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24/7: How Cell Phones and the Internet Change the Way We Live, Work, and Play
Just as the automobile radically changed people's lives at the beginning of the 20th century, so too has the revolution in online services (including blogging, podcasting, videogaming, shopping, and social networking) and cell-phone use changed our lives at the turn of the 21st century. In addition, many other services, activities, and devices―including the Palm Pilot, the BlackBerry, the iPod, digital cameras, and cell cameras―have been made possible by the combination of these two technologies. Whereas the automobile allowed people for the first time to work in cities and live comfortably in the suburbs, extending the long commute beyond the limits previously circumscribed by public transportation, the Internet and cell phone allow us to interact with others from around the world―or a few hundred miles―from where we work or live, giving rise to the telecommuting phenomenon and allowing us to stay in touch with friends and families in the new virtual environment. As Hanson demonstrates in her new book, these technologies enable us to work and play 24/7, anytime, anywhere.
What does this mean for us as individuals and for society as a whole? What are the social implications of this technological revolution that we have witnessed in the short span of about 20 years? Do people of different generations use these technologies in the same ways, or do they adopt them to support their communication habits formed at different times of their lives? How does the illusion of control provided by these technologies affect the way we think about what is meaningful in our lives? Hanson examines the wide-ranging impact of this change. How do individuals posting their viewpoints on the Internet affect democracy? Is it possible to ever completely prevent identity theft over the Internet? How permanent is information stored on the Internet or on a hard drive? Do cell phones change the way people think about privacy or the way they communicate with others? Does email? Do videogames teach new social principles? Do cell phones and the Internet change traditional communication behaviors and attitudes? Hanson discusses these crucial issues and explores to what extent individuals do have control, and she assesses how social and governmental services are responding to (or running from) the problems posed by these new technologies.
What does this mean for us as individuals and for society as a whole? What are the social implications of this technological revolution that we have witnessed in the short span of about 20 years? Do people of different generations use these technologies in the same ways, or do they adopt them to support their communication habits formed at different times of their lives? How does the illusion of control provided by these technologies affect the way we think about what is meaningful in our lives? Hanson examines the wide-ranging impact of this change. How do individuals posting their viewpoints on the Internet affect democracy? Is it possible to ever completely prevent identity theft over the Internet? How permanent is information stored on the Internet or on a hard drive? Do cell phones change the way people think about privacy or the way they communicate with others? Does email? Do videogames teach new social principles? Do cell phones and the Internet change traditional communication behaviors and attitudes? Hanson discusses these crucial issues and explores to what extent individuals do have control, and she assesses how social and governmental services are responding to (or running from) the problems posed by these new technologies.
176 pages, Hardcover
First published July 1, 2007
12 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
February 16, 2011
As far as subject matter goes, this book was spot-on in terms of both social and personal relevance. Cell phones and the Internet have had a distinctly observable effect on society and my own interactions with others. Points about online relationships were especially well taken.
However, much of the prose was oddly structured and difficult to read. As the commas proliferated, I began to get confused and forget the sentence's original subject. Sometimes I had to read paragraphs (and even entire pages) two or three times to actually grok the meaning couched in five layers of parenthetical phrases.
Often, commas (or other punctuation marks) seemed to be missing or misplaced, furthering the confusion. Parentheticals aren't nearly as confusing when their start and end points are clearly demarcated by properly matched punctuation.
I understand that the book was written by a communications researcher, not an English professor, but many of the mistakes should have been caught by the editor. I assume there was an editor...
Aside from the mechanics, there were also distracting factual inaccuracies. I have never seen the electromagnetic spectrum defined as "the part of the atmosphere" we use to transmit broadcast signals. One of my friends, studying physics in college, was appalled when I mentioned that definition. That's because it's just plain wrong; the electromagnetic spectrum is the range of frequencies at which electromagnetic waves such as radio/television/wireless signals, X-rays, and light occur naturally or can be generated—not an atmospheric component.
As the child of a radio engineer, I cannot in good conscience let such a gross factual error slip by unchallenged. Libraries should paste corrections in their copies; such misinformation is simply appalling.
Anachronisms such as the triple-tap text input method (long replaced by T9 and similar predictive algorithms) and MySpace's dominant position among Internet social networks were obviously due to the book's already advancing age. Four years practically equal a century in the world of technology, after all, especially in the Internet sector. Facebook was recently launched and still restricted to college students at press time, and perhaps T9-style algorithms just weren't as common as I thought. Still, I had to stop and think about the sections referencing these outdated facts.
The text seemed repetitive at times. I felt like the same points were made several times over the course of the book. Whether the redundancy was real or merely perceived, pushing through to the end of the book was difficult. That difficulty might be jointly attributed to the style as well; the prose is staunchly academic, fit for a textbook (judging from my experiences therewith).
However, much of the prose was oddly structured and difficult to read. As the commas proliferated, I began to get confused and forget the sentence's original subject. Sometimes I had to read paragraphs (and even entire pages) two or three times to actually grok the meaning couched in five layers of parenthetical phrases.
Often, commas (or other punctuation marks) seemed to be missing or misplaced, furthering the confusion. Parentheticals aren't nearly as confusing when their start and end points are clearly demarcated by properly matched punctuation.
I understand that the book was written by a communications researcher, not an English professor, but many of the mistakes should have been caught by the editor. I assume there was an editor...
Aside from the mechanics, there were also distracting factual inaccuracies. I have never seen the electromagnetic spectrum defined as "the part of the atmosphere" we use to transmit broadcast signals. One of my friends, studying physics in college, was appalled when I mentioned that definition. That's because it's just plain wrong; the electromagnetic spectrum is the range of frequencies at which electromagnetic waves such as radio/television/wireless signals, X-rays, and light occur naturally or can be generated—not an atmospheric component.
As the child of a radio engineer, I cannot in good conscience let such a gross factual error slip by unchallenged. Libraries should paste corrections in their copies; such misinformation is simply appalling.
Anachronisms such as the triple-tap text input method (long replaced by T9 and similar predictive algorithms) and MySpace's dominant position among Internet social networks were obviously due to the book's already advancing age. Four years practically equal a century in the world of technology, after all, especially in the Internet sector. Facebook was recently launched and still restricted to college students at press time, and perhaps T9-style algorithms just weren't as common as I thought. Still, I had to stop and think about the sections referencing these outdated facts.
The text seemed repetitive at times. I felt like the same points were made several times over the course of the book. Whether the redundancy was real or merely perceived, pushing through to the end of the book was difficult. That difficulty might be jointly attributed to the style as well; the prose is staunchly academic, fit for a textbook (judging from my experiences therewith).
January 15, 2013
This book talks about a great subject. Overall I can say that it was really informative but the down side of it was long sentences, boring, encyclopedic paragraphs that just made me want to leave it and never read again. I recommend it if you are interested in such subjects but if you want a book that will just take you away and give you that feeling of satisfaction, this isn't it.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews