Title: CNN.com - Caught up in the 'Net - May 29, 2006
Headings: Caught up in the 'Net
Caught up in the 'Net
How the Internet has quietly changed our lives
Socially, locally and globally - nothing else has had such a huge influence over the population
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Content: The Internet is the nervous system of a new developing 'meta-intelligence'." But these rapid changes to something as fundamental a part of our humanity as the way we communicate are not without their concerns. "As an anthropologist, I stand back to try to understand what all this means," says Cerqui. " What I see is that human beings are flexible and able to get used to almost everything. And once we are used to a new kind of technology, we become unable to live without it. But this does not necessarily means that it is an improvement." "From a direct social interaction perspective, the Internet has had a negative impact on me," says Pransky. " It may be several days before I have the need to leave my house and have contact with the "outside" world. It has been awhile since I have worked in a group situation. After we have dinner, my family and I often retire to our own individual, confined use of the Internet."