Shows
The Digital DietThe Lost Tourist: Why You Can't Always Trust GPS To Send You In The Right DirectionIn this episode, I talk about:Why you can’t always rely on GPS to send you the right wayThe hilarious story of Noel Santillan, aka The Lost Tourist, and how GPS led him astray during a bucket list trip to IcelandHow using GPS technology frequently could be shrinking your brainPlace cells, grid cells, and the science behind your “inner GPS” or how you navigate without GPS devicesHow to protect and preserve your natural wayfinding abilitiesThe No GPS ChallengeResources and tools mentioned:Show notesGet the #TechTimeout Challenge 30 Day Digital Detox GuideJoin the weekly challenge in The Di...2023-12-1927 minThe Digital DietFact or Fiction: Debunking the Misinformation in ChatGPT’s HallucinationsIn this episode, I talk about:The phenomenon of AI hallucinations – false or misleading information that is presented as factHow and why AI hallucinations occur with platforms such as ChatGPT6 hilarious and scary examples of ChatGPT hallucinations, including:Lying about how many people survived the sinking of the TitanicFabricating scientific references to support the idea that cheese is bad for your healthWriting a New York Times opinion piece about why mayonnaise is racistMaking up a historical French KingWriting a rave review for the ill-fated Fyre FestivalInventing a world record for man walking on waterWhy you should still fact-check Cha...2023-12-1232 minThe Digital Diet“Alexa, Play Porn” – 5 Times Amazon’s AI Voice Assistant Went RogueIn this episode, I talk about:Why AI voice assistants are almost always female and how this perpetuates harmful gender stereotypesThe reason tech companies struggle to create accurate male AI voice assistants and the future of AI voice technology5 hilarious times that Amazon’s AI assistant, Alexa, has misbehaved, including:Recommending a dangerous challenge to a childBuying a $160 dollhouse (and cookies!)Allowing a parrot to make a purchaseMisunderstanding a command and playing explicit contentThrowing a late night party while its owner was outWhat you can learn from these cautionary tales and how to safeguard yourself against your own Al...2023-12-0528 minThe Digital DietStick Or Twist: Should You Quit, Curate, Or Take A Break From Social Media?In this episode, I talk about:Why choosing to quit or take a break from using social media is such a significant decisionHow your personal social media habits and online experience influence your decisionThe importance of time alone and away from social mediaHow to tell when you need to take a break from social mediaThe biological stress response to social media overexposureHow to decide if you should quit, cut down, curate or take a break from social mediaThe downloadable decision chart and important questions to ask yourself when deciding how you will use social mediaResources and t...2023-11-0729 minThe Digital DietHijacking Happiness: How Social Media Hacked Your Happy Hormones To Get You Hooked OnlineIn this episode, I talk about:The reason you’re still going on social media, despite turning off all notifications, taking a digital detox break, or deleting your accountsThe four happiness hormones – dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, and endorphins – and how they work together to ensure the survival of the human raceHow social media mimics your real life experiences, affecting your natural levels and sources of these neurohormonesThe surprising connection between survival behaviours and pleasurable feelings, and why your brain has created internal triggers for going on social mediaThe 7 day internal triggers challengeResources and tools mentioned:Show notesGe...2023-10-0345 minThe Digital DietPersuasive Design: 6 Features Social Media Companies Use To Deliberately Influence Your BehaviourIn this episode, I talk about:The methods social media platforms use to capture as much of your time and attention as possibleBehavioural psychology and how we learn behaviours through classical conditioning because of interactions with our external environmentHow social media companies exploit behaviourism by using persuasive design features in their platforms to deliberately influence and change your behaviourThe power of social media algorithms and how they use your individual behaviour to adapt and optimise themselves, so that social media becomes more addictive to you6 persuasive design features and how they work together to keep you coming back...2023-04-2531 minThe Digital DietThe Attention Economy: Understanding The Business & Currency Of Social MediaIn this episode, I talk about:The birth of social media and how social media platforms are exponentially evolvingWhy social media platforms are a popular startup idea, despite huge competitionThe reason social media platforms are all launching similar featuresThe attention economy aka the economy of distraction aka surveillance capitalism aka how social media platforms make their moneyThe value of your time, attention, and behavioural data to social media platforms and the companies that advertise with themThe reason social media users are products and not customersWhy social media companies prioritise features that make you use their platforms for long...2023-04-1823 minThe Digital DietClickbait, Controversy & Cancel Culture: KSI & The Dark Side Of Social MediaIn this episode, I talk about:The role of social media in the rise and fall of KSI, a popular British YouTuber, rapper, boxer, and entrepreneurHow influencers, brands, and media outlets make money through content creation as part of the attention economyWhy clickbait headlines and controversial posts drive high views and engagement on social mediaHow social media algorithms change our behaviour and amplify negative human traits to capture our attentionToxic comments, cancel culture, and how they affect our mental healthWhy we’re comfortable behaving more abusively online than we ever would in personLosing our capacity for empathy and co...2023-04-1134 minThe Digital DietIs Your Desk Job Costing You Your Physical Health?In this episode, I talk about:Maximising opportunities to take a break from technology when you have time off workHow remote working has increased your screen time and may be affecting your physical health more than you realiseOur tendencies to ignore physical aches, pains, and strains until they become severe and to treat physical symptoms instead of preventing the root cause of our discomfortWhy you should listen to what your body is telling you instead of relying on digital devices or health apps to tell you when something is wrongTechnology-induced eye strain, Computer Vision Syndrome (CVS), and your...2023-04-0430 minThe Digital DietIndian Inspiration – Could You Commit To A Daily Digital Detox?In this episode, I talk about:The difference 1 hour can make when it comes to practising digital