amazing post. i totally agree with the points you made and the 'smartphone theory of everything.' I have definitely been thinking about this, but in a less scientific way. I think about ancient wizards looking into an orb that can see all around the world and then it melts their brain and they go mad with power. Social media and smart phones are like the seeing stone orbs from lord of the rings, the palantir... and now everyone just has a seeing stone that they get to walk around with and melt their brains. its highlight clips from around the world instantly. everything you see is inherently exciting because people were inspired to pull a camera out to film in the first place, magnify that by 8 billion people and mix in an algorithm that only wants more engagement and more excitement and boom, it's a nightmare... its an amazing technology and it is super powerful and right now, I think we can all agree, it's a bit overwhelming and should be clawed back a bit... especially with children... not to brag or anything, i graduated highschool in 2007, the year the iphone came out, i was in the last generation to make it out non-smartphoned. I kept my motorola razr for as long as i could and thought i was fancy when i bought a laptop in college... I thought "if i wanna go online i'll get my computer"... i used to feel sorry for people with smart phones... and i'll never get apple... but i did get a damn android and now i'm addicted like the rest... thanks for a great article... cheers...
Agree on all your points. It is a blessing to be of the millennial generation that experienced the social media revolution as teens - memories of the pre-smartphone world and also the skill to navigate the digital world intelligently.
I completely subscribe to this. I couldn't believe the day I heard NPR quote education researches saying "we know scores started to drop around 2012, before the pandemic, but we're still trying to figure out why."
Now we know about the effect of smartphones and social media, but I don't think we have a solution that can be easily applied. And that is distressing.
Interesting to read this right now, because I had to take a trip back to my previous home and finalize some things after moving away from there.
I decided to make it an overnight stay, and get some rest since the move has not been the best for me. I found out I was sick of my phone! So I didn't use it as much - turned them off, recharged them and rested.
I was surprised to get the best rest of my life, plus I began to reconnect with myself. I was losing my hobbies, my spirituality, and who I was, really.
I believe these findings. I also know how hard it is to try and get the kids off their phones at school too. (I used to Teach)
amazing post. i totally agree with the points you made and the 'smartphone theory of everything.' I have definitely been thinking about this, but in a less scientific way. I think about ancient wizards looking into an orb that can see all around the world and then it melts their brain and they go mad with power. Social media and smart phones are like the seeing stone orbs from lord of the rings, the palantir... and now everyone just has a seeing stone that they get to walk around with and melt their brains. its highlight clips from around the world instantly. everything you see is inherently exciting because people were inspired to pull a camera out to film in the first place, magnify that by 8 billion people and mix in an algorithm that only wants more engagement and more excitement and boom, it's a nightmare... its an amazing technology and it is super powerful and right now, I think we can all agree, it's a bit overwhelming and should be clawed back a bit... especially with children... not to brag or anything, i graduated highschool in 2007, the year the iphone came out, i was in the last generation to make it out non-smartphoned. I kept my motorola razr for as long as i could and thought i was fancy when i bought a laptop in college... I thought "if i wanna go online i'll get my computer"... i used to feel sorry for people with smart phones... and i'll never get apple... but i did get a damn android and now i'm addicted like the rest... thanks for a great article... cheers...
Agree on all your points. It is a blessing to be of the millennial generation that experienced the social media revolution as teens - memories of the pre-smartphone world and also the skill to navigate the digital world intelligently.
Online gambling is a hidden epidemic
Thank you for your article. I think we will reach a point where pain becomes unbearable, which will push us to change. I recently wrote a reflection on how technology is shaping the way we communicate. I am glad to share it with you. https://open.substack.com/pub/suhaismail/p/from-awe-to-solitude-how-technology?r=5dqc6z&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
I completely subscribe to this. I couldn't believe the day I heard NPR quote education researches saying "we know scores started to drop around 2012, before the pandemic, but we're still trying to figure out why."
Now we know about the effect of smartphones and social media, but I don't think we have a solution that can be easily applied. And that is distressing.
Interesting to read this right now, because I had to take a trip back to my previous home and finalize some things after moving away from there.
I decided to make it an overnight stay, and get some rest since the move has not been the best for me. I found out I was sick of my phone! So I didn't use it as much - turned them off, recharged them and rested.
I was surprised to get the best rest of my life, plus I began to reconnect with myself. I was losing my hobbies, my spirituality, and who I was, really.
I believe these findings. I also know how hard it is to try and get the kids off their phones at school too. (I used to Teach)
Great article, and some interesting statistics in your article. Thank you.