There was a book i read a few years ago (which, alas, i can't recall the name of... where's my knowledge manager dammit) which discussed the issue of accelerating pace of life in modern western cultures. i thought it was a good read - discussing a lot of what you mention -- the inability, or lack of desire, to really spend the time to get into something in depth. we want our information now, digested, summarized and cross referenced and the fast paced culture has extended even to our entertainment -- wanting to cram as much as possible into as short a time as possible.

it's turning us all into twitchy, uncomfortable, neurotics, if you ask me... it's impossible to enjoy so many things, because you constantly feel like there's something else, better, more important, more fun or more interesting that you could be doing. i think it's kinda dangerous, because there are too many things that don't translate well to a condensed experience -- things for which the time spent is part and parcel of the experience. i like books for this very reason... i don't read fiction because i want "entertainment content". I read fiction because i want to hear a story, i want to delve into another world for a while and experience what it has to offer, from a perspective that is, perhaps, very different from my own. if i'm reading fast, it's because the story is taking me to places i *really* want to go, not because i want to finish and move on to consume another.

i'm not throwing myself into the luddite camp, of course... i think there are many aspects of life that benefit from being summarized, aggregated and digested quickly -- news items, for the most part, don't need to be discussed in great depth. articles and papers can usually be shortened, allowing partially interested people to get the short version, and the truly interested can read the whole thing. interpersonal messages are far more effective when kept short and frequent -- that increases connectivity, i think.

for me though, i try to stay on guard for feelings of anxiousness that seem to come from nowhere. when that happens, it means i'm falling into the trap of overload -- it's a hamster wheel, and i'm not so much interested in being locked into it. there are a lot of things in this world to see and know and absorb -- when i was young, i used to tell adults that my goal in life was to know everything there was to know. part of maturing was realizing the impossibilty of that task, even if i were to live to be a thousand. but, as i've grown up, using and learning about technology, i've also seen the possibility to learn more than i'd thought was possible, certainly more than any previous generation could ever have hoped to know. we are heading for a world in which the base of common knowledge will be far, far greater than ever before, because it's so easy to see and hear new things. i just don't think that should ever become a substitute for taking the time to invest in something particular... you may be missing out on a few new bits by focusing on just one, but i think it's a worthwhile tradeoff. sitting down with my ipod and a glass of scotch and just listening to a record would seem like a waste of time to many, but to me, the focus is part of the experience.

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