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Someday people may also look back at the television and the smartphone and compare the garbage we call mass media that we put into our minds to the lead in Roma
by rm_-rf_slash 9y ago
Someday people may also look back at the television and the smartphone and compare the garbage we call mass media that we put into our minds to the lead in Roman water pipes.
- LMYahooTFY 9y agoAre you referring to non-ionizing radiation? Is there anything yet to show negative effects? My understanding is that there hadn't been conclusive study, but from what we know of thermal radiation there aren't known mechanisms for damage to occur within the FCC(think it's their rules?) guidelines.
- losteric 9y agoThey refer to "mass media", so I assume the point is technology as a dopamine button... however, cell phones have been linked to damaged / lower quality sperm in men. That could subtly damage society in the same way that lead-based paints hurt Rome.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- steve_adams_86 9y agoIf they did, I would hope people around them recognized that their conflation of neurotoxins in water and largely benign electronics makes very little sense. I think I understand the sentiment, but I don't think the three are the same. And if they had similar results, hypothetically, they would be for entirely different reasons. edit: I'm interested to know more about peoples' concerns about smartphones and other devices emitting harmful radiation. I've never seen anything conclusive at all, but my girlfriend is positive research will eventually reveal something, for example. Very curious if anyone knows more about this. Perhaps I'm totally incorrect.
- trhway 9y ago>conflation of neurotoxins in water and largely benign electronics makes very little sense. dopamine addiction coming from and through the benign electronics may count for something.
- eli_gottlieb 9y agoYou can't get addicted to dopamine; dopamine mediates one vector of addiction. It conveys something like reward prediction-error or precision of action-based prediction errors. Without it, you can't concentrate; with too much, you're forced to concentrate without control over what you concentrate on.
- steve_adams_86 9y agoI agree with that to a point. It does count for something for sure, but I think the analogy breaks down pretty quickly from there. I don't want to be pedantic or overly demanding of the statement either though. I just thought, when I read it, that the issues are much more complex than that, and the analogy overly simplifies the matter. I'm a big fan of electronic devices, and a huge believer in them being a medium for addiction and escapism. But I think societies need to look at the root of that issue rather than dismiss any medium for dopamine addiction as harmful (as harmful as lead in your water in this case). That becomes extremely subjective, and maybe not worth pursuing because I admit, I'm not educated on the matter. I simply believe that (based on my experiences) the misuse of electronics will often stem from a lack of stimulation, satisfaction, and/or engagement coming from other aspects in life. There is too much room for this form of addiction in modern life in many parts of the world. If we blame the devices, we fail to blame ourselves for better educating ourselves and striving to develop society in such a way that people feel they have better things to do than escape into a screen. I'm totally open to being called out as clueless or full of it - that's just my take on things. It's a very fascinating conversation, but probably not a great one for the internet. I worry I'll come across as thinking I'm an authority on this stuff or something, when it's quite the opposite.
- ABCLAW 9y ago
- dnh44 9y agoThe Romans also used lead acetate as a sweetener.
- Terr_ 9y agoIMO the issue isn't media-consumption per-se, but the mechanisms used in advertising and how our society condones certain tactics for one group "hacking the brains" of another.