Are We Ever Alone?

Technology has always been an important part of my generation’s life experience. When I was three Dad brought home our first home computer. I remember how I loved pushing the keys and how I was banned from doing so once it was set up in the office. The screen was green and it was clear that it was “not a toy” and definitely not one of my toys. Then came the rush of technology: bag car phones, dial-up internet, beepers, mobile phones (the ones that fit in your pocket), DSL and today there is so much more! So, I only vaguely remember a time when I wasn’t completely and utterly “connected” to anyone at any point of time. However, after a frustrating day I was sitting by myself in my room and I felt the sudden urge to be alone. I needed to get out. It was then that I started to realize that while I was completely alone in my room I didn’t feel that way. I was sharing the room with people virtually invading my space – friends chatted with me on Facebook, Gmail and Skype, e-mails and virtual messages flooded my inboxes (yes, plural) and my cell phone was just sitting there waiting to vibrate with a call or message. I needed to get away from all of it. Putting on my jacket and shoes I couldn’t help but debate whether I should leave my cell at home. “What if I need it? Why would I need it? I’m just going for a walk.” I wasn’t sure I could “disconnect” myself from my “virtual” world. England is one of the most watched countries in the world. London is completely “watched” by CCTV cameras. During my walk I spotted a CCTV camera on almost every corner. Some person in a room full of screens was probably watching my “alone” time and wondering why I just kept walking up and down the same (well lit) street in my neighborhood. I couldn’t help but think about it until the point that I realized maybe being truly alone isn’t a luxury that is available any more (at least in the modern world). For my Sustainable Cities course I was required to go to the EcoBuild conference and attend a seminar as part of my research for the course. I chose to take part in a section titled “Reinventing Cities – looking to the future.” One of the speakers was an American academic anthropologist who is teaching at a leading University in Central London. He spoke about how our “digital” world is now our center and the elements (he suggested social, natural surroundings and spiritual lives) of our lives are in some way being related back to technology. Internet is available on phones, computers, free wifi computer spots around a city, and cyber cafes. We use the internet to find directions instead of using maps (and why not when it removes the need to think; Google even supplies pictures of the final destination and what to see along the way). We use the internet to create 3-D spaces and worlds; games that transport us to another time and place, online experiences that create an escape without even leaving the bedroom (or bed for that matter)! There is even an application that allows your phone to connect to a server and post personal information about your whereabouts at any particular time to all your “social worlds.” “Joe Blow has just checked-in to INSERT YOUR FAVORITE LOCATION HERE.” Not even mentioning Joe Blow becomes virtual friends with anyone who sends him a request. Frankly, I find it all a little bit disturbing. Since living in one of the most popular tourist destinations I have begun to wonder just how many times I am randomly photographed a day as part of someone’s holiday memories or maybe I’m doing something out of some other culture’s ordinary and someone grabs a camera phone to snap a shot and show friends. Did you know that Big Ben is the most photographed place in the world (which I find humorous since Big Ben is really just the machine that runs the clock and not the clock itself, but I digress)? The speaker also drew on this point before concluding that my generation really doesn’t know how to be alone or what it means to be alone. He also acknowledged that future generations are going to lose this concept of being alone or disconnected all together. When I moved to Columbia for undergrad one of my biggest struggles was being in the city and not having a quiet place of my own. In high school I would enjoy going for a drive out to High Bridge or the old abandoned river lock just to sit, read, write, and think. My mom also reminded me of how I would go sit on my swing set everyday after school in first grade and just … be. This was time I looked forward to and valued. So is having time alone something people still value? How can we re-insert this concept back into the technology age? Where can we go to be alone? Where do you go to be alone?

#London