Skip to main content

Are Online Social Interactions making us more awkward?


In reality, this is the "righteous" path that all of us have already trotted onto. The mediums of communication, that help us substitute physical interactions, keep on flooding our ecosystem. Be it virtual classrooms, virtual conferences or even attending virtual concerts, they are all there.

And every now and then, there is something disruptive, or let me rather call it confusing, something that is Yo! Let's not try and get into the super high valuation that the app is getting. But, some of the use cases that have been developed, like the alerts that Israelis have been getting whenever there is a rocket strike back home. With some of these apps raising insane amount of bids, with the likes of Whatsapp ($19 Billion), Instagram ($1 Billion) and Snapchat ($3 Billion), even when the base itself has no angle for justification, we can probably place a bet on the way Yo is headed. The game changer though remains, if at all, the app will be able to break into the stock that mobile OS's have, and change the way notifications are delivered onto these platforms.

Now, Do all these social platforms, and continuous disruptions, have an impact on the physical interactions also? I feel, yes.

It is almost impossible to keep the two worlds separate: the online and the offline worlds. And the way our communication has seen a transition from: Hi, How are you today? to Wassup to A simple poke, it is a little disconcerting that when we actually have the need to be a little verbose, we can't really be.

Its not only about saying stuff though, is it? Its about how you behave in a room. Will you be the person who's standing in a corner and feeling I am absolutely ok here, and don't feel the urge to interact with 5 different people, although the purpose of the room was to network. Quite a lot of folks do.

There is a flip side to it too though.
These days, if you are sitting in a group of 10-15 people, that you know well, and if you look around the room, you'll find atleast 25-30% of the people who are awkward, socially awkward. But this isn't necessarily a bad thing. The quirks that each of these people display, in the interactions that are happening, are really the gems that create the dynamism of the group. These people might struggle during the initial rounds of interactions, but once they open up, is when you realize, the hidden wealth of the group.

And that is really where you ask the question, "Are we really getting socially awkward?"

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

200* The Titan of the world cricket just got a little taller

"The Titan of World Cricket just got a little taller " Need I say more . The only thing that I would regret after this day is that I cannot brag "I was there when.." The only people I'll envy after today are those in the Gwalior stadium. There is not much that I can say about the Little Master that hasn't been spoken off. There is not much to be read about Sachin that my generation has not already read. Comments like "I have seen God, he bats at no. 4 for India" from the people who have played against him, have been plastered all over the memory of this generation. All this and still that humbleness to die for. He truly is an IDOL. You'd think with hopes of a billion people on his shoulder, he will start to stoop a little, well congratulations, you have just been branded the biggest fool to have walked on earth. All said, it cost me a measly 49 Riyals to get Live TV on my cellphone, and a little more effort to postpone some of the work

International Helsinki Days 2012

'Minus 26 and still HOT' Oh Yes. It was hot. Never mind the apparent chill. And that was all about the IHD. Naah... I have been edgy to write about this ever since it got over, not that i'm going to forget anything anytime soon, but rather to make it more memorable. The issue with all of it is though that words simply aren't enough, you have to live it to know it. I had taken a liking to Finnish people from the start , and more so after the week. It was special this week. I got a glimpse into the culture that is Finn. Perhaps limited to the student culture, but nevertheless, enough to make up my mind that they all would go places. Work to Live, they value there free time immensely, and that's how it is supposed to be. I heard somethings about Finns not being happy etc, not from what   I saw, and if they believe in the philosophy, I doubt anyone could be unhappy for long. And if anyone had doubts about their work ethic, they just have to look at the IHD tea

The first 31st on an 'alien' land

Dear Blog, One thing you don't want on a 31st is for your day to start with work. And o'course I ain't that lucky. But at-least I got a 'half day' (will someone inform the management that if you reduce 2 working hours from 10, it does not become 'half day'). O'course the thumb rule in such cases says " you take what you get, and be happy  or else you will end up either very miserable or getting fired", neither of which interests me much. The Idea There is a thin line between "A Plan" and "An Idea". I had neither. I only knew this for a fact that no way I will spend this night in my camp. In came Mr. Tejaswi, with some ' amoeba like shit' in his head, to my aid. I will still refrain from calling it a plan, since you cannot be sure of things here in Qatar on days of holiday (family day and stuff like that), although no once can stop you if you are really stubborn and a little innovative. As for The Idea, it had a