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people with smartphones can be so unreasonable sometimes


Ansem
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also, TC, as someone who has a smartphone addiction and does exactly what you're complaining about, all I can say is: be honest about it. Just plain tell them that you don't like it when they use their smartphones while on a conversation with you (i mean, if you close enough with them to feel comfortable doing so)

Edited by Nobody
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Some people just pull their phones out of habit, maybe to check for missed calls or texts. But that doesn't mean they don't care about you or the conversation. Simply dropping the conversation and walking away would make it worse.

best post so far

perhaps you're right, but the same people also suck at replying to texts when i do text them. they text other people so frequently while i'm with them but when im away they do a shit job at replying. its okay, they have no obligation to reply to their texts, or not pull out their phones midconversation, but i also have no obligation to remain friends with them. time to trim some excess. odds are against my favor too because i like these people, and even if i do make new friends it'll result in the same problem all over again. i really do wish i was a smartphone toting jackass so i wouldnt even think about this.

@above: will do

Edited by jetbeamcantmeltsteelfuel
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It's funny that you make this thread. I was listening to the radio earlier this morning and the station I tuned in to was having an interview with an MIT professor who recently wrote a book about how technology such as smartphones have affected people socially.

In the interview, she said that she was called to consult with the directors and teachers of a middle school who were growing increasingly concerned about what was referred to as "a lack of empathy" among students. They associated it with the growing presence of technology in our social lives, and the association they made was that when their kids would have lunch break, rather than talking face-to-face with each other, they would instead text on their smartphones. She said it was a little alarming to hear that because face-to-face conversation is one of the most human/humanizing things that we do, and it's also one of the major things that helps humans develop empathy.

On the other hand, the constant stimulation of notifications-- whether they come from texts or emails --arouses a sort of excitement in us and helps combat loneliness. The thing is, people begin to rely on the stimulation, and the very thought of solitude becomes terrifying. She said that studies have shown that when people who are attached to their devices are separated from them, they are, after about six minutes, willing to receive electrical shocks rather than be alone without a device. Following that, she said "if you do not have solitude, then you will come to conversations with other people needing them to buttress you and your fragile sense of self and you're not really able to hear who they are and what they have to say".

Essentially, you become less of a friend.

She then brought up that she was recently interviewed for an article on a new Barbie product which was part of many other products being lauded as "best friends". They're basically robots made to pretend to have empathy by generating sounds and movements. She mentioned that not only were products like those being made for children, but they were also being made for the elderly. She then told a story about what she had recently witnessed at a nursing home: A woman whose son had recently died longed to tell her story to someone, so they gave her one of these "best friends" to talk to. She began to tell her story to the robot, and the robot would do small things like gestures that made her feel as though it was listening and truly receiving what she had to say. The professor was appalled at the reactions of the people around her, who seemed quite happy, but the question wasn't whether or not the woman would be able to actually tell her story, but rather... Who was listening? Nobody but the robot, who, in reality, was only pretending.

The person interviewing her challenged her and said that perhaps these robots are a good idea because there aren't a lot of people willing to assist the elderly, and that not many families actually trust the people who do care for the elderly to care for their own aging family members. She argued, saying that every technology we develop causes us to look back at our human values, and the notion that there are not enough people to take care of our elderly is something that needs to be revisited. If it has come to the point that we actually need to give elderly people fake relationships in order to keep them sane or whatever, then there is something that needs to be seriously addressed.

The interview ended with her saying, "We need to look at our social priorities. If we seriously want to say, 'Well, no time to talk to our children! Let's just have a robot chat to them about what it means to be a friend.'" She continued, "You're just going to get children who don't actually know how to be a friend. Which is how we started this whole conversation: With children who hadn't learned how to be a friend."

Just thought I'd share that with you. I guess you might be experiencing this whole thing firsthand. It really sucks, and I totally emphasize with you. Seriously, I do, because it has happened to me before. I just evaluated things and asked myself, "Well, why do I hang out with this person/these people in the first place when it seems they don't actually care much about me?". Rather than causing a scene or being passive aggressive, I just stopped faux-socializing (for lack of a better term, lol) with them. It's best to just make friends with people who actually share your interests and care about you and what you have to say.

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Flamma, it's a meme on this site to list yourself as the opposite gender if you are using the duck member badge.

what does that make me then
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stuff

when i was in grade school we still had flip phones, and you were cool if you had one. there are some kids in grade school that have iphones now, and i only know this because my brother lamented to me that he doesnt have one and most of his friends do. i'm very interested in seeing how these children develop into adults since social skills like empathy are important for careers, but i still wouldnt know how to make that association study into a causation study...

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I hang out with a group of people who tend to integrate their devices with actual socialization. We take goofy selfies, post them on facebook, etc. Funny shit we find, we go "hey you gotta see this" and instead of hitting the "share" button, we literally show the image/post to each other. We use our smartphones as a means of getting a hold of each other via messenger and fb. Going to a show? Lets find out whos all going to be there. If anything, our devices bring us closer together.

I guess what im trying to say is, theres a happy medium.

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damn straight

So if you're straight, that makes you want to be with other undisclosed's.

But doesn't that make you gay?

Hold up i'll make you a code in C++

//Program to tell gender if gender is undef
#include <iostream>
#include <string>
using namespace std;
int main()
{
    // 1 = dick
    // 0 = no dick
    // 2 = duck
    // 3 = undef
    int male = 1+1;
    int female = 0+1;
    int undef = 3;
    if(male = 2)
    {
        male -2;
    }
    if(female = 1)
    {
        cout << "I'm just going to stop now because this is stupid";
    }
}
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So if you're straight, that makes you want to be with other undisclosed's.

But doesn't that make you gay?

Hold up i'll make you a code in C++

//Program to tell gender if gender is undef
#include <iostream>
#include <string>
using namespace std;
int main()
{
    // 1 = dick
    // 0 = no dick
    // 2 = duck
    // 3 = undef
    int male = 1+1;
    int female = 0+1;
    int undef = 3;
    if(male = 2)
    {
        male -2;
    }
    if(female = 1)
    {
        cout << "I'm just going to stop now because this is stupid";
    }
}

a) your if statements are wrong, you need if (male == 2), not if (male = 2)

b) why did you #include <string> when you're not using it

c) also using namespace std; sucks

d) ok really your variables make no sense; just have one variable to store gender. probably use an enum statement or something

Edited by Euklyd
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