I just watched a presentation on TED Speaks entitles We Aren’t All Cyborgs…..Yet, with Ms. Amber Case, Cyborg Anthropologist, and it got me thinking about these Cyber-Wormholes and their effect on us as a society.
First, what are these Cyber-wormholes? A ‘wormhole’ (or an Einstein-Rosen Bridge) is a hypothetical topological feature of spacetime that would be, fundamentally, a “shortcut” through spacetime. A perfect example of what a wormhole is(and the one that Ms. Case gives in her presentation); What is the fastest method of getting from point A to point B, the typical and logical answer would be a straight line. Not quite, the fastest way between point A and point B is Zero, folding spacetime so that you could travel between the two point by just passing through a short tunnel(or across a bridge). So, how does this relate to our own technological society? As Ms. Case stated, our cell phones, laptops, 
computers and other technological communication devices are capable of instantly connecting us with one person on the other side of the world, or a multitude of people….in essence instantly transporting us to their location, Cyber-wormhole!
But, what effect does this ‘long-distance communication’ have on us as a people? True that this 
electronic connection that we have has advanced our ability to communicate, and has brought us more knowledge, faster than at any point in our history…….but what has this done to us as a society? Ms. Case states that this level of cyber-connection enhances us as human beings, that this electronic interweaving is almost a natural form of human evolution. The problem is, that we as human being need to realize that we require the intimacy of face-to-face socialization, that we need to see and experience the emotional resonance from an individual to make a personal connection. Our body language plays such an important role in our communication, not just the words that we use, so many times can just a words be taken out of context and be misunderstood because a person could not see another person’s facial expressions.
Have you ever felt threatened by a person solely because you were unable to see or experience their facial expressions
and connect them with what they are saying? This speaks to the need for that face to face communications experience. This is part of the terror we experience in horror movies when the masked killer is in the room and the distrust and mystery when we experience a person in a mask at a party. This is the problem with cyber-communication, there is the insecurity of what you are trying to express to others.
Intimacy is critically important to our own social evolution. I am not just talking about sexual intimacy, I am referring to the kind of social intimacy that I have been discussing here; the ability to experience the emotional intentions of the individual you are talking to, the ability to make physical contact with people, the ability to impart your own body language.
Although I am very much in favor of technological advances and the expansion and capabilities that the internet offers us as human beings, it is important that we remember not to get TOO involved in our Facebook pages, and not to just Tweet to let people know what is going on in our lives. It is important that we maintain an intimate social connection with people, both from a psychological and social viewpoint.
Azar, B. (2000, January). What’s In A Face? Retrieved January 5, 2013, from American Psychological Association: http://www.apa.org/monitor/jan00/sc1.aspx
Nongales, A. (2010, 13 October). Family Secrets. Retrieved January 5, 2013, from Psychology Today: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/family-secrets/201010/facebook-versus-face-face
Case, A. (2010, December). Amber Case: We Are All Cyborgs Now. Retrieved January 4, 2012, from TED: http://www.ted.com/talks/amber_case_we_are_all_cyborgs_now.html
Cherry, K. (2011, November 11). Intimacy versus Isolation – Psychology Definition of the Week. Retrieved January 6, 2012, from About.Com, Psychology: http://psychology.about.com/b/2011/11/11/intimacy-versus-isolation-psychology-definition-of-the-week.htm
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Cognoscere 