How Gadgets Lose their Magic

The following is an extract from a post by Steven Levy. I identified myself with this situation. Is it not true that the oversaturation of technological advances leads to being unsurprised and finding interest in that which is technologically backwards?

Read on:

We all, I think, have become inured to Moore’s law. The astonishing advances that once would have brought us to our knees are now reduced to a thumbs-up on Gizmodo. They’re removed from the realm of magic—they’re just cool gear.

Which brings me back to Sir Arthur. His quote makes me think of the European explorers who encountered previously unknown tribes. I used to imagine what it would be like to venture deep into the bush and unveil my latest gadget—a digital tape recorder, an iPod, an electric toothbrush.

But now my daydreams are different. As technological magic becomes routine, I wonder whether a visit to a preindustrial society might teach me more than it teaches them. The only thing more fascinating than our technology is the idea of getting along without it. Maybe the way to recapture the magic is to turn all that stuff off.

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