C. Thi Nguyen
From Design Matters with Debbie Millman by Design Matters Media
February 23, 2026 · 1h 11m
About this episode
C. Thi Nguyen discusses his book on how metrics influence our values and choices.
C. Thi Nguyen—philosopher, professor, and author of Games: Agency as Art —joins to discuss his new book, The Score: How to Stop Playing Somebody Else’s Game , and how metrics, from grades to likes, quietly reshape what we value and who we become. Together, they explore games as “libraries of agency,” the allure of scoring systems, and the vital question: Is this the game you really want to be playing? Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
People in this episode
Host: Debbie Millman
Guest: C. Thi Nguyen
Topics covered
- philosophy
- games
- metrics
- agency
- value
- scoring systems
Keywords
- C. Thi Nguyen
- games
- metrics
- agency
- philosophy
- scoring systems
- TED
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Design Matters Media, TED
Books & works: Games: Agency as Art, The Score: How to Stop Playing Somebody Else’s Game
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