Behind the Screens: How the Internet Works & How to Make it Work for You by Niraj Lal, Illustrations by Aśka (University of Queensland Press, $19.99) The publisher provided Alphabet Soup with a reading copy of this book.
Dr Niraj Lal is a researcher, writer and presenter. He is the host of the ABC’s Imagine This kids’ podcast, and he’s passionate about making science work in society’s interests. He has a PhD in physics, has appeared on Play School and Catalyst, and has won numerous awards. Today we’re chatting to Niraj about his new book: Behind the Screens, illustrated by Aśka.
From the publisher:
This book answers questions like:
– If YouTube, Instagram and TikTok are all free, how come their owners are some of the richest people on the planet?
– Why is it so hard to stop scrolling?
– How do I know who to trust on the internet?
– How can I avoid being tracked by tech companies?
There’s a lot to love online! What’s your favourite online activity?
Doomscrolling while on the dunny. Nah joking! (Though I’d be lying if I said I didn’t do it … )
The thing that really gives me a kick is organising online to catch up offline – with my futsal team, school mates, and a weekly crew that goes swimming in the bay on Friday mornings.
What’s your favourite offline activity?
Getting into the bush and the ocean with my kids, partner and mates. Growing and harvesting food from the garden or things we’ve foraged, fished, or hunted.
Why does it feel so hard to step away from a screen (or put down your phone or device)?
Because every time you put your phone down, there are thousands of the world’s best paid engineers trying to make you pick it back up again! And our brains are really soft – we’ve evolved to have an almost limitless capacity for affirmation and validation and connection with people we know, and a deeply hardwired attraction to dings, and red notifications, and emojis. App developers have figured ways to hijack these ancient reward pathways to keep us super engaged.
Do you think AI could ever really replace/replicate Niraj Lal?
How do you know this is not an AI version of Niraj Lal writing this right now?
Lol … I’d like to think not, but with sufficient AI training on things I’ve said and written and done in the past, I’m sure some future version of ChatGPT could replicate me pretty convincingly.
This is a little terrifying.
There are breakout boxes in the book, where we hear from kids who share their comments and give opinions on tech issues. How did you gather their responses?
By going into schools, and chatting with young people and their parents, right across Victoria and Queensland. I reckon the kids’ comments and opinions are one of the best bits in the book! Super insightful, savvy and articulate.
Can you tell us a bit about what you’re working on next?
New seasons of ABC Imagine This, being a science producer for a really cool film called Phenomena by Josef Gatti and Rob Innes (coming out soon!), a possible sequel to Behind the Screens, and my day job in renewable energy. Mainly trying to keep balance in the great dance of life – I take a bunch of leave without pay to be able to hang out with my kids more and stay human as much as possible.
Behind the Screens: How the Internet Works & How to Make it Work for You is out now! Ask for it at your favourite bookshop or local library.
AWESOME EXTRAS
Take a look inside Behind the Screens
Visit Niraj Lal’s website for more about him and his projects
Visit Aśka’s website for more about her and her books & illustrating
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