What can the subject of one of the most common phobias teach us about technology and humanity?
A lot, as it turns out.
In the journey to become a healthy cyborg, we can take some inspiration and advice from these creepy-crawlies. The goal of this newsletter is to find ways to allow technology to extend our capabilities and our humanity, help us with our personal goals, and maybe even compensate where we lack.
Let's first explore what the spider does with its web, and then see how that has everything to do with our own "webs."
The (Organic) Web
The world-wide web is not just about the physical connections between computers, mimicking a spider web, it's all about information transfer.
The original, organic web that a spider weaves with its silk is a mechanism for information transfer as well.
I'll be using quotes from, "An Immense World," by Ed Yong in this section (highly recommended reading!) to help us understand the relationship of a spider and its web.
"...[the web is] a surveillance system which extends the range of the spider's senses well beyond the reach of its body."
"...it is built by the spider and it is part of the spider."
That sounds a lot like our goals of becoming cyborgs: using technology built by humans that can be integrated into our lives, extending the range of our senses. (I would add that at least for this cyborg, I want it to be a safe, healthy integration.)
For the spider, vibrations are the information that gets sent up and down the web. It helps alert our predatory friend of a meal or the benign brush of a leaf.
Interestingly, a web-weaving spider is not typically going to be able to distinguish certain things that are physically around it until it interacts with the web. As described in the book, the arachnid might well wave off a fly buzzing around, only to recognize it as dinner when the fly hits the web.
Its web not only communicates to the spider, it can also extend the spider's mind.
"[Zoologist Takeshi] Watanabe found that a well-fed [Japanese Orb Weaver] will also go after small flies if it is placed onto a tense web built by a hungry spider. The spider has effectively outsourced the decision of which prey to attack to its web."
Even more amazing is the spider species that are, in all senses of the word, hackers. For example, the Dewdrop Spider can steal stored prey from larger spiders by hacking their webs.
"From a nearby hiding place, it runs several lines of silk over to the [spokes of a] web, effectively plugging its sensory system into that of the larger spider. It can tell when [the larger spider] has caught something and is wrapping it in silk for storage. It then runs over and eats the insect itself, often cutting it free from the main web so that the host spider can no longer detect it."
Spider Thinking
All of these little snippets of the spider, its web, and its world have direct parallels to ours that I think we need to explore, even at the risk of anthropomorphizing too much ;)
Build your web
Let's revisit this quote first, "...[the web] is built by the spider and it is part of the spider."
My personal take on this is that for technology to be effectively and healthily integrated into our lives, we ought to participate in its creation.
That does not mean we all have to become programmers—I don't even think coding is necessary at all.
Technology at its loosest definition is about applying knowledge, not about bits and bytes. If you are taking your knowledge, applying it, contributing to it, connecting it to other knowledge, that is building your web.
This is already a natural behavior of ours, so why bother pointing this out?
Intention is the other half of building. We all have powerful systems, technology, and knowledge in front of us. What will we do with it? What do we prioritize? What do we choose most often?
I think we need to be exceptionally conscious of our decisions, our actions, our tools. Tech companies have given us incredible power—but they are not without bias or motives as much as we are not without such things.
Build your web, and do so carefully. The technology you build will become a part of you, so choose well—and don't be afraid to let go of parts that are no longer serving you.
Decision Making
Just like the spider can outsource decisions to its web, we do the same to our digital and technological landscape.
Calendar items, reminders, notes, photo albums, and so much more information is ported from our heads or our experiences and onto tools or the Internet.
This is, overall, a great thing—that is not to be understated. Cognitive offloading has been a hugely beneficial practice for me as I tackle complex problems at work that I just can't hold all at once in my working memory.
It also helps me with my mental health to be able to process things as I write them down.
The notes I take have a direct impact on the quality of my outputs—like this newsletter, hopefully.
With MS as a massive barrier to my energy, I simply could not do what I'm doing now without the help of the web of technology that I have built.
These tools help me automate decisions I have already made, but that are recurring. They help me detect errors, solve problems, and think more deeply.
As with everything, there is still a cost, which we see in the Japanese Orb Weaver experiment.
If a well-fed spider is still taking cues from the web it is on to stuff itself even when unnecessary, we too can be trapped in a cycle of constant stimulation or content overload.
It's so important that we interact with our tech on our terms. Apps with "feeds" are already giving us a hint at what they're doing—placing us on their pre-built web, making us feel "hungry" for more and more even when we're not.
I'm not against social media—I use it frequently—but I am against attention-hacking and sly tactics that grab onto our precious mental and emotional resources and can hardly let go.
Intention and agency are critical to guard.
Hackers
We now need to address the spider in the room: hackers.
It's fascinating to see that nature has exploiters, tricksters, and thieves to examine.
Aside from the "technical" approach that the Dewdrop Spider showed us by physically hacking into another spider's web, there are other forms of exploitation.
First, do ensure that you take precautions online. Hacking is a legitimate concern and we can all do better to make sure our passwords are strong, our personal information is rarely given out and only to must-have parties.
If you want to learn more about cyber-security, there are a few creators you can check out:
- Shannon Morse (I actually discovered her on this collab video focused on YouTuber safety, but she was pretty good at explaining things in a more accessible way)
- Network Chuck (More technical)
- KnowBe4 (This is a business, so ignore their testimonials / marketing videos, but still has a lot of great videos for general audiences)
Second, we also need to be aware of the ways that we can be tricked or manipulated by the other "dewdrop spiders" we may encounter.
For example, a thief-spider doesn't have to just tap into the web, it also uses tactics like mimicking the vibrations of a non-insect—making the orb weaver think that a twig or a leaf has landed on its web instead of another spider deceiving it.
(Apparently some "assassin bugs" will use this technique to fool the spider and charge up to it for the kill.)
Pretending to be something it's not is probably the most common form of "hacking" we face, whether it be through overt scams or even companies making promises about their technologies that just aren't true, even if believed by the company (Theranos, anyone?).
Here are some other resources about scams, specifically:
- US FTC's article, "How to Avoid a Scam"
- Mark Rober's scam caller takedown video (Really important to see how scammers work to deceive people, and this one is entertaining.)
AI is another deceptive one. While masquerading as a trustworthy being, it just isn't. Yes, I use generative AI like ChatGPT, but it's always with scrutiny and suspicion.
We humans have explored the idea of AI and human interaction for more than a century—potentially for thousands of years, depending on how you define, "artificial intelligence." These stories inform our thinking as well as the thinking and designs of the people creating AI tools.
It is wise to be aware of the myths we have surrounding AI, and to remember that our brains have biological biases (see a previous CYBORG_ issue) that help to further deceive us into thinking these chatbots are safe, trustworthy, and relatable.
Cyborg
There was a lot here, and the last section got a little heavy, so let's recap.
The technology with which we surround ourselves is powerful and important. Make no mistake, I default to advocating for technology—more tech, better tech.
A healthy cyborg remembers that all things must be balanced. There are costs and risks on the same scale as the benefits and rewards.
Awareness is so important for our safety, but it also can't be our obsession to the point of overwhelm or non-action. So be safe, trust your instincts, learn about cyber-security, but don't over-invest in fear.
Our webs have brought us unprecedented freedom, knowledge, power, and potential. Take an active role in creating and building the web of technology that will best suit your needs and keep you in the driver seat.
In my experience, technology has helped me work through the most difficult problems of my life, from salvaging a career despite my diagnosis of MS to connecting to people and community that have saved me in other ways.
Perhaps the most important thing I've learned from our spider friends is that it is ok to use the technology we have available. Use it to extend ourselves, our abilities. A spider is a great model of an organic cyborg.