Hi everyone,
This is my first post on about my experience on the absent presence project. When first approached to help for this project, I didn’t quite understand the concept of absent presence. And it was only after speaking with Charlotte about some examples that I began to understand. The point at which I realized and connected with this concept was when the crew and myself started talking to people around the University of Toronto Scarborough campus, I really reflected on this idea of being physically present but mentally preoccupied. I realized that I remain in this state of mind for many hours in a typical day. A lot of the time I am communicating with my friends through the cell phone or through the internet. I have realized I have created a great dependence on these forms of communication. When asking people how they feel when they do not have their cell phones with them, I felt a real connection with their responses. I realized that the responses to this question is in unison: people feel lost and they have the feeling that they’re missing something important, like a wallet. It was very intriguing to actually be able to tackle this issue face on. When talking to students it seems like people don’t realize exactly how much they rely on these devices. Surprisingly, me as well.
- Jessica
Filed under: Interviews, Jessica's Posts, Progress Updates Tagged: | absent presence, new media, social intervention
i hate it when i leave my cell at home…. its so annoying!!! its so much easier being able to reach people no matter where you are… and also safety is definitely a big thing for me… if your going to stay late on campus its a good thing to have a cell cause you never know whos around.