81–90 of 164 posts
A cynical comment about regulation or curtailing this. Everyone agrees smoking causes health problems, is costly and doesn't offer anything. Smoking is regulated (taxes, labels, etc), but cigarettes are readily available everywhere - gas stations, convenience stores, etc. You would imagine that something so universally recognized as detrimental would cease to exist (either outlaws or society would just abandon it com…
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I've heard of nicotine as nootropic and I've been meaning to get the gum. Also, I believe it's about the only thing in cigarettes that is not carcinogenic.
Nicotine is an anxiolytic. It helps anxiety. That can seem like a nootropic (some definitions even explicitly include them) especially if you have anxiety. The con of this is nicotine addiction. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, exercise and meditation all beat nicotine in effectiveness as anxiolytics and in strength of effect.
To that end, non-combustible methods of nicotine might give the benefits without the addiction negatives (but still risks of e.g. pancreatic cancer)
At some point I thought it was still a thing because my wife was still kinda, sorta, using it. But years ago she quit. I hear about Meta and that they own WhatsApp and I see people using WhatsApp. But FaceBook: among my friends and family who used to post there, nobody ever posts anything. I don't doubt many are still logged in by default because they haven't updated their computer in years but they simply do not pos…
All social media and news does this. Every person who says their hobby is 'news' are the most angry and depressed people you will ever meet.
Gosh what a nuanced take that is. I enjoy reading the news and then discussing it with friends that are also news readers. That's the hobby aspect for me (and aforementioned friends). Together we try to predict what will happen in the world (wars, inflation, energy transition, stock market, ...) and quite often at least one of us is completely right or spectacularly wrong, which makes it fun for us. I know it's not v…
Facebook really has little to do with this... if it wasnt facebook, it would be youtube, instagram, watching tv, or sleeping all day.
These people are depressed... they need help to improve their condition. Taking away facebook will not make them un-depressed. Thats not how depression works.
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What's a solution ? A ban of all social media? The same toxic environment can occur in a forum on any website.
Ban advertising.
I would not say ban, but maybe there is a middle ground that would allow less 'attention seeking' content to actually gain solid ground ( I know actually useful stuff is there if you are willing to pay ; it just does not always seem people are aware of it ).
One of the best decisions I've ever made is to not jump on the Facebook bandwagon. When I was in high school, all the "cool" kids were using Facebook at home and then talking about Facebook in school as well. I honestly felt a lot of pressure to join and be active. However, I never fully gave in, and it did me a lot of good, since most people who post on Facebook talk about the best highlights of their day or their l…
I agree with the article that it's not facebook. You're depressed, dont feel like doing anything but know you should, so you procrastinate on facebook, and then maybe the whole day passes, and the waste of another day makes it feel like nothing is going to change, helping feed your depression. Facebook really has little to do with this... if it wasnt facebook, it would be youtube, instagram, watching tv, or sleeping…
Although I agree that Facebook isn't the problem here, taking it away might be a necessary first step.