Late Summer Digressions: The Science + Tech Edition (Or, how Team Overlap stretches its mental muscles on vacation)

We're running full speed through summer here at Overlap! Lots to do as we build out the business, and excited to share more details in the coming months. But, the last thing you need to hear now is a business update. You're supposed to be relaxing!

The final few weeks of August are an excellent opportunity for reflection. The pace of work slows down, the time spent in nature goes up, and there are more daylight hours available for doing, hopefully, not very much at all.

But because you're a type A kind of person—if you weren't, would you even be reading this?—the mere idea of inaction is inconceivable. (Remember that meditation app you downloaded a while ago? That’s right, you didn’t.)

I get it. I'm right there with you. What I have found to be deeply enjoyable during downtime, however, is to let your brain loose on a complex question completely unrelated to your daily life. Something fascinating to noodle on, but which doesn’t require you to write anything down. Call it a thought experiment, a factual riddle, or a contemplation of the profound—either way, the point is to take yourself on an intellectual journey and enjoy the ride.

To get things started, here are a few of the team's favorite topics to muse on that span the realms of science and technology. Maybe they’ll help you gain a richer understanding of your place in the universe? Or maybe they’re just a bit of brain candy for a lazy afternoon at the beach. Feel free to share your own in the comments??.

The Uncanny Valley

Ever see a robot (or CGI film) so lifelike that it toes a line between being impressive and, well, creepy? Welcome to the Uncanny Valley, a term for the place where the blurred lines between artifice and reality provoke our minds to do double takes, struggling to pinpoint the glitch. In this 1970 essay that gave the Uncanny Valley its name, robotics professor Masahiro Mori described the phenomenon as a “descent into eeriness.” Can machines serve as our mirrors, and what role do human perception and emotion play in the mix? Either way, check out these examples and prepare to cringe.

The Fermi Paradox

In 1950, physicist and Nobel Prize winner Enrico Fermi posited a seemingly straightforward question about the universe at large: "Where is everybody?" After all, if the universe is more than 13 billion years old and made up of an almost infinite number of solar systems, and space travel is a relatively straightforward proposition, why have we yet to encounter life from other planets? The simple answer is, I have no idea. But I find it fascinating to delve through the various theories that scientists and philosophers have posited. Check out this article, which provides a helpful rundown of some of the leading explanations. —Rob Morelli

Ship of Theseus

When change is constant, what anchors identity? If every plank and nail of a ship is replaced, is it still the same ship? The Ship of Theseus conundrum delves into the heart of existence and transformation. Is the essence of an object tied to its components, or to something intangible that transcends the material?

Voyaging at the Speed of Light

There are multiple reasons why humans have never been able to reach light speed (including the not-insignificant matter of needing infinite energy to do so). But what I’ve always loved about physics is how much is left to be discovered—and the fact that what's established can always be proven wrong. Could quantum forces be harnessed to make light-speed travel possible? Is there a way to inch closer to traveling at 300 million meters per second—or even 1% of it? Am I even thinking about time in an accurate way? This Big Think post adds more nuance. —Gauri Jaswal

Engineered Empathy

Much has been written about the polarizing effects that technology (primarily social media) has had on society. But what if it could also engineer empathy through similarly scalable tech? Consider the Empathy Machine, a concept that imagines tech not as a barrier, but as a bridge—immersing us in experiences that cultivate understanding and an appreciation of others’ humanity. Which begs the question: Can empathy truly be authentic if it’s manufactured in a virtual environment? —Irene Edwards