#human-computer-interaction

47 episodes

Jun 18

#3718: AI Babysitters Already Exist—What We Learned

Tens of thousands of Chinese families already use robot babysitters. What actually happened, and what's next?

child-developmentprivacyhuman-computer-interaction

Jun 2

#3221: Why Can't Your Partner Reach You? The Family Pager Problem

Smartphones have no reliable urgent notification channel for families. Here's why — and what might fix it.

smart-homehuman-computer-interactionaccessibility

Jun 1

#3198: Why Architects Still Use 1963 Pens

Why architects still use isographic pens and parallel rules in 2026 — and what that teaches us about thinking through our hands.

architectureergonomicshuman-computer-interaction

May 2

#2592: The Market That Never Went Away

From IBM terminals to Stream Decks — how macro keyboards evolved under the radar for decades.

hardware-engineeringergonomicshuman-computer-interaction

May 1

#2577: Fixing Hidden UI Bugs on Real Devices

Tools and strategies to catch layout failures across devices before users abandon your app.

human-computer-interactionsoftware-developmentusability

May 1

#2567: Beyond Pixels: Controlling Apps Without Vision

How MCP agents can use accessibility APIs and COM to control Windows and macOS apps at the protocol level.

accessibilityhuman-computer-interactionautomation

May 1

#2558: Should You Say Please to AI?

The surprising cost, technical tradeoffs, and ethical dilemmas of saying "please" to chatbots.

ai-ethicsprompt-engineeringhuman-computer-interaction

Apr 30

#2549: Jakob's Law: Why Users Think Your App Is Broken

Why broken keyboard shortcuts destroy user trust — and what Jakob's Law reveals about design expectations.

human-computer-interactionusabilityjakobs-law

Apr 28

#2507: The AI Design Engineer: Your New Job Title?

What happens when product thinking meets AI agents? The future of software work is here.

ai-agentshuman-computer-interactionfuture-of-work

Apr 27

#2493: Are You Writing for Humans or AI Agents?

How GitHub repos, JSON formats, and competing standards are reshaping who (and what) you're publishing for.

ai-agentsknowledge-managementhuman-computer-interaction

Apr 26

#2463: Tmux vs Modern Terminals: What Multiplexing Actually Gets You

What multiplexing actually means, why tmux still matters, and how WezTerm and Ghostty changed the calculus.

software-developmenthuman-computer-interactionremote-work

Apr 26

#2453: Escaping the AI Doom Loop in Hiring

What if job matching was built on desire, not desperation? How one signal outperforms 100 applications.

ai-agentshuman-computer-interactionproductivity

Apr 19

#2330: Offloading Attention: The Case for Ambient Notifications

How USB lights and DIY setups are rethinking notifications to reduce screen overload and tap into your peripheral vision.

human-computer-interactionergonomicsnotification-signals

Apr 19

#2329: The Notification Trap: Escaping Communication Overload

How do you manage messages across ten apps without losing focus? We explore the chaos of modern communication and tools to tame it.

productivityhuman-computer-interactionremote-work

Apr 17

#2278: Visual Programming's Enduring Tradeoff

Why do visual programming tools keep resurfacing—and why do power users keep hitting their limits?

automationhuman-computer-interactionno-code

Apr 16

#2247: Building the All-Whiteboard Room: What It Actually Costs

A deep dive into whiteboard paint, porcelain steel panels, glass boards, and the engineering reality of covering every wall—and ceiling—in a worksp...

structural-engineeringhuman-computer-interactionergonomics

Apr 12

#2182: Can You Actually Review an AI Agent's Plan?

Most AI agents have plans the way you have a plan while half-asleep—something's happening, but you can't see it. We map the five major planning pat...

ai-agentsai-reasoninghuman-computer-interaction

Apr 11

#2150: Debugging Your Brain’s Source Code

Learn the five-step CTFAR sequence that turns emotional chaos into a logical, debuggable system for a managed mind.

neuroplasticityexecutive-functionhuman-computer-interaction

Apr 8

#2123: Human Reaction Time vs. AI Latency

We obsess over shaving milliseconds off AI response times, but human biology has a hard limit. Here’s why your brain can’t keep up.

human-computer-interactionai-inferencelatency

Apr 5

#2047: Why Video Calls Feel Like a Workout for Your Brain

Remote work is draining our "social radar," but new science shows how to rebuild it.

neurosciencehuman-computer-interactionsocial-engineering

Apr 5

#2045: Anonymity Isn't the Problem, The Architecture Is

Why does Reddit amplify toxicity while other anonymous spaces stay healthy? It's not the mask—it's the room's shape.

digital-privacysocial-engineeringhuman-computer-interaction

Apr 3

#1960: The Microscopic Venetian Blinds in Your Screen

A coffee shop glance reveals a black slab, not your data. Discover the microscopic Venetian blinds making it possible.

