04/22/2025
This is a snippet from a book review in the Wall Street Journal. There are a couple of important points to consider. Excuse me now, but I need to shut down my computer and my phone for a while and think about stuff. Probably do a little daydreaming as well.
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"The paradoxical qualities of social media, which both alienate and connect, have been well-examined elsewhere. The accompanying phenomenon of mass loneliness, too. Ms. Rosen deserves praise for looking at areas of life that have been less frequently considered by those who ponder the disruptive effects of tech adaptations. The important things now vanishing, she notes, include spending unmediated time with others, stumbling upon serendipitous discoveries, drawing by hand, chatting with strangers and daydreaming.
Daydreaming, of course, can’t happen if a person picks up her smartphone for a micro-burst of entertainment the moment she has to wait in line at the supermarket; nor, buried in her screen, will she shoot the breeze with other customers or the cashier. Evidence marshaled by Ms. Rosen suggests that a person who doesn’t daydream is a person less inclined to introspection and invention.
When a person trades momentary boredom for a shot of screen-based dopamine, she gets the pleasure of escape but misses out on being awake and present in the moment and perhaps foregoes an insight or a recollection that would have added something to her life. A person who avoids interacting with others fends off potentially awkward exchanges but may also gradually lose the skills to recognize social cues. There is an opportunity cost to picking up your phone."
