Technology and Presence

[quantumspiral]

It's interesting how technology can either promote presence, or it's opposite, numbness- depending on how it's used.

Mindless social media scrolling or video games facilitate numbness. I think the endless buffet of stimulation allows the mind to go to sleep while being titillated passively by the contents of the screen.

However, while researching, reading or working on some kind of project intentionally on a computer- you can be in presence. I think this is because the mind must be used in a proactive way, rather than being passively stimulated.

If anybody has any input on this distinction, it would be appreciated. I think this is one subtle but important downside of video games.