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Why We Spiral

(behavioralscientist.org)
318 points gmays | 8 comments | 14 Sep 25 14:46 UTC | HN request time: 0.005s | source | bottom
1. teddyh ◴[14 Sep 25 15:55 UTC] No.45240782[source]▶
Original title: “Why We Spiral”; mangled by HN to the incomprehensible “We Spiral”.
replies(3): >>45240922 #>>45241094 #>>45241715 #
2. admissionsguy ◴[14 Sep 25 16:08 UTC] No.45240922[source]▶
I found the shortened one accurate and also thought provoking
replies(2): >>45241264 #>>45241626 #
3. airstrike ◴[14 Sep 25 16:25 UTC] No.45241094[source]▶
FYI HN does edit out the "Why", but OP can go in and modify the title after submitting.
replies(1): >>45241419 #
4. chrisweekly ◴[14 Sep 25 16:49 UTC] No.45241264[source]▶
I think the shortened title is actually better; the essay doesn't go deep into "why", it's more a set of observations illustrating that we do in fact spiral.
5. daveguy ◴[14 Sep 25 17:08 UTC] No.45241419[source]▶
Maybe HN needs an "if num_words > 3" before the "delete leading Why". Or maybe an "if char_count > CHAR_LIMIT" before the "delete leading Why".

Or just don't. What a near guaranteed way to mangle the meaning of a title.

6. MarkLowenstein ◴[14 Sep 25 17:33 UTC] No.45241626[source]▶
I figured it was going to be about WeWork circling the drain. Thankfully it wasn't.
7. isoprophlex ◴[14 Sep 25 17:43 UTC] No.45241715[source]▶
That makes one wonder what happens if one was to submit a story titled "Why"
replies(1): >>45241992 #
8. layer8 ◴[14 Sep 25 18:11 UTC] No.45241992[source]▶
It remains as “Why”. Same for “Why not?”. Maybe it needs at least three words. Though “Why why why“ also isn’t changed. Apologies to anyone who came across my experiments.