The future of technology's past...

Another day at Alderman Ave. Bokhandle (though thankfully not as empty as the last), quiet and fairly empty, but yet still bustling with noise — a phenomenon I have yet to crack: how a place so seemingly empty is so filled with volume pollution. Perhaps all the noise is spilling from Bean and Brew (only once did I visit Alderman and that place was empty), I mean, after all, people need their morning — and midday, and afternoon, and evening — caffeinated beverage. But what particularly struck my interest today was how, whenever I see teenagers alone at Alderman, they are usually on their electronic devices to compensate for the late of physical company (though in truth, even when they are accompanied by someone, I often see them on their cell phones or tablets or laptop computers), no doubt texting or social networking. Another tidbit I would like to point out is that, in a store such as this, I would expect to see more people reading a book or newspaper, even if they are younger (the YA genre is one that is vastly growing and yet, rarely do I ever see any young adults [aka the target audience] actually reading).
     But, alas no. As with every other location I visit, I see young adults (and these days, even more and more adults) typing or texting or tweeting away for extended hours. Even when I look up the Tumblr pages of others, I am often surprised by how often people update their pages, and I’m usually left thinking “don’t you people have lives, or have to go to school, or work, or… Something that would otherwise keep you off of these sites at all hours of the day”? But so much of our daily lives is electronic these days it’s hard to revert back to simpler times, even just for a moment to hold an actual newspaper in your hands or read a new book with that new-book smell. I mean, they have online newspapers now right? And not to mention e-books. And so why wouldn’t you, while you already have your phone or computer out, just check Facebook or Twitter or Instagram real quick?
       Although, yes, there are still some people out there who prefer the classical mode of operation (by which I mean actually holding a book in your hands and having that old debate of paper vs. hardback covers [of which I am one; and I, personally have no preference to either], or socializing face to face with your neighbor as opposed to someone hundreds or thousands of miles away), I feel like many people would look at these ways as archaic and out of touch with the modern era. And don’t get me wrong, I am a computer/tablet lover myself, but I also love the smell of a book, and the feel of holding it in my hands while and read and loathe the idea of an e-book. At the same time, I favor the recent local and statewide trend of schools trying to computerize tests (even if there are still some kinks that need to be worked out). Testing doesn’t have to be “stuck in the dark ages,” but at the same time, some tests, for now, due to their innate need for scratch-paper work, should probably stay on paper. We need to move forward into the future with advances in interpersonal technology as well, but that doesn’t have to come at the price of older ways of communication. All in all, a balance must be found between what we can make of for the future and what we still take from the past.