Doomscrolling through the Generations

Catching Up:• Peter is in the final stretch of a 10-day call and looking forward to time off.• Aubrey shares updates on her graduation timeline, wedding planning stress, and how her classes feel like a slog in the final semester.Main Topic: Social Media Across GenerationsPeter and Aubrey compare their experiences and attitudes toward various social platforms:Facebook:• Aubrey: Rarely uses it, mostly to check in on family posts; associates it with an older generation.• Peter: Actively dislikes it, especially post-2020; only keeps it for limited practical reasons.• Shared sentiment: Feels like a platform overwhelmed by misinformation and outdated content.Instagram:• Aubrey: Treats it like a personal photo scrapbook; now uses it sparingly and mindfully.• Peter: Mostly follows memes, bands, and comics; minimal time spent but appreciates the humor.Twitter/X, BlueSky, Mastodon:• Aubrey: Never liked Twitter and hasn't touched it in years.• Peter: Deleted his Twitter account after Elon Musk's acquisition; briefly explored alternatives like BlueSky and Mastodon but found them underwhelming.TikTok:• Aubrey: Used to spend a lot of time on it for humor and recipes but now imposes strict limits to avoid doomscrolling.• Peter: Visits occasionally but hasn't engaged enough for the algorithm to work well; finds it underwhelming.LinkedIn:• Aubrey: Only uses it to play the games (!) and occasionally updates for academic reasons.• Peter: Actively dislikes the culture of self-congratulatory posting; logs in solely to clear out spammy messages.Reddit:• Peter: His most-used platform, especially for niche interests and news. Recommends curating the homepage to filter out toxicity.• Aubrey: Dislikes the general vibe; finds it to be full of complaints and arguments. Feels more like a "cesspool" than a community.Mini Segments:• Peter's Medical Fact:Sleeping more than 9 hours regularly can be worse for you than getting too little sleep, increasing the risk of early-onset dementia and other health issues.• Aubrey's Physics Update:Aubrey revisits a previous topic about Microsoft's quantum chip and shares skepticism from a condensed matter physicist. Claims about stabilizing Majorana zero modes are likely overblown or misleading, casting doubt on Microsoft's announcement.