This is a compilation of short stories, I don’t want to discuss all of them but one that particularly resonated with me was *The Truth of Fact, The Truth of Feeling*. This story is a dual narrative, where the narrator seems to be writing some sort of blog post in a near-future where a product called Remem is about to be introduced that constantly records your day and is always running, bringing up memories you mention or query for in the corner of your sight, like a Apple Vision Pro. The writer begins by writing about the virtues of organic memory and has a clear stance against the technology, arguing that it will remove the romance, nostalgia, and story of our memories. He cites marital feuds on who’s right vs. wrong as a type of issue this technology exacerbates. Concurrently with this narrative we are taken back to the early 1940s where we are observing the Shangev tribe of the Tiv people in Nigeria. This part of the story follows a young boy named Jijingi who through a preacher named Moseby, discovers the power of writing. This story resonated with me because of the various ideas it presents without giving a full opinion on. Memory is an interesting subject, my earliest memory was as a child (probably 4/5 years old) in my townhouse with my family on my birthday and my dad coming in from work with a poster of Dash (character from the Incredibles). This memory is so heartwarming to me, the innocent happiness I recall feeling, the youth and energy of my family, who at the time were relative newcomers to the country. The story argues that a memory like this (which is probably artificially reconstructed at this point) is better left as an organic memory. If I had a live feed of it would I still feel the same warmth that I do now? Perhaps conversely, seeing it in finer detail would provide me with more to grasp onto and give me more to look back with love and nostalgia? I think this is an interesting thing to consider because I think we partially already deal with this issue to a degree presently with the prevalence of smartphone cameras and the nature in which people document such events so commonly today. We then get presented with a strong counter argument which is that our memories are very unreliable. We commonly look back on situations with a nostalgic lens which we can safely argue is not very harmful; we also tend to look back on some disputes with less intensity than we felt in the moment. This is what the narrator argues allows us to move past arguments after the fact, and they cite that perhaps if they had a running highlight reel of their arguments with their daughter, perhaps they would find it more difficult to move past these disputes. They then decide to try Remem and look through their arguments with their daughter to give a fair two-sided account of their argument. Essentially, their organic memory failed them and gave them a much rosier account with their relationship with their daughter. Pretty much they recall themselves more as a martyr and really what happened was that they emotionally abused their daughter. This causes the narrator to really reevaluate what they think of themself as a father but also on the utility of Remem as a technology. If it weren’t for Remem they would have continued their life in ignorance without fully understanding how they negatively affected their daughter. This technology enabled them to see things more clearly and take more accountability for their actions. Overall, this story shows how we as a humans tend to romanticize our lives. We tend to experience increased juvenoia as we age and discount the utility that certain technologies have despite how they upend certain foundational experiences. This story pretty much says that these technologies are a lot more grey than black or white in their impact. Social media is great because it connects us with family, introduces us to new friends, and helps us find community. It also is very dangerous to youth and can cause psychological problems. It is both good and bad, but if one mindfully uses it with the intent of extracting as much good and staying away from the bad it can be a very beneficial technology, just like how Remem itself could be too. I personally know many strong headed people that will remember certain events through their own rose-tinted glasses that could benefit immensely from such a technology, heck even I could use it as I am particularly stubborn on certain events/arguments.