the “quantified spiderweb of all our worst decisions.” It’s…

Wait, What IS Reality? We Investigate.

May 16, 2017 • 21 min

Who among us hasn’t wondered, maybe in a stoned haze, if the colors you see aren’t even the same colors that I see? How do we know we’re even in the same reality, man? That’s what the world has been feeling like, except not so chill. This week, we dissect…

Taking the Lead Episode 1: The Pain Point

May 14, 2017 • 27 min

This Mother’s Day, a surprise. To celebrate working moms, we’re re-releasing all four episodes of our award-winning series, Taking the Lead. The story of two Brooklyn women and their tech idea to help harried working mothers - like themselves. Start here,…

Taking the Lead Episode 2: The Paradox

May 14, 2017 • 29 min

Episode two of Mother’s Day series is The Paradox. Rachael and Leslie test a prototype of their app on one very eager participant: Manoush. And they run into an ironic challenge. Turns out, it’s tough to build a work/life balance app without one.

Taking the Lead Episode 3: The Pressure

May 14, 2017 • 32 min

Faced with financial barriers, Rachael and Leslie join a startup accelerator. But while honing their pitch, different goals emerge. Rachael is focused on social change, while Leslie wants to create a giant woman-led company.

Taking the Lead Episode 4: The Partnership

May 14, 2017 • 35 min

The last episode in our Mother’s Day special. Rachael Ellison and Leslie Ali Walker face difficult choices: Should they drop the feminist mission behind the company when they make their pitch to investors? Does Rachael need to give up entrepreneurship so…

Why Are So Many Bots Following Manoush?

May 10, 2017 • 20 min

Bot armies are taking aim at our democracies, spreading garbage on Twitter from last November to Brexit to this weekend’s French election. But what do they want with Manoush? Support Note to Self by becoming a member today at NotetoSelfRadio.org/donate.

Parents Just Don’t Understand, Tech Edition

May 3, 2017 • 23 min

Uh, mom, the eggplant emoji is not about food. The crying-laughing emoji is not appropriate for funerals. And dad, just texting ‘K’ is super passive-aggressive. This week, a real live therapist tackles your intergenerational tech dilemmas. And we try to…

AI Learns from Us. So It Learns Bias.

Apr 26, 2017 • 18 min

We count on robots to do more and more stuff. Drive cars, water crops, diagnose disease. What happens when the robots are racist? This week, a look back at one terrible AI mistake. Support Note to Self by becoming a member today at…

Revealing Selfies. Not Like That.

Apr 19, 2017 • 20 min

Your selfies are sharing way more than your smiling face. They’re full of data. Which is being used by stores. And banks. And police. And, well, everyone. This week, you sent us your photos. We gave them to data scientist Andreas Weigend, to see what he…

Spring Cleaning for the Mind

Apr 12, 2017 • 17 min

Information overload has reached an all time high. Is there a way to stay-up-to-date without losing your mind? Yes. We call it “single-tasking.” Here’s a reminder of what multi-tasking does to your brain plus a proven way to find focus. Support Note to…

Cucked: Defining Manhood the Alt-Right Way

Apr 5, 2017 • 25 min

How one revolting, racist, sexist word emerged from the dark corners of 4chan and Reddit. And why we should care. With slang lexicographer Jonathon Green, writer Dana Schwartz of the Observer, and Derek Thompson of the Atlantic. Support Note to Self by…

Deep-Dark-Data-Driven Politics

Mar 29, 2017 • 26 min

The story goes: the Trump campaign hired consultants called Cambridge Analytica. Cambridge uses data to target voters’ personalities and emotions. Trump wins. But it’s not so simple. Did the Trump campaign have a secret sauce? Or just more ketchup? This…

The Man Who Invented Facebook Ad Tracking Is Not Sorry

Mar 22, 2017 • 20 min

After building the social network’s ad system, Antonio García Martínez tried to set his career on fire with a tell-all. An inside view on Face-versaries, terrifying emails from Zuck, and the cult of changing the world. Turns out, it takes a lot to get…

Government Secrets Worth Leaking… or Keeping?

Mar 15, 2017 • 26 min

So, the C.I.A. has a back door to your phone. At least, according to the Vault 7 data dump from WikiLeaks. This week, when are these tactics really making our lives safer? Support Note to Self by becoming a member today at NotetoSelfRadio.org/donate.

Will You Do a Snapchat Streak With Me?

Mar 8, 2017 • 18 min

A little yellow ghost has joined Manoush’s home screen. This week, Note to Self takes the plunge into Snapchat. Where we find lots of opportunities for passive aggression, obligation, and shade. And that’s not a bug. It’s a feature. With designer Tristan…

Zapping Your Brain To Bliss

Mar 1, 2017 • 19 min

Can brain stimulation tech replace your glass of wine? Or your joint? We strap a digital potato chip to our heads, and zap our brains with electricity, in the name of science. And we accidentally over-chill. Support Note to Self by becoming a member today…

Can Your Phone Make You Better In Bed?

