hi all. I first learned of the internet when I was about 16 or 17 in the late 80s. I was working at a networking company for minimum wage, and one of the technicians did a presentation on the internet. he wanted to work on TCP/IP he said. he talked about it on a whiteboard and drew a little bubble he called "the cloud" that represented all networked computers. of course, "the cloud" has a new meaning nowadays, it tends to refer to renting computers/cycles.

about the same time I learned about hypertext. there was a very good hypertext manual for Novell software. I was really impressed and realized that hypertext was a phenomenal way of organizing information, and that probably an open/global standard would evolve in not too long. yeah just call me the "visionary".

here we are about 2 decades later after the cyberspatial revolution is in full swing. its not burned out yet. the wave is still cresting in my estimation. a big crest was the dotcom crash which was quite a ride also. now we are on the slower part of the wave where theres genuine political change, eg the election of Obama via the facebook/youtube generation. many analysts think that social/viral networking was a critical factor in his election, there are many news stories to that effect, and I must say that I agree.

so where is cyberspace taking us? taking the long view we are living through a sociological transformation that is easily on the level of importance to the human species as the renaissance or the invention of the printing press. (those two events were coupled, and are very much analogous in many ways to our current renaissance.) historians will probably invent a name in retrospect, decades from now. the Transformation? not sure.

I could go on for hours talking like this. the cyberspatial revolution is not all smiles and roses or whatever, but we're still in for some major alterations and dislocations. I dont know exactly what the future holds. I did like a quote I saw in another blog. maybe the future will hold "more play and less work". that seems to be one of my yearnings since a young age. I fantasized that cyberspace might bring that about. in some ways it has, in some ways it hasnt.

anyway, I collected a bazillion links on the subject over many months, and I think Ive finally reached the threshhold to unleash them in this post, maybe you will enjoy skimming through them.

I may add some further thoughts/analysis esp depending on feedback in comments, if theres some meme that others seem to find interesting.

 actually I think I was inspired to post finally by [1,2] where obama recently stated that tech devices seem to be encouraging shallow thinking, which is reflected in various sentiments lately including actual scientific/psychological studies.[7,8,9,10,12,18,19] a name that comes up a lot around this point is Nicholas Carr who has written the groundbreaking essay on the subject [19] which he just expanded into a new book.[24]

others argue that its just making our brains "different" but not harming them, even leading to a new kind of literacy.[11] other articles suggest that human interactions and relationships are starting to change.[6,13,20]

various articles suggest its a generational shift also.[14,15,16] some worry that we're getting too disconnected from RL (real life), living in a "screenworld" [22] or, the matrix? and that we've lost the ability to disconnect, because we're "virtually" addicted, so to speak. [21] a key question for me is the political ramifications of cyberspace where some take a more skeptical, cynical, or pessimistic view and argue that its negligible or discouraging particularly wrt human rights, freedoms, or political progress.[3,23]

overall I think [5] points to as-yet-untapped potential. clay shirky talks grandiosely and semi-utopianistically in [25]. [29], famous conservative columnist and observer of cultural zeitgeist, george will sounds the alarm and argues its dumbing us down.

[1]
Obama's self-hating iPad attack
The president disses Apple's latest gadget. Has he forgotten how he won the White House?
http://www.salon.com/technology/ipad/index.html?story=/tech/htww/2010/05/11/obama_attack_on_the_ipad

[2]
Confessions of a Tech Apostate
President Obama says devices like Apple’s iPad are rotting our brains. He’s right.
http://www.newsweek.com/2010/05/12/confessions-of-a-tech-apostate.html

[3]
The Web Doesn't Spread Freedom
The revolution wasn't digitized--because autocrats found ways to control the internet, rather than be controlled by it.
http://www.newsweek.com/2010/04/30/the-internet-helps-build-democracies-oh-no-it-doesn-t.html

[4]
Reasonable People Disagree about Connectivity
http://www.good.is/post/reasonable-people-disagree-about-connectivity/?gt1=48001

[5]
The internet: Everything you ever need to know
In spite of all the answers the internet has given us, its full potential to transform our lives remains the great unknown. Here are the nine key steps to understanding the most powerful tool of our age – and where it's taking us
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/jun/20/internet-everything-need-to-know

[6]
Why E-Mail May Be Hurting Off-Line Relationships
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1998396,00.html

[7]
Is the internet making us quick but shallow?
http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/web/06/07/carr.internet.overload/index.html

[8]
Our Cluttered Minds
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/06/books/review/Lehrer-t.html?ref=technology

[9]
Hooked on Gadgets, and Paying a Mental Price
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/07/technology/07brain.html

[10]
Book Review: Nicholas Carr's 'The Shallows'
The 'IT Doesn't Matter' author is at it again -- this time arguing that the Internet is making us shallow.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/web2.0/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=225400004

[11]
Internet making our brains different, not dumb
'Future of the Internet' in 2020 may bring new kind of literacy, experts say
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35464896/ns/technology_and_science-tech_and_gadgets/

[12]
Sharon Begley
Your Brain Online
Does the Web change how we think?
http://www.newsweek.com/id/229843

[13]
New online annoyance: the ‘elationship’
These suitors aren't interested in a real-life hookup, just the virtual kind
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35338085/ns/technology_and_science-love_in_the_digital_age/

[14]
Tech-savvy 'iGeneration' kids multi-task, connect
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2010-02-10-igeneration10_CV_N.htm

