CBC SPARK: NOTIFICATION VACATION.

(Banksy)

1. Take a look at the image and take a moment to discuss what it

suggests to you in groups. Are your reactions and views similar or
different?
2. What do you know about the graffiti artist Banksy? Do you consider
his work to be art or something else altogether?
We are going to listen to two sections from the CBC radio programme SPARK
entitled Notification Vacation) and The End of Absence.

Listening Task 1 KEY: NOTIFICATION VACATION (1.55-8.12)

A. Listen to the extract for the general idea. Tell your group whether you
sympathize with or share the concerns expressed in the extract.
Our dependence on connectivity is driving us to distraction and will in
the long run harm our health.
B. Now listen again and try to explain the context in which the following
words or expressions are mentioned. Check with your group.

the relentless barrage of notifications. Dr Rosen talks about our

dependence on checking our phones for notifications far too
frequently and Nora Jones describes these notifications as an endless
repeated series that is constantly interrupting and distracting us.

checking in. the speakers talk about how often people check their
notifications and how the frequency of checking in is higher among
younger generations Dr Rosen mentions millenials, the i-generation
and the net generation as checking in far too often.

its a real lifeline to my social life. The producer of the programme

mentions how her use of her smart phone has changed since she
became single and it is now her connection to the dating and social
scene she wishes to actively participate in whereas in the past, when
she was married, shed not use the phone so much nor be constantly
checking notifications.

the anticipation and disappointment loop. the process of waiting for

and checking in is compared to a Pavlovian response by the producer
and is a source of anxiety, stress, and exhaustion, particularly for
those that leave their phone next to their bed at night and check-in
when they wake during the night, thus destroying their sleep cycle
and damaging their health.

it can literally break down your body. Dr Rosen discusses the effect
of the stress hormone cortisol on long term health. Checking in
constantly raises cortisol levels and the body works harder than it
should and in the long run is damaged.

I took an informal poll in my class. Dr Rosen found that 200 out of

500 of his students no longer had their phones in their pockets but
carried them in their hands as they wanted to know immediately the
very instant that they received a notification thus leaving them in a
state of constant alert.

C. Tell your group whether or not you could turn off your notifications.
Which ones could you switch off easily, which would be more difficult
to turn off and why? Try a notification vacation for a few days and see
how you feel!

Listening Task 2: THE END OF ABSENCE (38.10-42.42)

A. Listen to the interview and fill in the table below with any details you
understand in relation to the items in the left-hand column.
Michael Harris
Writer of the book THE END OF
ABSENCE Reclaiming what weve
lost in a world of constant
connection.

How to live a truly connected life.

To do so one has to disconnect. We
need solitude to develop a rich
interior life and to be able to think
outside the group think that social
networking favors.

The importance of those born before

1985.

The authors youth compared to

childhood today.

Harris says we are living a

Gutenberg moment. This group of
people have one foot in the
analogue world and one in the
digital age and therefore can
instruct those born after 85 on the
virtues of the former life now lost to
the new generations. They are what
he terms the straddle generation.

The authors youth was one of time

in the open air without adult
supervision all day long. Teens now
are over connected to their parents
and both parents and teens feel
anxiety when they are unable to
connect.

B. Do you need a digital detox? In pairs discuss what you could do to

reclaim absence in your lives.
C. Later in the extract the author considers whether or not social media
are making us more narcissistic. What do you think? Tell your partner.
(link to whole show: http://www.cbc.ca/spark/blog/2014/09/14/notificationvacation/)