But we share each other less and less. The techno-media explosion stresses our individuality to the point of atomization. A step forward, yes, but not when you think about how participation in our pop dialogue has moved beyond a supplement to our civic life to become a replacement for it. Generation Y was nursed on computer games. People type notes to anonymous friends they never intend to meet, but they don t know their neighbor s name.
Society is less organized geographically but increasingly by interest groups.
There are over 10,000 Usenet groups. What s important is that we re both into sub-atomic physics. Cyberspace does help us find those with common interests with greater efficiency, but it doesn t challenge us to meet those with different interests like real space does. Designing your own online newspaper delivery allows to tailor your news, but it also eliminates the experience of happening upon new ideas that flipping through a hard-copy magazine offers. Because we can assume and shed identities as often as our interests shift, we become social free agents.