wellbeingWhy digital detox “escapes” may not be the solution to your digital device obsessionThe remarkable Indian village of Vadgaon, where a daily digital detox law has been introduced and enforced since August 2022Whether Western countries could or should introduce their own daily digital detox lawsThe benefits of a daily digital detox for adults, children, and familiesThe 1 hour daily digital detox challengeThe Digital Diet Lounge – a new virtual community for digital wellness and the best place to discuss podcast episodes and take part in...2023-03-2816 minThe Digital DietMastering Mindfulness – How A Simple Daily Practice Could Help Increase Your Attention SpanIn this episode, I talk about:What mindfulness is and what it isn’t (clue: it’s not the same as meditation!)How mindfulness can build up your executive attention by promoting changes in the overall structure and function of your brainScientific studies into the benefits of mindfulness for everyone from adults to childrenHow the effects of mindfulness are linked to the duration and frequency of your mindfulness practiceSetting realistic expectations and goals when starting a mindfulness practice7 practical ways to practise mindfulness, plus two bonus methodsThe 7 day mindfulness challengeThe Digital Diet Lounge – a new virtual community for digital...2023-03-2122 minThe Digital DietDeep Reading – The Ultimate Brain Training To Improve Your Concentration?In this episode, I talk about:How digital distractions have turned even the most avid readers into casual readersWhat deep reading is and how it can boost your executive attention by training your brain to concentrate for long periods of timeThe paradox of requiring focus to engage in deep reading, in order to improve your overall capacity for focusThe benefits of deep reading for other cognitive functions and its role in the development of key intellectual and emotional skillsWhy what you read is less important than how you’re reading itHow the offline reading experience is different to th...2023-03-1421 minThe Digital DietA Natural Remedy – How Exposure To Nature Can Help Restore Your Lost FocusIn this episode, I talk about:How constant multitasking and digital distractions have depleted your executive attention, making it difficult for you to concentrate for long periods of timeThe importance of working to actively build up your capacity for executive attention outside of specific focused tasksWhy exposing yourself to nature can help restore your executive attention and the three theories that explain how this happensHow long you need to be exposed to nature for, in order to experience improvements in your executive attentionThe types of nature that can be restorative for your executive attention and how to access...2023-03-0720 minThe Digital DietPay Attention! The Myth of MultitaskingIn this episode, I talk about:The 3 types of human attention – alerting attention, orienting attention, and executive attention – and how they are impacted by your digital devicesThe role of executive attention in helping you to maintain focus, concentrate on tasks, and achieve your goalsWhy the mere presence of your smartphone is enough to distract your focusHow often you switch tasks and the surprising number of times that you interrupt yourselfThe myth of multitasking and why it shouldn’t be considered a positive “skill”The negative impact of multitasking on your performance, work-life balance, mental health, memory, and emotional wellbeingGl...2023-02-2833 minThe Digital DietAnxiety-Inducing AI – Are You Going To Lose Your Job To A Machine?In this episode, I talk about:What artificial intelligence (AI) is and the everyday products and services that it’s already a part ofWhy there has been a surge in conversations about AI and newer applications of the technologyThe reasons why you’re worried about AI, from losing control to losing your jobThe ethical issues associated with integrating AI into every part of society3 ways to make the growth in AI work for you, rather than against youResources and tools mentioned:Show notesWhy do employers make us jump through so many hoops to get a simp...2023-02-2133 minThe Digital DietDating In The Digital Age: How To Use Dating Apps Without Losing Your MindIn this episode, I talk about:Why it’s impossible to ignore Valentine’s Day online and how love has been commercialisedThe reason you no longer know what you need from a partner and how social media has warped your expectations of what a relationship should look likeThe dangers of social stalking, judging prospects too quickly, and making assumptions about people based on what you see onlineHow you create unnecessary anxiety when you try to avoid rejection by misrepresenting yourselfWhy your attention span isn’t what it used to be and how dating apps offer you too much choice...2023-02-1445 minThe Digital DietWork-Life Balance: How To Switch Off From An ‘Always On’ CultureIn this episode, I talk about:Why work-life balance is important, even if you love your jobHow failing to take holidays and regular breaks could literally be costing you your lifeWhy prevention is better than cure when it comes to burnoutHow technology enables remote working but blurs the line between your work and personal space, causing you to work more than ever beforeThe convenience and the curse of communications platforms like email, WhatsApp, Teams, and SlackHow country laws, company culture, and the behaviour of your managers and peers is influencing your personal beliefs about work-life balanceThe subconscious message...2023-02-0753 minThe Digital DietHow to Maximise Your Willpower and Minimise Digital Distractions to Make Your New Year's Resolutions StickIn this episode, I talk about:Why we seem to have the same New Year's resolutions year after yearWhy we go all in on our goals during January but run out of steam by FebruaryWhat willpower is, how it works, and why scientists believe that it's a limited resourceHow you might be unintentionally sabotaging your willpower by wasting your energy on small or insignificant decisionsWhy your smartphone is the ultimate source of cheap dopamine and how this is affecting your willpower5 ways to maximise your willpower so that you can stick to your New Year's resolutions and make...2023-01-2437 minThe Digital DietWelcome to The Digital Diet PodcastIn this episode, I talk about:What digital wellness is and why you need to prioritise it in your own lifeThe concept of a balanced digital diet and why it's the most sustainable approach to digital wellbeingWhy digital wellness is a personal, pro-active and ongoing practice, rather than a one-size-fits-all set of rulesWhy I started this podcast and the sorts of topics you can expect to hear about in future episodesWhat I do and who I help through my coaching practice over at The Digital Diet CoachKeep in touch with me:Visit my website at...2023-01-2311 min