The other day we went to see the dinosaurs, real fossils of
dinosaurs, a fantastic exhibition in Genève. While the kids run freely in the
museum, the moment we came out the door and before we even reached the car, they
were asking dad to play with his phone.
My mind was still immersed in that world, wondering about
the dinosaur’s habitat, their lives and consequent extinction so I was shocked with the realisation that they had already disconnected from what they had seen.
It made me think of the example we are giving to children when we are constantly checking our phones.
These days if you don’t have a virtual self it is as if you
don’t exist. And when you do have it, this doppelganger takes over and you
start living life through lenses; where a barrier between ‘you’ and ‘you’ is
erected.
The ‘real’ you and the you that is virtually projected,
create a duality of experiences, a detachment from the act of experiencing.
Smartphones, laptops and tablets with the consequent links
to the social media make us experience the events as a 3rd party. While
the physical self is in robot mode, the virtual self is engaged in reporting the
interaction between the two.
The human side seems to have lost its ability to move us, we
are stimulated by constant external visuals and words coming out of screens that so we turned dull.
When we stop engaging with the physical nature
we become mere machines, functioning while connected to the plug or while the
battery lasts but apathetic when the devices are turned off.
We have become
artificially intelligent as we live longer in the virtual world than out in
nature.
We are imprisoned by boxes with screens, in the office, at home, in the
public transportation, while having dinner with friends. The little or big
screens are always present, remind us that we can be somewhere else rather than
here. We are overusing these devices, they are numbing our senses, killing our creativity and making us socially anxious
for likes. The human connection seems to have lost its priority in the world.
We are so afraid of A.I. that we, ourselves are become it, mere robots with insensitive bodies and minds, constantly searching for excitement. Internet has turned into the most addictive drug!
What’s more
important, experiencing life or reporting it? When was the last time you sat by
a tree without pulling your phone out of your pocket? When was the last time that you truly engaged with what's around you? When was the last time you truly looked into someone's eyes?
