Week 4 Learning Challenge: Attention Memes

I'm a huge fan of memes and infographics so this week I browsed through the attention section of memes. The image that stood out to me the most was the "paradox of presence" as shown below:

The Paradox of Presence

THIS IS SO TRUE! And I hate it! Whenever I'm out with my friends or family, the first thing that they do when we arrive at the restaurant is connect to the wifi or text. What was the point of us going out if your attention is directed to a screen? I'll admit that I've done it before. When everyone is busy staring at a screen, I take my phone out and stare at it too. It's the worst. To change this habit, my friends and I decided that we would all put our phones on the table and whoever is the first person to pick up their phones has to buy the appetizers. It's a work in progress. It's funny because I would much rather have a nice time with my friends than eat free appetizers (and I love food).


Technology is a wonderful tool, but it could also be bitter sweet. While we're able to connect to the world instantaneously, I'm afraid that it's making relationships and friendships very virtual.