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ohhh nooo the algorithm designed to maximize engagement by showing you things you would be likely to stay on the platform and watch ends up showing you things you'll be emotionally invested in, like imagery of suicide while you're feeling depressed

ohhhhh nooooooo who could have predicted this would happen ah shit

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Normally I'd agree with this kinda position but there is a bit of nefariousness by the people who create these algorithms and deliberately obfuscate it and release it onto impressionable people.

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The nefariousness in my opinion comes from the exploitation of our societal acceptance of dopamine hyper-optimizers like TikTok. We should genuinely, and I say this as a drug user, treat TikTok the same way we treat a drug like codeine or adderall. Parents should take action to prevent their children from using this shit in an unsafe way. People should know the risks and time their daily usage, etc. Therapists and addiction counselors should be equipped to handle addiction to these apps in the same way they treat chemical addicts (or hopefully much better).

Treat it like gambling, porn, or drug addiction instead of just "some dumb teen app" and maybe the demand for this type of thing will lower and thereby the supply.

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Oh I 100% agree, I just don't blame people for getting sucked into it because of how good it is at doing its job. I'm upset that people don't want to take the threat seriously and call people luddites or the like for suggesting that social media might not be the healthiest thing for someone's mind. Unfortunately, I think social media might be too ubiquitous with peoples' lives to really be separated anymore unless some real legislation happens.

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dopamine hyper optimizers is hilarious, the shit people believe about dopamine and earnestly explain is just amazing. Just like serotonin imbalances are the cause of all depression, oops, they're not, you'll be amazed to discover that human beings are not horses being led by dopamine carrots or dopamine junkies addicted to the brain's sweet supply of dopamine. In general thinking in terms of neurotransmitters causing action, instead of being the mechanism of action happening, is not useful.

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