[ristretto]

Actually the difference is not that big. It's all in our brain anyway, and most virtual experiences evoke similar brain responses as real ones (theater, TV, cinema, mirror neurons etc). What virtual items lose is fine properties like touch, smell, permanence etc.

I think the bigger problem is both city planning and immobile technology: most of us are forced to live packed away from the nature in cities planned for the long-gone industrial era, and until recently we were forced to sit in front of our heavy information devices. I believe the mobile revolution is going to bring back a lot of those "physical" elements that we are missing now.

It's not the first time societies face transfomations. We already eat virtual food, i certainly don't remember slaughtering that many chicken, pigs and cows lately, and i 've only milked a goat once or twice in my life.

[suprasanna]

You bring up some good points with the parallels in the brain however I think more is lost in the exposure to different experiences that you simply can't replicate online.

For most, it'll be difficult to differentiate between things (physical books, library visits, spending time outdoors, etc) that we don't want to leave behind for nostalgic reasons and things that we shouldn't leave behind because they help us with maturity, growth, etc.

I'm wondering what people's thoughts are on this. Technological change is a part of society, yes, but is it always best for the individual?