Why we can’t quit e-mail, even though we all hate it

Our inboxes contain news that ranges from the trivial to the life-changing, which is why they’re so addictive.

Email is a special kind of torture. Most office workers are utterly dependent on it. We also hate it. And we also find it enormously useful. PHOTO: PEXELS
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It’s the sheer variety of e-mails that bewilders.

A forwarded review of a fried-chicken shop, suggesting it as a venue for a date. A heartfelt break-up letter, one that could have been written on paper in the 1960s. A note from Joe to his friend Brian suggesting a way to make a bit of cash, which turned out to be the founding document of Airbnb.

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