"Wired" nation isolates the tech savvy
Does 'too much of a good thing' really exist
Linda Gallanter
Issue date: 10/30/06 Section: News
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Nick Coccellato, a 20-year-old College of Marin student and aspiring filmmaker, has two video game systems, two computers and five television sets in his house. "It's probably too much. If it keeps me away from people, it's probably a bad thing," he said.
So how much is too much? In a campus survey conducted by this reporter, most students at COM said frequent use of high-tech equipment could become a problem. "I think computers and TV fill a void," said Jasmine Young, a 21-year-old music major. "It's like having a companion. Not talking to people can be dangerous."
Pam Scoggins, a returning student, had a different take. "You can lose track of time. I like games for fun, but I have to be careful. Using computer games can interfere with other things like studying."
Currently, college academics, social psychologists, and medical researchers have begun to call people who use the Internet compulsively "Virtual Addiction" or "Internet Addiction Disorder." M.H. Orzack from Harvard Medical School's computer-addiction program said, "The most vulnerable people are people who are lonely and bored, or from families where nobody is home."
Michael Weinstein, political science professor at Purdue University in Indiana said, "We are encouraging our children to become social nitwits!" At COM, Mike Ransom, business information systems instructor refuted that conclusion. Ransom said, "Loneliness among our students doesn't resonate with me. Students today are way ahead of the rest of us and quickly adjust. They just do it in different ways."
The head of Distance Learning in the English Department at COM, Ingrid Schreck said her students take courses on-line. Schreck tries to bring them together in new and inventive ways. Midnight chat room gatherings with her are a teaching tool, and a chance to get to know each other better.
"My students ask for help more on-line than in-person. It's a different style of learning, but my classes are full on-line. I work at getting students to collaborate, and debate on-line. Since most of my students also take courses on campus, I don't see them as separated from college life, or having lost some meaningful socializing," she said.
So how much is too much? In a campus survey conducted by this reporter, most students at COM said frequent use of high-tech equipment could become a problem. "I think computers and TV fill a void," said Jasmine Young, a 21-year-old music major. "It's like having a companion. Not talking to people can be dangerous."
Pam Scoggins, a returning student, had a different take. "You can lose track of time. I like games for fun, but I have to be careful. Using computer games can interfere with other things like studying."
Currently, college academics, social psychologists, and medical researchers have begun to call people who use the Internet compulsively "Virtual Addiction" or "Internet Addiction Disorder." M.H. Orzack from Harvard Medical School's computer-addiction program said, "The most vulnerable people are people who are lonely and bored, or from families where nobody is home."
Michael Weinstein, political science professor at Purdue University in Indiana said, "We are encouraging our children to become social nitwits!" At COM, Mike Ransom, business information systems instructor refuted that conclusion. Ransom said, "Loneliness among our students doesn't resonate with me. Students today are way ahead of the rest of us and quickly adjust. They just do it in different ways."
The head of Distance Learning in the English Department at COM, Ingrid Schreck said her students take courses on-line. Schreck tries to bring them together in new and inventive ways. Midnight chat room gatherings with her are a teaching tool, and a chance to get to know each other better.
"My students ask for help more on-line than in-person. It's a different style of learning, but my classes are full on-line. I work at getting students to collaborate, and debate on-line. Since most of my students also take courses on campus, I don't see them as separated from college life, or having lost some meaningful socializing," she said.
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