A respected Swiss scientist, Conrad Gessner, might have been the first to raise the alarm about the effects of information overload. In a landmark book, he described how the modern world overwhelmed people with data and that this overabundance was both "confusing and harmful" to the mind....It's worth noting that Gessner, for his part, never once used e-mail and was completely ignorant about computers. That's not because he was a technophobe but because he died in 1565. His warnings referred to the seemingly unmanageable flood of information unleashed by the printing press.
There's more history of media technology scares, from the printing press to Facebook, at the post. As Bell points out, "The writer Douglas Adams observed how technology that existed when we were born seems normal, anything that is developed before we turn 35 is exciting, and whatever comes after that is treated with suspicion."
It would be wrong to conclude that there's nothing to worry about in newer technology. In fact, kids still need parents to shepherd them through the wise use of new media and adults still need to exercise self-discipline themselves. But the article reminds us that there's really nothing new under the sun, as the Preacher in the biblical book of Ecclesiastes told us.
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