I told my college students the other day that I was going to collect their Blackberries and I-Phones before I did my final lecture(s) – because I didn’t want anyone distracted from my words of wisdom. But I also know that whenever someone lectures in unbroken fashion – people become distracted and manifest ADHD-like symptoms: so I tried something else…I had everyone ask me “the question they’d been meaning to ask me all Semester long.”
And while I had plenty of fun questions to answer – I’m not sure that many of my students “heard” my responses – as they were absorbed by, or trying to get back to, the universe that resides within their black box: that place where they are goddesses and gods.
I remember being concerned about the advent of the music headphone, suggesting at that time (I think it was sometime in the ‘70s ?!) – that people would be less likely to interact with each other – as one’s own space would become one’s world. And, again, this might be the natural progression/evolution of mankind – but it sure ends up looking a lot like my working definition of schizophrenia which is: The schizophrenic cannot discern between what is happening in the head and what is happening in the empirical world.
For months now, Son Austen has been texting to whomever in the movie theater (Austen and I try to get a movie and lunch in every Sunday). And when he brings a buddy – they both want to text during the movie I just paid for. I’m not sure I get it – if you want to see a movie, shouldn’t you watch it, or, are the plots so simplistic that you can multi-task and embrace the movie at the same time?
When I put this to the test with my college students – who are constantly texting or e-mailing during the lectures – I find that they have no real clue of what is going on in class: they just park their bodies (zombie-like) in chairs – and apparently hope that they will absorb whateverisgoingon in-the-same-way they take in whatever is happening in their cyber-world. They don’t remember how many assignments they are supposed to accomplish (even though I remind them repeatedly); they don’t remember the e-mail address to send their work to me (even though I remind them repeatedly); and, they are apparently prepared to waste their tuition money in similar fashion to Austen wasting my movie money.
I don’t know if anyone else senses it – but U.S. youth (and the youth in much of the-rest-of-the-world who can afford electronic immersion into the ‘other’ world) have become the perfect slave culture(s). Do I blame Big Pharma; the government; or, the military? I don’t know…what I do know, however, is that by-and-large – we are growing experts in nothing!
Some psychologists still believe that they can tell what is happening inside the “other” black box (our brains), by connecting input to output. If this is the case – then I rest my case.
Naturally, I have made a grand generalization of our youth – because there are plenty of bright sparks out their – take great-niece, Mona, for instance: she’s a regular Renaissance Woman! Not only is she a whiz-bang with computers and multi-media stuff – but she is an incredible ice skater; awesome singer; and, talented actress – all-the-while maintaining an “A+” grade average. But the way the world is going – I don’t know if anyone will see her perform live in the future – perhaps she will have to video herself and sell herself on-the-net.
Come to think of it, I’ve been noticing dwindling attendance at the strip bar up-the-road (it’s on my way home folks and I’m a sociologist!) – as former patrons are probably feeling the money pinch and are preferring cyber world women to the flesh-and-blood on-the-stage…I wonder if the strippers feel like I do in my college classes…that no one’s listening, er, watching any more…