[Rhodes22-list] Hi-tech is turning us all into time-wasters

[Michael D. Weisner]

For those of you who spend more time on the computer, cell phone, etc. than sailing, you might be interested in the article below.  When sailing, I do not bring the laptop and usually stow the cell phone so that it stays dry, checking for messages when in the cabin getting refreshments.

My favorite line in the article is:
"Even the beeps notifying the arrival of email are said to be causing a 0.5 per cent drop in gross domestic product in the United States, costing the economy $70bn a year."

Is that where all of the money went?  No wonder the home mortgage folks are in trouble.

Now, if I could just get rid of the sailing distractions, like those personal watercraft ...

Mike
s/v Shanghai'd Summer ('81)
Nissequogue River, NY
Hi-tech is turning us all into time-wasters
Mobile phones and emails are triggering the 'distraction' part of the brain

Time-wasting is not just an irritating habit. It is an affliction that ruins millions of lives and often requires therapy and other treatment for sufferers, psychologists have warned.

According to new research, one person in five now suffers from the problem so badly that their careers, relationships and health are threatened. Many researchers blame computers and mobile phones for providing too many distractions for people.

'The subject is seen as joke,' said Professor Joseph Ferrari of DePaul University in Chicago. 'But the social and economic implications are huge. These people need therapy. They need to change the way they act and think.' 

Ferrari says that chronic procrastination is now so serious a condition it needs to be recognised by clinicians. In a study to be published later this year, he estimates that 15 to 20 per cent of people are chronic procrastinators. 'We now have data on 4,000 people, and it doesn't seem to matter what age you are, or your sex or background.' 

For the entire article:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2008/jul/20/psychology.mobilephones/print


Mike
s/v Shanghai'd Summer ('81)
Nissequogue River, NY