LAJFSTAJL / LIFESTYLE
EVER MORE ANTI-TECHNOLOGY MOVEMENTS ARE EMERGING Is there life without notifications? Ever more young people around the world are becoming part of the digital detox movement, which is rooted in the idea that we have all become addicted to technology that impoverishes our lives – in love and socialising, and even in economic terms I mmediately before the pandemic changed all of our plans, I made a business trip to New York with colleagues for a few days. We decided to cheat the jet lag and head for coffee straight from the airport. Our attention was drawn to one bar in Soho. It was an enticing venue with Scandinavian har- mony and eco-conscious decor. We asked the waitress for the wi-fi code almost as soon as we entered, intend- ing to let everyone know how nice our flight had been and that we’d arrived on time. However, she respond- ed reproachfully, saying “This is a device free zone!” Astonished, we returned our mobile phones (all with prepared external batteries and earphones) to our pockets - but a question remained floating in the air: how precisely does a cafe function when the use of gadgets is forbidden? I don’t know about you, but I most love a double dose of Instagram scrolling along- side my flat white. And at the end of the day, in the city that never sleeps, isn’t it completely logical for most people to spend all their time, 24/7, illuminated by the bluish-white light of their smartphones? Is there life without noti- fications – there, but also anywhere else in the world? It was a little later, while riding the subway to- wards our hotel, that I got the answers I was seeking: most people were immersed in iPhones, iPads, Note- books or Kindles, and obviously the depth of the tun- nels through which the trains travel doesn’t represent an obstacle to their digital dependence. The lack of any contact with other passengers in the rush hour train could be explained by the fact that the New York sub-
Širom sveta mladi ljudi žude za životom sa više opažanja, a manje lajkova All around the world, young people are yearning for a life with more observations and fewer likes
way isn’t really the most ideal place for socialising - but everywhere else we went, we came across people who function with their phones as extensions of their hands, without the help of which we wouldn’t be able to find the end of the street, let alone leisure options at the end of a busy day. Intrigued by this “no device” premise, I decided to return to the cafe from the beginning of the story. I took a seat at the bar, which is primarily intended for waiting while the barista makes foam on your coffee, and struck up a conversation with the working wait- er . “I heard this is a place where gadgets are banned, is that right?” “Yes, we are part of the “digital detox” movement. Have you heard of it?” he asked me with a half-smile. In response to me shaking my head, he replied with an explanation: “It’s a movement that emerged out of
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