Digital dementia

I’ve seen the term “digital dementia” in a few places now. It describes the impaired and declining cognitive function of those who are always buried in their phones.

It feels like more a fad term and that it’s describing something very real. I notice it when I’m taking to certain people, and they very literally can’t handle the slightest lull in the conversation, the phone comes out immediately. Complex ideas, hashing out something that’s not obvious, that spark of inspiration after a bit of boredom — none of that’s possible if your phone comes out at the first whiff of non-stimulation.

This has an effect on how we remember, how we perceive the space around us, how we communicate.

Digital demential indeed.