Time is the only real currency we have • Hacker News Board

Re: Time is the only real currency we have

#51

Post by IggleSniggle » Sat, Apr 25, 2020, 1:46 PM UTC

easytiger wrote: post #37

ct520 wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is pretty much my life to the extent of how much I can control it in society. I never do any singular thing with the exception of work. I won’t leave the house unless I can divide and group that time into multiple objectives thus spreading the overhead of time lost against many achievements. If not in a meeting I have my pleasureable conversations via car phone when I commute some where. If I’m not in a meeting…

A poor life this if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare

Leisure

--

What is this life if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare.

No time to stand beneath the boughs And stare as long as sheep or cows.

No time to see, when woods we pass, Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.

No time to see, in broad daylight, Streams full of stars, like skies at night.

No time to turn at Beauty’s glance, And watch her feet, how they can dance.

No time to wait till her mouth can Enrich that smile her eyes began.

A poor life this if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare.

- W.H.Davies (1871-1940)

Re: Time is the only real currency we have

#52

Post by qqssccfftt » Sat, Apr 25, 2020, 1:46 PM UTC

ezoe wrote: post #45

keiferski wrote: post #11

I’ve often wondered what society would look like if optimized for saving people time. Just some quick thoughts: - Crosswalks and traffic lights would become non-existent and replaced with more pedestrian overpasses, turning/merging lanes, and other designs. Waiting for the light to change is a huge waste of time for both pedestrians and drivers. It seems like we might get this eventually with self-driving cars. - Min…

- Most of the regulation of prior permission paperwork submit is abolished. Whether somebody meets the regulation standard will be evaluated after it was done. - Customer service is not free of charge after used the up free quota. - Telephone, video/voice chat are deprecated because these communication require people to use time at specific point rather than in the convenient time they choose.

> - Customer service is not free of charge after used the up free quota.

Oh yeah, that definitely won't make companies just wait until you're in the paid period before giving you service.

Re: Time is the only real currency we have

#53

Post by zipwitch » Sat, Apr 25, 2020, 1:47 PM UTC

It seems appropriate to mention The Quantum Thief by Hannu Rajaniemi, a whirlwind sf novel where a large part of the story involves a city where the currency literally is Time. (When a person runs out of Time, they are transformed into a Quiet, mutely doing the necessary work to keep the city running, until they have earned enough Time to be restored to themselves.)

Re: Time is the only real currency we have

#54

Post by tluyben2 » Sat, Apr 25, 2020, 1:47 PM UTC

keiferski wrote: post #47

ciconia wrote: post #36

Somehow the idea that time is our only currency is conflated with efficiency. Yes, time is the most limited resources we have, and therefore the most precious, but does this mean we have to squeeze every last bit of productivity from our time? Do we really have to keep running all the time, always optimising for more efficiency? I would say the exact opposite. If time is our most precious asset, let's rather spend it…

I don’t think these are separate things at all. Being efficient with your work time is great because it lets you spend more time with family, friends, and so on. Long commutes are really the killer here: it’s super difficult to cook a family dinner if you get off work at 6:00, spend 30-60 minutes commuting home, 30 minutes buying groceries, another 30 minutes cooking, etc. Working from home and then cooking dinner wi…

> Long commutes are really the killer here

They are, but you are on HN so it's safe to assume you have other options, so why do you commute?

Re: Time is the only real currency we have

#55

Post by DrNuke » Sat, Apr 25, 2020, 1:47 PM UTC

Yeah, that’s why I can’t really understand fellows not willing to pay a tenner or two for any service, content or product that will make them spare hours and even days of their uniquely precious time!

Re: Time is the only real currency we have

#56

Post by mikestew » Sat, Apr 25, 2020, 1:48 PM UTC

IggleSniggle wrote: post #46

nemetroid wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> - Purchase and checkout items while you shop, rather than waiting in line at a cash register. In Sweden, this has been a thing in most larger grocery stores for more than 10 years, e.g. https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&u=https...

This has also been a thing at many US grocery stores for many years now, but inexplicably, many people don't use them.

I don’t use them because I just assume it’s going to be a personal information harvest fest, and it won’t work as advertised anyway. Like most other software-driven things these days.

Re: Time is the only real currency we have

#57

Post by bumby » Sat, Apr 25, 2020, 1:48 PM UTC

ezoe wrote: post #45

keiferski wrote: post #11

I’ve often wondered what society would look like if optimized for saving people time. Just some quick thoughts: - Crosswalks and traffic lights would become non-existent and replaced with more pedestrian overpasses, turning/merging lanes, and other designs. Waiting for the light to change is a huge waste of time for both pedestrians and drivers. It seems like we might get this eventually with self-driving cars. - Min…

- Most of the regulation of prior permission paperwork submit is abolished. Whether somebody meets the regulation standard will be evaluated after it was done. - Customer service is not free of charge after used the up free quota. - Telephone, video/voice chat are deprecated because these communication require people to use time at specific point rather than in the convenient time they choose.

> Most of the regulation of prior permission paperwork submit is abolished. Whether somebody meets the regulation standard will be evaluated after it was done.

I’m not convinced this one would optimize for time unless it’s also optimizing for items falling through the cracks. If non-conformity is actually being caught it means the work has to be done twice to bring it in line with regulation after the fact.

Recent example: Boeing Starliner was not meeting requirements but oversight seemed inadequate ultimately requiring a multi-million dollar re-do once the gaps were caught after it was supposedly finished

Edit: down votes are fine but please extend the courtesy of explaining so as to add to the conversation

Re: Time is the only real currency we have

#58

Post by dhruvkar » Sat, Apr 25, 2020, 1:48 PM UTC

IggleSniggle wrote: post #46

nemetroid wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> - Purchase and checkout items while you shop, rather than waiting in line at a cash register. In Sweden, this has been a thing in most larger grocery stores for more than 10 years, e.g. https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&u=https...

This has also been a thing at many US grocery stores for many years now, but inexplicably, many people don't use them.

How? Where? Would love to know how to get access to this.

Re: Time is the only real currency we have

#59

Post by ct520 » Sat, Apr 25, 2020, 1:48 PM UTC

dudul wrote: post #40

ct520 wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is pretty much my life to the extent of how much I can control it in society. I never do any singular thing with the exception of work. I won’t leave the house unless I can divide and group that time into multiple objectives thus spreading the overhead of time lost against many achievements. If not in a meeting I have my pleasureable conversations via car phone when I commute some where. If I’m not in a meeting…

Quite frankly, this all sounds pretty sad. Being able to stop and just do nothing once in a while is important. And I do mean "nothing". Not play on one's phone or be idle in front of the TV. Nothing, as in sit down and just be left alone with your thoughts.

I think I came off wrong. I group together things and hyper-organize them to maximize my output and minimize the time I spend on doing things for growth/maintenance. I meditate daily, find room for some reading, picked up gardening recently. Anything I can streamline I do that to maximize my return as time is a valuable commodity.

Re: Time is the only real currency we have

#60

Post by MattGaiser » Sat, Apr 25, 2020, 1:48 PM UTC

IggleSniggle wrote: post #46

nemetroid wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> - Purchase and checkout items while you shop, rather than waiting in line at a cash register. In Sweden, this has been a thing in most larger grocery stores for more than 10 years, e.g. https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&u=https...

This has also been a thing at many US grocery stores for many years now, but inexplicably, many people don't use them.

The barrier is the mental cost of context switching. You find your item, scan it, and then have to go check your list to remember which item it was you needed. You also need to find the barcode while the regular checkout has both a bottom and side scanner, so you just pass the item over and most of the time it will catch the item.