Author: If This Then That

Quartz/Chartbuilder · GitHub:

Chartbuilder / Gneisschart is a D3.js based front-end charting application that facilitates easy creation of simple beautiful charts. Chartbuilder is the user and export interface. Gneisschart is the charting framework.

Interview with David Epstein: How Athletes Get Great | Books | OutsideOnline.com:

No cookie-cutter training plan is ever going to work… People need to pay attention to their training plans, because if something is not working for you as well as the next guy, it may be your biology, so you should try another plan. If you’re not taking a trial-and-error approach to training where you’re measuring something your time, you’re way less likely to find a plan that works for you. The cookie cutter approach to training is purely a facet of having a large group of people to train.

There’s nothing new about uncertainty – The Washington Post:

Most of the time, people exist in a happy little bubble of self-created delusion. We engage in selective perception, seeing only the things that agree with us. Our selective retention retains the good stuff and disregards most of the rest. In our minds, we are all younger, better-looking, slimmer, with more hair than the camera reveals.

In short, we construct a reality that bears only passing resemblance to the objective universe.

During those brief instances when the facade fades, the curtain gets pulled back and the ugly reality becomes clear. We get a glimmer of understanding about our own lack of understanding. That’s when the grim reality of the human condition is revealed — and it terrifies us.

Your app makes me fat — Serious Pony:

If your app is confusing and your tech support / FAQ isn’t helpful, you’re drawing down my scarce, precious, cognitive resources. If your app behaves counter-intuitively – even just once – I’ll leak cog resources every time I use it, forever, wondering, "wait, did that do what I expected?". Or let’s say your app is super easy to use, but designed and tuned for persuasive brain hacks ("nudges", gamification, behavioral tricks, etc.) to keep me "engaged" for your benefit, not mine (lookin’ at you, Zynga)… you’ve still drained my cognitive resources.