I was always a bookworm when I was a kid. I hadn't had many friends and even at home had a lack of consistent human contact. Back then, we were going through

I was always a bookworm when I was a kid. I hadn't had many friends and even at home had a lack of consistent human contact. Back then, we were going through a rough patch. When I started using computers and the Internet at work in the late '90s, it seemed that the whole world was opening up for me. When I came home after work, my folks and I would catch up with each other, engage in lively and thoughtful conversations over a meal. Once I had a personal computer, I began to spend more time surfing the Net than interacting with my family; they were having a hard time connecting with me, since I seemed out of touch with the real world. They were feeling neglected. Then came the smartphones and things went downhill fast. Now all of us spend our days glued to screens of different sizes, although we realize that social isolation or deprivation is risky for health.