The Sad Little Fact (Jonah Winter and Peter Oswald)

 

When you put these kinds of things into a picture book, somehow it becomes so profound! While this is a book for kids, it might be a great one to use with older kids when talking about discerning AI or fake news or conspiracy theories. My guess is there will be a lot of people of a certain political persuasion who will NOT like this book. Another Goodreads reader said it should be paired with The Rooster Who Would Not Be Quiet. I'll definitely check that one out too!

Goodreads says:

In these days of fake news and lies masquerading as truth, comes a read-aloud to prove the truth is out there, just waiting to be discovered.

Follow a sad little fact who is locked away for telling the truth. In its underground prison, it meets other facts, all hidden away because they could not lie. Finally, with the help of a few skillful fact-finders, the facts are able to spread truth- something that ultimately can't be denied.

Though some people continue to ignore them, the facts are out in the world ready for anyone who wants to hear, because "a fact is a fact," and that's that.

[Un]Intentional (Doug Smith)

 

This was an audio book I decided to listen to while delivering flyers for the food bank drive (hours and hours of walking!) It was really good. He has a Biblical approach to the problems with screens. The people creating social media are very intentional at capturing our attention and as a result, we have started to live our lives in unintentional ways. I was quite persuaded by his argument that we have to take back the control and be in charge of our own lives and one of the key ways to do that is to break the screen addiction. I was quite persuaded by the author's approach to this topic. I know I'm much happier and contended when I spend time reading and listening to good podcasts and audio books. The pull of social media is really strong and easy to get sucked into as a time waster.

Goodreads says:

Most of us are unintentional with screens, but tech industry architects intentionally make their content distracting, manipulative, and addictive.

[Un]Intentional shows how our obsession with screens often takes us—unintentionally—to places we regret. It reveals the way many apps, games, and videos are designed to entice us to make decisions and form harmful habits that profit the creators at our expense.

[Un]Intentional helps you break free by guiding you through proven biblical practices to reclaim your thought life, make good decisions, and fulfill your God-given mission.

The Siren's Call (Chris Hayes)

 

This was kind of an adult version of The Anxious Generation (Jonathan Haidt) only, not so much anxiety....but the root of it all is the same...everything fighting for our attention.

In This Age of Information, attention is what everyone is fighting for. We need to be wise about what we give our attention to. He says instead of the information age, we should call it the attention age.  Ironically, I had a hard time following all the time I listened (he's REALLY thorough) but he does make some good points and interesting connections through history. His recommendation is to be really vigilant about how we spend our time and attention - more reading, more walking, more quiet! 

Five key take aways:

1. The Attention Economy Thrives on Distraction and Outrage – The stuff that makes people explode is what gets shared and therefore the majority of our focus. 

2. Our Ability to Focus Has Diminished – Shorter articles, shorter videos, shorter speeches. We have really lost our ability for deep thought, deep reading and deep conversation.

3. Toxic Attention-Seeking Behaviors Dominate Public Discourse – Meaning conversation is thwarted by trolls, conspiracy theories and whataboutism. People like Donald Trump have mastered the art of attracting attention at any cost, using positive or negative outrage to stay in the public consciousness.

4. Attention is Both Exploited and Inherently Human – Businesses are set up to make money off of our focus. Since humans seem to naturally seek attention for validation and connection. Social media exploits this. It makes us think we have connections - but truthfully, it's a shallow and unsatisfying connection and actually is just increasing loneliness and isolation.

5. Fixing this can be done on an individual level but may also require a social shirt – We can make changes in our own life like choosing to read print newspapers or using "dumb phones" as well as spending more time reading and discussing. We may also need systemic changes, like government regulation on social media and other platforms.

Goodreads says:

An Instant #1 New York Times Bestseller

From the New York Times bestselling author and MSNBC and podcast host, a powerful wide-angle reckoning with how the assault from attention capitalism on our minds and our hearts has reordered our politics and the very fabric of our society

“An ambitious analysis of how the trivial amusements offered by online life have degraded not only our selves but also our politics.” —New York Times

“Brilliant book… Reading it has made me change the way I work and think.”—Rachel Maddow

We all feel it—the distraction, the loss of focus, the addictive focus on the wrong things for too long. We bump into the zombies on their phones in the street, and sometimes they’re us. We stare in pity at the four people at the table in the restaurant, all on their phones, and then we feel the buzz in our pocket. Something has changed for most of human history, the boundary between public and private has been clear, at least in theory. Now, as Chris Hayes writes, “With the help of a few tech firms, we basically tore it down in about a decade.” Hayes argues that we are in the midst of an epoch-defining transition whose only parallel is what happened to labor in the nineteenth attention has become a commodified resource extracted from us, and from which we are increasingly alienated. The Sirens’ Call is the big-picture vision we urgently need to offer clarity and guidance.

