Here's an article from the August 23 & 30, 2010 edition of Newsweek:
Lost in Electronica
The Costs of 'the chaos of constant connection.'
by George F. Will
Can trout be bored? Can dolphins or apes? Are they neurologically complex enough to experience boredom? What might boredom mean to such creatures? Humanity can boast that it is capable of boredom, but there my now be an unhealthy scarcity of that particular brain pain.
Human beings evolved over dangerous eons. Brains formed in response to constant hazards may react with boredom when exposed to the safety of modern life. Perhaps flight from boredom prompts people today to take refuge in constant stimulation by visual and audio entertainments.
Adam J. Cox is a clinical psychologist worried about the effect of today's cornucopia of electronic stimuli on the cognition of young boys. Writing in The New Atlantis, he says human beings evolved in a world of nutritional scarcity and have responded to the sudden abundance of salt, sugar, and fat by creating and epidemic of obesity. And, he says, the mind, too, now craves junk nourishment:
"Fifty years ago, the onset of boredom might have followed a two-hour stretch of nothing to do. In contrast, boys today can feel bored after thirty seconds with nothing specific to do."
The ubiquitous barrage of battery-powered stimuli delivered by phones, computers, and games makes "the chaos of constant connection" and addictive electronic narcotic. As continuous stimulation becomes the new normal, "gaps between moments of heightened stimulation" are disappearing; amusement "has squeezed the boredom out of life." For the hyperstimulated, "the synaptic mindscape of daily life" becomes all peaks and no valleys.
But valleys can be good for us. Cox believes that a more common occurrence of boredom in the young would be welcome evidence of "the presence of available resources for thought, reflection, and civil behaviour." Cox notes that "being civil is rarely fun--it requires patience, forethought, and some willingness to tolerate tedium." So for the overstimulated, "civility feels like submission."
Cox worries about the deficits in the communication abilities of young males for whom a "womb of all-encompassing stimulation" induces "a pleasant trance from which they do not care to be awakened." Hence, perhaps, the "failure to launch" of many young males who, "preoccupied with self-amusement," struggled to make the transition from adolescence to adulthood. What Cox calls "the unbearable lightness of adolescence" is not new; what is new is an "excess of amusement" producing a deficient sense of gravity.
"Unlike reading and listening to stories," Cox warns, "the blitz of electronica doesn't build deeper listening skills or a greater range of emotional expression." Self-absorption, particularly among young males, may be the greatest danger of immersion in the bath of digital amusement: "Not only does withdrawal into electronica enable them to bypass the confusion and pain of trying to give their emotions some coherence, it also helps them avoid the realities of being a flawed, vulnerable, ordinary human being." So "the silent, sullen boy at the mall's game store may be next in line for an underemployed, lonely adulthood if we don't teach him how to maintain effective social contacts with others."
Cox doubts it is a mere coincidence that "the stratospheric increase in diagnosed learning and attention deficits" has correlated with "the advent of the electronic playground." When so many Americans meet the diagnostic criteria for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, it "is arguably no longer a disorder at all--it's just the way we are."
Yes, "we." Not just boys but adults of both sexes, too, seem insatiably hungry for handheld devices that deliver limitless distractions. Neuroscience demonstrates that the brain is not a finished product; neural networks can be rewired by intense and prolonged experiences. Some research suggests that the constant short-term stimulation of flitting to and fro among digital promptings can impede long-term memory on which important forms of intelligence depend.
We are in the midst of a sudden and vast social experiment involving myriad new means of keeping boredom at bay. And we may yet rue the day we surrendered to the insistent urge to do so.
There are, however, paragons among whom boredom flourishes. Valerie Jarrett, one of Barack Obama's closest confidantes, says (as reported in David Remnick's The Bridge), "He knows exactly how smart he is ... He's been bored to death his whole life. He's just too talented to do what ordinary people do." Even regarding boredom, he is a reproach to the rest of us.
Is boredom inherently bad? The word itself carries with it a negative connotation. Seems like we need to think again before succumbing to the temptation of switching on some electronic device when we feel bored.
On another note, looking forward to seeing everyone at MAF (:
- guess who.
A June Post & happy birthday Sun Shuo
6/29/2010 11:52:00 PM
Dear 08s6a Blog
You seem very lonely and bored. You know why - Cross elasticity of demand (availability of substitutes) & change in taste and preference.
Once upon a time, you were quite popular because ppl loved to post class/random photos on you. If they are in good mood, they may even throw in a few lines. But uploading photo here is too troublesome. Now ppl upload, tag & comment photos on facebook. Haiz, your competitor offers lower opportunity cost in terms of effort & time.
People change & their needs change accordingly. When guys start to talk about field camps and girls about orientation camps, you are pushed to the corner of their minds. Don't be sad. That's just how it goes~ We will still come and visit you.
Have a nice dream~
Kssl
voices in flight!
4/29/2010 09:55:00 PM
Anyone interested to go listen to voices in flight?
've gone for the concert in '08 and honestly, it was great (ask woonyang if you doubt me)!
NODAMENODAMENODAME!
3/25/2010 06:30:00 AM
Just wanted to share with all of you a very very nice drama!
Nodame Cantabile is about an encounter between a weird pianist, an aspiring conductor, and lotsa beautiful music!
Here are but a few of the many really good pieces played:
Many many many thanks to waimin who asked us to watch the movie (yep there's a two-part movie to the serial!)!!
