[b]how we'll think in the future[/b]

[letric]

Richard Watson, author of Future Minds predicts lifestyle
changes as our use of technology increases.

# Instead of touting WI-Fi access, resorts and cafes will begin to
advertise their communications free facilities, as we place a higher
premium on time and space as luxuries. Quiet 'thinking rooms' will
appear in offices, libraries, airports and public spaces.

# We'll wear digital devices, such as cameras, around our necks or
lapel pins that allow us to record our lives. You can already buy a pen
that records conversations or one that transfer script to a digital file
as you write. Our lives will become fully searchable.

# Digital diets, where people ration their use of gadgets to avoid
information overload, will become more common. Some teachers
already ask for hand-written documents because they feel students
adherence to arguments is better when they use pen and paper.

# Privacy will become a major issue, particularly for those living and
working in digital worlds. Some people will use cash and public pay
phones more frequently to protect anonymity.

' BIG BROTHER is here' - (1984 - George Orwell)

[letric]

It has been suggested search engines may diminish creative thinking.
because they tend to serve as amplifiers of popularity. Whether we
research a historical topic, medical query or a product, we are following
a script that reinforces a consensus about what information is and is not
important. In this way, it is possible that the internet can shape our
thoughts as a society as we move towards a futuristic intelligence. Of
course, this opinion is debatable, but we do need to take technological
breaks when we step away and remind ourselves what it means to be
human.

[letric]

The act of contemplation not only helps us to combat stress,
it helps us to feel connected to the world around us. Our
increased use of the Internet will affect us spiritually, as we
spend less time in slow, deep thought. The easy access to
information and open lines of communication are great benefits,
but if that crowds out contemplative, solitary thought, then we
lose what makes us distinctive as individuals and our entire culture
reshapes itself to become more utilitarian and focused on efficiency.
It is possible that much of our hesitation about the demands of new
technology is that we are still measuring our new way of thinking
against the old. Of course, there are merits to each. However,
it is up to us to decide how to use it.