Twelve thousand separate lines of code define the basic functionality of a modern digital thermostat, yet most of us only ever touch the two buttons that make the room warmer or cooler. This phenomenon-the “feature creep” that turns a simple tool into a sprawling monument to internal corporate compromise-is everywhere.
Microwave UI
“Popcorn” buttons that replace the actual clock-setting logic.
Car Dashboards
Flight-deck aesthetics masking standard driving functions.
Supplement Bottles
Insidiously complex labels hiding in your kitchen cabinet.
It is in the microwave that has a button for “popcorn” but requires a manual to set the clock. It is in the car dashboard that looks like a flight deck. And, most insidiously, it is on the back of the white plastic bottle sitting on your kitchen counter.
The Shards of a Routine
Ninety-four specific characters of text were all it took for me to realize that the supplement industry has a “committee problem.” I was staring at a label for a “comprehensive” brain health formula while trying to sweep up the remains of my favorite ceramic mug.
I’d dropped it during a particularly foggy Tuesday morning, and as I looked at the shards-the sharp, jagged geometry of a morning gone wrong-I realized that my supplement routine felt exactly like that broken pile. It was a collection of