My research investigates the future of knowledge representation and creative work aided by machine understanding of language . I prototype software interfaces that help us become clearer thinkers and more prolific dreamers.
Visit thesephist.com → RSS feedOn Hacker News Aug 2020 – Jul 2023
Tools & Productivity 4Software Engineering 3Life, Learning & Writing 3Web & Frontend 2Systems & Performance 1Programming Languages 1
While I was there, I thought a lot about tools – mechanical tools, software tools, tools that last, and tools that are fragile. The somber snow-covered scenery made me think about how quickly most of the tools we use today get outdated or replaced, and I thought about the kinds of tools that I’ve been building for…
I’ve had an easy time being focused lately. I say no to obligations or opportunities that I would have easily accepted before. I have fewer things on my todo list, which means I get to spend more time on the few things that I’ve said yes to when I sit down to be creative. I also have a stronger sense of my values …
I’ve been delving deeper into the vast and strange world of knowledge organizing tools (notes apps, contact organizers, personal search engines). During this rather abstract expedition, one of my goals has been to emerge with some opinionated thesis about the way these tools should be designed to harbor and extend our…
The Lua programming language is unusual among its peers. It’s a dynamically typed, scripting language with a really small core (100-200kB), but runs efficiently, has far simpler semantics than other similar languages, and is just as old as the giants like JavaScript, Python, and Ruby – first made in a research lab…
I’m a hyperlink maximalist: everything should be a hyperlink , including everything that is hyperlinked by the author, everything that isn’t hyperlinked by the author, and perhaps even the hyperlinks themselves. Words should be hyperlinked, but so should be every interesting phrase, quote, name, proper noun…
I spent the last three weeks in Seoul, partly visiting family I hadn’t seen in years and partly taking a vacation from my usual work in my usual city in my usual context of life. While I haven’t been able to work much at all, I spent my subway rides and waiting-in-line times reading the Singularity Sky series of…
A month ago, I built a personal search engine called Monocle that let me search through a trove of personal information I’ve saved over time, from notes to journal entries to bookmarks and tweets. Shortly thereafter, I switched my default search engine in my web browser from Google to Monocle, marking the start of my…