Sunday, December 13, 2015

Big Picture Science for Monday December 14, 2015 - Look Who’s Not Talking



Big Picture Science - Look Who’s Not Talking

We may be connected, but some say we’re not communicating.  The consequences could be dire.  A U.S. Army major says that social media are breaking up our “band of brothers,” and that soldiers who tweet rather than talk have less cohesion in combat.

What’s the solution?  Maybe more connectivity to jump start conversation? The makers of Hello Barbie say its sophisticated speech recognition system will engage children in conversation.  But an alternative strategy is to go cold turkey: sign up for a device-free camp (for adults) or stuff a NoPhone in your pocket, and wean yourself from the real thing.

But MIT’s Sherry Turkle says there’s only one solution: more face-to-face time.  Without it, we are in danger of losing our empathy.

Guests:

Download episode at: http://www.bigpicturescience.org/episodes/look-whos-not-talking

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/, and be sure to check out Blog Picture Science, the companion blog to the radio show.

No comments: