Stam Adam is not my real name. The meaning of the Hebrew phrase is ‘just a man’ - an ordinary man. The author [me, hi] wishes to remain anonymous, at least for now. I’m fairly confident that determined individuals with the goal of uncovering my identity will succeed, despite the not-insignificant efforts I’ve invested to stay anonymous and make your mission harder - especially considering I’m not exceptionally technical.
If you do figure out who I am, it will be solely due to my writing style, a stupid mistake I make myself, or you’re exceptionally gifted hackers with a lot of free time. Another possibility is that you know me in real life and have had more than one deep conversation with me - fortunately that circle is limited to no more than a minyan of people.
Someone who knows me well enough personally and spends at most 15 focused minutes on this site will have no problem figuring out it’s me. Thankfully, the odds of those people stumbling onto this site are fairly low, especially at this early stage. To the stranger who wants to learn more about me - where I live, how old I am, what I do with my life - I’m sorry but I won’t be providing clear-cut answers.
Either way, here are the details you could figure out without much effort:
- I have no formal academic education.
- I love lists, probably too much.
- I like to make them look good.
- I speak Hebrew & English.
- I was born in Israel.
- I am a curious guy.
- That’s it, for now.
My identity - from my first and last name, to where I live or what my face looks like - won’t help you much. Honestly, it’s all background noise when I truly think about it. My goal is to share the content I consume and write in the clearest way possible - for my future-self and for a potential readership. That’s more than enough.
Besides, I’m not willing to give up anonymity [maybe it’s a fear of exposing myself and my inner world in such an intellectually intimate way] especially in this era of humanity - when privacy has become a luxury and anonymity is no longer the default - it seems to me that anonymity is an advantage, not a disadvantage, at least for someone like me. I’d rather be Finch than Reese [iykyk].
There’s also a certain paradox here. I choose to hide the dry details - age, name, hometown, physical appearance, etc - but a reader who spends enough time on this site will probably learn more about me than they would about most people who publish their full identity online. It’s no secret that thoughts, questions, fears, curiosities and obsessions reveal a person far more than a photo, a last name, or a breakfast shot in Paris with their partner.
One last thing I want to make clear: I don’t claim to be an intellectual, I’m not a philosopher and I’m not a scientist. I have no academic education and I’m not exceptionally smart, I’m.. stam adam.