Because there is a breaking point. Sirens are designed to compel us, and now they are going off in our bedrooms and kitchens at all hours of the day and night, doing the bidding of vast empires, the most valuable companies in history, built on harvesting human attention. As Hayes writes, “Now our deepest neurological structures, human evolutionary inheritances, and social impulses are in a habitat designed to prey upon, to cultivate, distort, or destroy that which most fundamentally makes us human.” The Sirens’ Call is the book that snaps everything into a single holistic framework so that we can wrest back control of our lives, our politics, and our future.

True or False (Cindy L. Otis)

 

This was a really timely read with an election going on in Canada right now. It was fascinating to read about how far back people have been sharing fake news. The first part of the book is a history and the rest is tips on how to not be tricked.

Before you share something on social media:

1. Read the whole article! Don't get sucked in by click bait headlines.

2. Even once you've read the article, don't go with your gut. Your gut isn't always the most reliable source because all of our personal biases are at play. Also, don't dismiss something as fake news simply because you don't agree with it. 

3. Check the URL for the article and check the domain name carefully. 

.com are for business. Are they trying to sell you something

.edu Students can use this as well as education organizaitons

.gov is usually a government organization

.org are usually non-profit, however, anyone can buy a .org domain

.biz, .info. .net .xyz etc These are for sites that don't fit somewhere else. Most legitimate news outlets would not use these kinds of domains

4. Check the date! Sometimes fake news starts with someone recycling old news.

5. Investigate the source. Where is this news coming from? Is it written by a journalist or a news organization? A company pushing a product? Or an individual? Most legitimate websites have an 'about us' section to tell you about the people in their organization.

6. Do an internet search on the sources background. If you cannot find anything about the source, be skeptical.

7. Sometimes fake news quotes people that don't actually exist. Google experts they quote.

8. Spelling mistakes are a big sign you have stumbled on fake news or a personal blog/website. Reputable outlets have multiple layers of editors

9. See if other news outlets are reporting on it. Sometimes fake news outlets have more than one website and will publish something across all their websites. Check outlets you're familiar with and are legit.

10. Identify who is telling the story and why. You should be able to click on the author's name and what else they have written. Is this someone who has an expertise on the topic discussed in the article?

11. Check the sources used. If there are not sources listed, be leery. If sources are anonymous, legitimate outlets will explain why they're anonymous.

12. Check out hyperlinks to other articles.

13. Ask yourself if there is more to the story. Fake news writers often copy parts of an article. If important context is missing, it is likely fake. 

14. Fake news often makes up quotes and attributes them to real people or copies quotes that they've previously said and they take it out of context to fit what they want to say.

15. Go to fact checking websites that debunk hoaxes and conspiracies. 

Goodreads says:

"If I could pick one book to hand to every teen—and adult—on earth, this is the one. True or False is accessible, thorough, and searingly honest, and we desperately needed it." —Becky Albertalli, author of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

"Though billed for young adults, this is a book that every adult should read." --The Washington Post

A former CIA analyst unveils the true history of fake news and gives readers tips on how to avoid falling victim to it in this highly designed informative YA nonfiction title.

"Fake news" is a term you've probably heard a lot in the last few years, but it's not a new phenomenon. From the ancient Egyptians to the French Revolution to Jack the Ripper and the founding fathers, fake news has been around as long as human civilization. But that doesn't mean that we should just give up on the idea of finding the truth.

In True or False, former CIA analyst Cindy Otis will take readers through the history and impact of misinformation over the centuries, sharing stories from the past and insights that readers today can gain from them. Then, she shares lessons learned in over a decade working for the CIA, including actionable tips on how to spot fake news, how to make sense of the information we receive each day, and, perhaps most importantly, how to understand and see past our own information biases, so that we can think critically about important issues and put events happening around us into context.

True or False includes a wealth of photo illustrations, informative inserts, and sidebars containing interesting facts and trivia sure to engage readers in critical thinking and analysis.

Digital Minimalism (Cal Newport)

 

I loved his points about the need to have walking time/quiet time where we don't have a radio or audio book or podcast or something like that in our ears. Our brains need quiet time. 

I also loved his point about the importance of scheduling in high quality leisure. It is too easy to fill out time with mindless social media scrolling. I need to schedule in the time for high quality leisure and NOT fall prey to what's easier. 

