Your Brain on Computers – Attached to Technology and Paying a Price, a pretty fascinating read. I think the main subject of the article, Kord Campbell, is the same guy who used to run a photo sharing startup I thought about working at 6 or 7 years ago.
Very interesting. This topic seems to be a topic of a lot of conversation as of late. WIRED has an article addressing the same issue this month.
The Wall Street Journal has a recent article that offers an interesting counterpoint to all this concern that computers and the internet are making us stupid and distracted. The author draws striking comparisons to previous information revolutions, like the invention of the printing press.
Very interesting – lately I’ve been suffering from this very phenomenon: getting bored at work, always looking for the latest and greatest solutions to business problems, not finishing documents I’ve been working on for a while, getting interested in WordPress and setting up a blog and then not writing on it 🙂 etc.
I have a week of vacation coming up and I think it will be time to unplug completely!
Have a good time here in Montreal Matt!
Just like anything else, we are responsible for ourselves and how we operate in the world. It is easy to get swept up in the stimulation and excitement of the digital world, but without some practices to counteract the impact we can get into trouble. I use meditation to settle down my brain, though not nearly as much as I should. I like to evaluate what I am doing every few months and make a conscious decision about how I want to re-orient myself and my online activities. It is certainly not easy to maintain a balance.
When I first read this I thought that some of it was hyperbole, but after spending more time thinking about it I agree to some extent.
A healthy dose of technology stimulates our mind, makes us more efficient, and allows us to express ourselves in a totally different way.
The problem is when it becomes addictive like a drug and users begin to isolate. I have found it’s important to establish healthy boundaries around how much time I spend on the computer and playing video games.
Some times I’m successful and other times I’m hooked!
This is a scary issue. When I went back to graduate school in 1996, I was proud not to know how to use a computer, now I am learning about building online businesses, and even at 62, I can get burned by bright shiny objects. But watching my 11 year old is reassuring. He seems able to walk away when he needs to, but he does love his xbox. And now there are even brain fitness programs online. Mike
We unplug most of the day working outside raising pigs and such, gardening, reading, ect. This is by design. The problem is not new. Plan for it. Our family was talking about one of these articles (Funny Times) and none of us had an electronic device us except for one basic watch. This included three kids seven to 18. Unplugged.