privacydisplay-technologyhuman-computer-interaction

Apr 2

#1883: From Juicero to Yik Yak: Startup Graveyard

We revisit 10 failed startups, from a $700 Wi-Fi juicer to an anonymous social app that turned toxic.

social-engineeringhuman-computer-interactionmisinformation

Mar 31

#1854: The Conductor as a CPU

A conductor isn't just a timekeeper; they're a CPU for the orchestra, using high-bandwidth non-verbal signals to unify 80 musicians.

audio-processinghuman-computer-interactionergonomics

Mar 31

#1852: The BCI Inflection Point: Trade-offs Between Implants and EEG

We trace BCIs from 1970s EEG caps to today’s high-bandwidth implants, comparing Neuralink and Synchron’s invasive vs. minimally invasive approaches.

neurotechnologyai-agentshuman-computer-interaction

Mar 31

#1827: Can AI Rewrite a Human Career Path?

We fed our producer's resume to Gemini 1.5 Flash to see if an AI can plot a better career path than he has.

ai-agentshuman-computer-interactionai-ethics

Mar 31

#1816: Is the Browser Finally Getting a Brain?

The browser is evolving from a static window into a collaborator that understands, organizes, and acts for you.

ai-agentshuman-computer-interactionprivacy

Mar 31

#1800: Hacking the Brain's Alarm System

Why some sounds make your skin crawl: the science of emergency alerts.

audio-processinghuman-computer-interactionemergency-preparedness

Mar 31

#1793: Can a Haiku Save Civilization?

A 45-minute impromptu haiku session sparks a fiery debate: is this poetic renaissance a creative breakthrough or a linguistic collapse?

linguisticshuman-computer-interactionproductivity

Mar 27

#1586: The Rocketbook Sunset and the Search for a Clean Erase

Bridge the gap between handwritten notes and AI. Discover the best whiteboard notebooks and markers for seamless digital transcription.

multimodal-aimaterial-sciencehuman-computer-interaction

Mar 26

#1566: Beyond the Chatbox: Closing the Agentic UI Gap

Stop treating AI agents like interns in a chat app. Discover why professional automation requires a control cockpit, not a messaging bubble.

ai-agentsgenerative-uihuman-computer-interaction

Mar 22

#1454: The Paradox of Infinite Scalability

Discover how the tension between AI-driven web design and physical printmaking is shaping the "Museumcore" aesthetic of 2026.

2026ai-agentshuman-computer-interaction

Mar 17

#1328: Silicon Sigils: Why We Treat AI Like an Occult Force

Is AI a tool or a digital demon? Explore why technical illiteracy is turning neural networks into a modern-day moral panic.

human-computer-interactionai-safetyinterpretability

Mar 16

#1309: The Death of Fiction: Why We Can’t Just Enjoy a Story

Is your brain too logical for movies? Explore why "non-fiction bias" makes it harder to enjoy stories and why fiction still matters.

neurosciencehuman-computer-interactionneuroplasticity

Mar 16

#1307: Digital Protocols: Why Modern Manners Feel Like Software

Manners aren't disappearing—they're becoming context-aware. Learn why a "Hey" might be more polite than a "Dear Sir" in the digital age.

professional-communicationhuman-factorshuman-computer-interaction

Mar 15

#1208: Beyond Buttons: Is the Admin Dashboard Dead?

Tired of clicking through CMS mazes? Explore how the Model Context Protocol (MCP) is replacing traditional dashboards with conversational control.

model-context-protocolai-agentshuman-computer-interaction

Mar 14

#1187: Strings of Code: The Ancient Art of Puppetry Meets AI

Explore the 3,000-year history of puppetry and why we are now replacing physical strings with generative code and artificial intelligence.

generative-aihuman-computer-interactionautomation

Mar 9

#1064: Why You’re Falling for Your Chatbot

As AI evolves from a tool into a companion, we explore the technical and psychological forces driving deep human-to-machine emotional bonds.

human-computer-interactionconversational-aiai-ethicspersonalized-aiai-memory

Mar 6

#997: The Human Shield: Inside the Arrow Missile Defense System

Explore the high-stakes engineering and human psychology behind the Arrow missile system, Israel's cutting-edge exo-atmospheric shield.

missile-defenseisraelhuman-computer-interactiondefense-technologyballistic-missiles

Mar 6

#971: Stress-Testing the Soul: Philosophy in the Age of AI

Is human meaning fully mapped out? Discover why AI isn’t killing philosophy, but stress-testing it for a new era of hybrid agency.

philosophical-mappingai-ethicsai-reasoninghuman-computer-interactiondigital-consciousness

Feb 26

#866: The Color Accuracy vs. Circadian Clock Tradeoff

Is your 24/7 blue light filter doing more harm than good? Explore the biology of screen strain and why "Dark Mode" isn't always the healthiest choice.

circadian-rhythmdigital-eye-straindisplay-technologyergonomicshuman-computer-interaction