[15]
Generation 'Text': FB me
http://www.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/02/08/rosen.texting.communication.teens/index.html

[16]
It's SO over: cool cyberkids abandon social networking sites
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/aug/06/young-abandon-social-networking-sites

[17]
‘Millennials’ an always on, texting generation - Wireless- msnbc.com
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35545420/ns/technology_and_science-wireless/

[18]
Sorry, English major, the engineers have triumphed
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/02/sorry-english-major-the-engineers-have-triumphed.ars

[19]
Is Google Making Us Stupid?
What the Internet is doing to our brains
http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2008/07/is-google-making-us-stupid/6868/

[20]
Is Technology Taking Its Toll on Our Relationships?
http://blogs.abcnews.com/aheadofthecurve/2010/03/is-technology-taking-its-toll-on-our-relationships.html

[21]
The Dangers of Digital Detoxing
This Digital Detox Week, many have abruptly unplugged—at their own peril. From insomnia to "inattentional blindness," Anneli Rufus on how suddenly going off the grid can be hazardous to your health.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-04-21/the-dangers-of-digital-detoxing/?cid=hp:mainpromo8

[22]
We Are Living in a Screenworld -- Reality Isn't in the Real World Anymore
Has our new definition of "life experience" rendered tangible interactions irrelevant?
http://www.alternet.org/vision/147002/we_are_living_in_a_screenworld_--_reality_isn%27t_in_the_real_world_anymore/?page=1

[23]
Think Again: The Internet
They told us it would usher in a new era of freedom, political activism, and perpetual peace. They were wrong.
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/04/26/think_again_the_internet

[24]
A hard look at the Web's 'shallows'
http://news.cnet.com/8301-30684_3-20009036-265.html

[25]
Clay Shirky: 'Paywall will underperform – the numbers don't add up'
The internet guru on the death of newspapers, why paywall will fail and how the internet has brought out our creativity – and generosity
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/jul/05/clay-shirky-internet-television-newspapers

[26]
Mind Over Mass Media
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/11/opinion/11Pinker.html?hp

[27]
An Ugly Toll of Technology: Impatience and Forgetfulness
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/07/technology/07brainside.html?_r=1&src=me&ref=technology

[28]
Building One Big Brain
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/07/06/the-web-we-weave/?ref=opinion

[29]
Lost in Electronica
The costs of ‘the chaos of constant connection.’
http://www.newsweek.com/2010/08/14/will-boredom-and-the-costs-of-constant-connection.html

[30]
Your Brain on Computers - Overuse of Digital Devices May Lead to Brain Fatigue - NYTimes.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/25/technology/25brain.html?ref=technology

[31]
The Relationship Revolution: The Internet As a New Way of Life
The Internet may seem like a 21st-century nightmare version of the worst excesses of the marketplace. But it's also creating new possibilities for connection and conversation.
http://www.alternet.org/health/148186/the_relationship_revolution%3A_the_internet_as_a_new_way_of_life/

[32]
When You Are the Editor
http://www.newsweek.com/2010/08/07/when-you-are-the-editor.html

[33]
10 Things the Internet Has Killed or Ruined (and 5 Things It Hasn't)
From sex to Nigeria to arguments in bars to Chuck Norris: The Internet has badly affected them all (except Chuck Norris).
http://www.pcworld.com/article/194081/10_things_the_internet_has_killed_or_ruined_and_5_things_it_hasnt.html

[34]
Rewiring Our Brains for a Digital Future
http://www.internetevolution.com/author.asp?section_id=466&doc_id=198965&

[35]
Growing Up Digital, Wired for Distraction
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/21/technology/21brain.html?_r=1

[36]
New York Times Cover Story on "Growing Up Digital" Misses the Mark
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/don-tapscott/whats-wrong-with-the-new-_b_787819.html

[37]
What the Internet Killed - Newsweek
http://www.newsweek.com/photo/2010/12/08/things-that-killed-the-internet.html

[38]
The Internet Changes Nothing
http://www.hnn.us/articles/133910.html

[39]
Feature: Is It Just Us, Or Are Kids Getting Really Stupid? - Philadelphia Magazine - phillymag.com
http://www.phillymag.com/articles/feature_is_it_just_us_or_are_kids_getting_really_stupid/

[40]
Online sharing: The rock 'n' roll of the digital generation? - CNN.com
http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/web/12/15/online.privacy.generational/index.html

[41]
Kids, the Internet, and the End of Privacy: The Greatest Generation Gap Since Rock and Roll -- New York Magazine
http://nymag.com/news/features/27341/

Is Technology Making Us Lonelier?
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2041714,00.html

Digital IQ study details social media's growing impact on the public sector -- Government Computer News
http://gcn.com/articles/2011/01/17/numerator-social-media.aspx

Social networking under fresh attack as tide of cyber-scepticism sweeps US | Media | The Observer
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jan/22/social-networking-cyber-scepticism-twitter

Computer science researchers provide insight into how we understand social networking
http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-01-science-insight-social-networking.html

Internet E-Personality: Online Life Harms Civility Says Psychiatrist Elias Aboujaoude, Author of 'Virtually You: The Dangerous Powers of the E-Personality' - ABC News
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/online-life-harms-civility-creates-aggressive-personality-psychiatrist/story?id=12771299

Facebook as Foreplay? Survey Says Social Media Leads to Sex Faster - ABC News
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/facebook-foreplay-survey-social-media-leads-sex-faster/story?id=12767315