New! Distracted Featured in "Grace Notes" Exhibit at New York Society Library from January 19 to February 22 - New York City
Category Archives: Impact of Technology
« Older posts

Excerpt from Distracted in Latest Issue of New Philosopher

Mar
7,
2023
0Comments

I’m excited that the renowned global philosophy-design magazine New Philosopher is publishing an excerpt from the introduction to Distracted in its latest issue. In this excerpt, I argue that rising levels of inattention and splintered focus are indicative of a dark age. “It’s a darkening time when we think togetherness means keeping one eye, hand, or ear on our . . . read more

Categories: Distracted, Impact of Technology // Tagged: , , ,

My New Book on Uncertainty’s Upsides Coming in November

Jan
7,
2023
0Comments

I’m excited to announced that my latest book will be published by Prometheus in mid-November this year. The book explores the surprising upsides of being unsure in an age of flux and angst.

From the introduction: “Far from automatically miring us in cognitive paralysis, uncertainty plays an essential role in higher-order thinking, propelling people in challenging . . . read more

Categories: Impact of Technology, Uncertainty

The Upsides of Uncertainty – Part II

Dec
12,
2021
0Comments

As we continue to grapple with a fast-evolving virus, extreme fall-out from climate change, and the resulting social divisions, uncertainty remains in the news and on people’s minds. And our scorn, fear, and dread of this deeply human mindset is clear. I hear laments from friends and see almost-daily headlines riddled with fear of the . . . read more

Categories: Impact of Technology, Reflection, Uncertainty // Tagged:

Just Hand-Wringing? Why the Excesses of Technology Need Watching

Jan
19,
2019
0Comments

In 2018, I did an interview with one of the UK’s leading environmentalists, Rob Hopkins, about the  fragmentation of attention in modern life. At the time, Hopkins was exploring an overlooked hurdle to solving global warming – our waning ability to think well and even to muster the creativity needed to imagine and shape a . . . read more

Categories: Distracted, Impact of Technology

A New Vision of Balance: Tech-Life, Not Work-Life

Jul
28,
2018
0Comments

A new vision of human flourishing is urgently needed, I call it “tech-life balance.”

That’s one of the points that I discussed recently in an interview for the intriguing new blog Human-Autonomy Sciences, curated by two leading psychology researchers on human-machine interaction, Clemson University’s Richard Pak and Microsoft Senior Design Research Manager Arathi Sethumadhavan.

In . . . read more

Categories: Distracted, Impact of Technology, Work-life

Invited HuffPost TED Weekend Blog: Beyond Gaming, There’s Life

Sep
6,
2013
0Comments

 

We’d just begun a family vacation this summer, when my teenager woke up barely able to swallow, with a throat raw and sore. I took her to the nearest ER, where the wait was blessedly brief. A triage nurse whisked into the examining room with a laptop on wheels and began questioning my daughter. . . . read more

Categories: Distracted, Family Life, Impact of Technology, Reflection, Work-life

In McCain’s (Multitasking) Wake: WashPost’s “Great Moments in Boredom”

Sep
5,
2013
0Comments

 

Yesterday I got a call from an old AP colleague, now with the Washington Post. Quick! Dave Beard wanted commentary on distraction for a photo montage dubbed “Great Moments in Boredom.”

The Post’s resulting Photo Gallery, featured on page one today, offers a nice peek at world leaders and others caught peeking at their watches, yawning and . . . read more

Categories: Distracted, Impact of Technology

Why We Can’t Let Google Push Technology ‘Out of the Way’

Jun
18,
2013
0Comments

Note:  This post first appeared on Huffington Post‘s front page.

 

Heading home last week after a walk in Central Park, I saw a bearded man on his hands and knees, peering at a patch of plants poking up between the sidewalk’s cobblestones. Lost key or contact lens? I stopped to ask. No, he was . . . read more

Categories: Distracted, Impact of Technology, Reflection

A CNN.com Blog: Does It Matter Where and When We Are?

Oct
28,
2012
0Comments

I was asked to write this CNN.com blog as part of their recent series on our mobile society:

 

Tonight, as my husband stands in our bedroom, fingers whirling across his smartphone and eyes glued to its tiny screen, I have no idea “where” he is. Is he checking the score of his beloved home . . . read more

Categories: Distracted, Family Life, Impact of Technology // Tagged: , , , ,

Digital Dharma: The Art of Preservation in a Copy-Paste World

Aug
8,
2012
0Comments

Replication is at the heart of life. The genetic information encoded in our DNA allows new life to be passed along and to evolve. Children learn through imitation. And the copying of written information allows us to build on the past and make knowledge accessible. Gutenberg turned a wine press into a vehicle for individual . . . read more

Category: Impact of Technology // Tagged: , , , , ,
« Older posts