Goodreads says:

Minimalism is the art of knowing how much is just enough. Digital minimalism applies this idea to our personal technology. It's the key to living a focused life in an increasingly noisy world.

In this timely and enlightening book, the bestselling author of Deep Work introduces a philosophy for technology use that has already improved countless lives.

Digital minimalists are all around us. They're the calm, happy people who can hold long conversations without furtive glances at their phones. They can get lost in a good book, a woodworking project, or a leisurely morning run. They can have fun with friends and family without the obsessive urge to document the experience. They stay informed about the news of the day, but don't feel overwhelmed by it. They don't experience "fear of missing out" because they already know which activities provide them meaning and satisfaction.

Now, Newport gives us a name for this quiet movement, and makes a persuasive case for its urgency in our tech-saturated world. Common sense tips, like turning off notifications, or occasional rituals like observing a digital sabbath, don't go far enough in helping us take back control of our technological lives, and attempts to unplug completely are complicated by the demands of family, friends and work. What we need instead is a thoughtful method to decide what tools to use, for what purposes, and under what conditions.

Drawing on a diverse array of real-life examples, from Amish farmers to harried parents to Silicon Valley programmers, Newport identifies the common practices of digital minimalists and the ideas that underpin them. He shows how digital minimalists are rethinking their relationship to social media, rediscovering the pleasures of the offline world, and reconnecting with their inner selves through regular periods of solitude. He then shares strategies for integrating these practices into your life, starting with a thirty-day "digital declutter" process that has already helped thousands feel less overwhelmed and more in control.

Technology is intrinsically neither good nor bad. The key is using it to support your goals and values, rather than letting it use you. This book shows the way.

Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products (Nir Eyal)

 

I really enjoyed this book. It is interesting to read about how people get addicted to social media. His theories sync with all the habit books I have read. I didn't read this because I want to build some addictive product, but mostly because I wanted to learn about how they try to draw me in, and quite successfully do, it seems.

I have now read two of his books. After reading Indistractable, I turned off all the notifications on my laptop and on my phone. What a difference. I also signed up for FocusMate...which has been an interesting experience. Mostly positive! In this book I learned about an app called FitBod that I am really interested in. I think I might even pay for a subscription. He has good information! 

I just recently read an article that really stuck with me. It was about the things you may be doing in the morning that actually ruin your day. First on the list was getting on your phone first thing. Then in the first pages of this book I read that 79% of smartphone owners check their device within 15 minutes of waking up every morning. The thought struck me: if I don't check my phone first thing in the morning, I'm ahead of 79% of the population out there! Perhaps I'm too competitive, but things like this are very motivating to me. 

Goodreads says:

How do successful companies create products people can’t put down?

Why do some products capture widespread attention while others flop? What makes us engage with certain products out of sheer habit? Is there a pattern underlying how technologies hook us?

Nir Eyal answers these questions (and many more) by explaining the Hook Model—a four-step process embedded into the products of many successful companies to subtly encourage customer behavior. Through consecutive “hook cycles,” these products reach their ultimate goal of bringing users back again and again without depending on costly advertising or aggressive messaging.


Hooked is based on Eyal’s years of research, consulting, and practical experience. He wrote the book he wished had been available to him as a start-up founder—not abstract theory, but a how-to guide for building better products. Hooked is written for product managers, designers, marketers, start-up founders, and anyone who seeks to understand how products influence our behavior.


Eyal provides readers with:


• Practical insights to create user habits that stick.
• Actionable steps for building products people love.

• Fascinating examples from the iPhone to Twitter, Pinterest to the Bible App, and many other habit-forming products.

Blips on a Screen (Kate Hannigan)

 

I don't know if this could really be considered a biography, but I did read it as part of our biography unit. My class especially enjoyed learning about how video games started. The fact that the person was someone who survived the second world war was also very interesting to my class. 

Goodreads says:

An engaging picture book biography based on the incredible true story of a Jewish refugee who pioneered home video games and launched a worldwide obsession.

Do you ever wonder how video gaming was invented? What came before your PlayStation or Xbox? This is the story of Ralph Baer, a refugee from Nazi Germany, who used his skills--and a lot of ingenuity and persistence--to make life a little more fun.

Television was new when Ralph returned from serving in World War II, but he didn't settle for watching TV. He knew it could be even more fun if you could play with it. He tinkered and tested, got help and rejected, but with perseverance and skill, he made his vision come true! This is the inspiring story of a fearless inventor who made TV video games a reality.