Day 073 — Speaking: Technology & Digital Life

"On balance, I think technology has made my life significantly better, though it comes with trade-offs. As a software engineer, I rely on it for almost everything — from version control to communication with remote colleagues. The gains in productivity are enormous. However, I do notice that I'm less patient than I used to be — I expect instant answers and struggle with slow processes. So while the benefits clearly outweigh the costs for me personally, I think it's important to stay aware of those downsides."

Opening "I'd like to describe a tool that has genuinely transformed the way I work: AI coding assistants, particularly ChatGPT and similar large language models.

Body 1 — Usage & History I started using these tools seriously at the end of 2022, when they became widely available. Initially, I was quite sceptical — I wasn't sure they'd be reliable enough for professional use. But over the past eighteen months or so, they've become a core part of my daily workflow.

Body 2 — Impact In terms of impact, the most significant change has been in how quickly I can prototype ideas. Tasks that used to take me two or three hours — like researching a new API or debugging an obscure error — can now be tackled in a fraction of the time. It's also helped me improve my written English, since I often ask it to review my documentation.

Reflection That said, the tool isn't without drawbacks. It sometimes produces plausible-sounding but incorrect code, so I've had to develop a much more critical eye for its outputs. Overall, though, the impact has been overwhelmingly positive. I honestly can't imagine going back to working without it."

"I think there's a strong case to be made for that argument, yes. The design of most smartphone apps is explicitly engineered to capture and hold attention — notifications, infinite scroll, algorithmically curated feeds. Over time, this constant micro-interruption trains the brain to expect frequent stimulation, which makes sustained concentration increasingly difficult.

Personally, I've noticed that when I work without my phone nearby, I enter what some researchers call a 'flow state' much more quickly. When it's on my desk, even if I don't touch it, its mere presence seems to create a kind of cognitive background noise.

That said, I don't think smartphones are the root cause — they're more of an amplifier. People have always had attention challenges. The issue is that the scale and sophistication of the technology now makes it far harder to resist."