Wednesday 20 February 2008

Addicted to Tech-anphet-thc-mean

'I got the shakes, real bad. I haven’t checked my messages in like…five minutes! Oh God! J…j…just a little bit of plastic, I just want the feel in my hand.' There has been a rise in ‘Techno’ addiction says Professor Nada Kakabadse of Northampton University.

When I first read this over at the BEEEEEEB, I thought she meant techno, as in the music. That would be a far more interesting story. Everyone knows you can get addicted to practically anything. Technology runs the same reward gambit that drinking, gambaling, drugs etc does.


“Bing” I just levelled up on some generic online game. Woot! Gimme more. ‘Bong’ I just got a new message on my Crackberry, who could it be? A new friend, a NEW friend on Myface!

An addiction to a music form, now that’s new. I’ve gone through many phases of musical appreciation, often renouncing all the others at one time or another but I’d never say I became addicted. I can become obsessed with just about anything but it’s a very fickle obsession, usually with a little segment of music or a line from a film. And goes as quickly as it came.

Techno addiction, beware the silicon!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

i don't beleave you can get addicted to technology... you get atticted to the thing it provides for you; russian teen porn, escapism in a forum, free music, writing some well futile blog, thin-spiration teen suicide, shooting German troops in Call of Duty - whatever. I especially dislike the whole japanese = sad and addicted to technology. they're just trying to belong and escape their ridged regimented culture - the technology is just the conduit, not the addiction. they should look at what it is about japanese culture that makes them behave that way and cut the bollocks about technology being attictive. if youz checking your messages every 5 minutes or endlessly loging on to bookwormbitches.ru you probably have a background depression that a trip down the pub and some exercise would probably break... if that fails log-on and make some new friends and enjoy doing something that makes you happy.

anything that takes us away from the TV has to be good.

Bjam said...

I agree with you anonymous. However, I doubt most people think the majority of Japanese society is addicted to technology. As you rightly put, it’s purely a conduit to other social interactions that ingrained cultural edicate may not enable in everyday life.

As someone who claims that regular checking of messages and logging on to porn sites equals a background of depression, I have to point out you mentioned two porn sites in that last comment.

I'd argue for the importance for regular 'meaningful' human contact but I don't think the endorphins provided by a trip down the gym or the anesthetisation from alcohol necessarily good substitutes when trying to overcome a sense of isolation.

I agree anything that takes us away from TV screen burn is a good thing. The access to information, media and communities that share a common interest on the web is always going to beat passively staring at a flickering box. I think the ideal is to find a group of friends that are genuine, interesting people and have your web presence complimentary to that. I.e. having the best of both worlds.

tad said...

ade why dont you start logging in with your name instead of staying anon? (the russian teen porn gave it away :) )