Feb 22, 2017 • 23 min

No, not by watching porn. By sharing with your partner what turns you on, and weirds you out. Through an app. Kaitlin Prest of The Heart podcast recruits two couples to test drive the Pls Pls Me app. And talk about awkward conversations, making out, and…

Privacy, Data Survivalism and a New Tech Ethics

Feb 21, 2017 • 28 min

Technologist Anil Dash on mistakes he’s made, and the new ethics of tech. Journalist Julia Angwin on why we’re all losing, and her strategies as a privacy prepper. Much laughter ensues. Note to Self nerds out, live from WNYC’s Greene Space. Support Note…

Privacy Paradox: Results Show

Feb 15, 2017 • 31 min

Tens of thousands of people did the Privacy Paradox challenge. And the results are in. Seven percent of you said you want to give up. (Sorry. Don’t!) Seventy percent of you want to push for big change. (Hooray! Do.) And we have ideas. We’ll hear from…

Day 5: Your Personal Terms of Service

Feb 10, 2017 • 12 min

The last day of the Privacy Paradox challenge. We’ll draw some conclusions from this week—and some boundaries for the future. With Sir Tim Berners-Lee, who invented a little something called the World Wide Web. He has a big idea for a more secure, more…

Day 4: Fifteen Minutes of Anonymity

Feb 9, 2017 • 11 min

It’s day four of the Privacy Paradox challenge. We talk to Elan Gale, executive producer of The Bachelor, about how we perform for social media, and how we change when we know we’re being watched. Also, the dangers of drunk tweeting. And Stanford…

Day 3: Something To Hide

Feb 8, 2017 • 11 min

It’s day three of Note to Self’s Privacy Paradox challenge. There are the things you know you share online: selfies, emails, Facebook posts. But there is so. much. more. Marketers are mining the words you use, your tone and sentence length, to profile…

Day 2: The Search For Your Identity

Feb 7, 2017 • 15 min

It’s the second day of the Privacy Paradox challenge. You know - as you move across the web, clicking and searching and liking, you’re being tracked. You might use an ad blocker. Or a do-not-track plug-in. But you’re still leaving tiny traces everywhere.…

Day 1: What Your Phone Knows

Feb 6, 2017 • 11 min

Your Privacy Paradox challenges start today. What does your phone know about you? Too much, probably. And it’s even more than you think. Many apps track your location, even when you’re not using them. Others listen in via your microphone, even when you’re…

Introducing: The Privacy Paradox

Jan 30, 2017 • 23 min

We want control of our personal information. But even when risks to our data are high, we sign up for services and apps. We download, click, and post without being sure where that data ends up. The Privacy Paradox, Note to Self’s latest interactive…

Saving Big Data From Itself

Jan 25, 2017 • 20 min

There’s so much potential. With big data, researchers can smooth social interactions and create better cities. Maybe cure cancer, and slow climate change. But the data has to come from somewhere. And that somewhere is us. Support Note to Self by becoming…

The Bookie, The Phone Booth, and The FBI

Jan 18, 2017 • 23 min

The Fourth Amendment doesn’t mention privacy once. But those 54 little words are a crucial battleground in today’s fight over our digital rights. This week, Note to Self gets in our time machine, back to the court cases that brought privacy from parchment…

The Four Tendencies: How to Feed Good Habits

Jan 11, 2017 • 17 min

Are you an upholder, a questioner, an obliger or a rebel? Gretchen Rubin of the Happier podcast has identified four ways that people respond to expectations - the Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw of habit change, if you will. Figuring out…

New Year. Same Old You.

Jan 4, 2017 • 26 min

Can we really start fresh when our every step, nap, and calorie are measured? If even a hard-core coder fails at a tech-enabled diet, maybe we need a new way to optimize our quantified selves. Support Note to Self by becoming a member today at…

Go Ahead. Miss Out.

Dec 28, 2016 • 18 min

FOMO is real. And it’s amplified during the holiday season when party glam shots and scrumptious food pics are everywhere. So let’s embrace a little JOMO (Joy of Missing Out) instead. Support Note to Self by becoming a member today at…

Messages From the Beyond

Dec 21, 2016 • 28 min

Ginger Johnson is battling cancer. She has three children and wants to stay in their lives after she’s gone. So she’s using a service called Safe Beyond that helps her make messages and then schedule them for delivery in the future. But her kids aren’t…

Meet the Textalyzer… and Our Next Big Project

Dec 14, 2016 • 19 min

If police smell booze on your breath behind the wheel, you’ll be asked to blow into a breathalyzer. But if they notice distracted driving, how do they measure clicks, taps and swipes? Plus, a sneak peek at Note to Self’s next big listener project. Support…

Distracted Is the New Drunk

Dec 7, 2016 • 16 min

Back in the ‘90s, health researchers planted stories against drunk driving on primetime shows. Growing Pains even killed off Matthew Perry in a crash. Now, the challenge is getting people to stop texting on the road. But we don’t watch TV like we used to.…