The choice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The choice - Essay Example Book Summary Distracted is a book by Maggie Jackson who is an author and a journalist. The book’s credibility is enhanced by the fact that the content is based on information that is backed by adequate research. Jackson documents her vast travels and describes her meetings and discussions with professionals and researchers in various fields ranging from biological and physical sciences to arts and technology. Jackson’s ideas flow coherently in the book and the smooth read is captivating. Some of the topics in the book stand out and catch the reader by surprise because of their bizarreness. The organization of her thoughts and her ability to summarize them in a way that can be easily understood hints at her experience as a journalist indicating that individuals live in a â€Å"virtual, mobile, split focus world† (129). At the introduction, Jackson expresses her opinion that is the motivation for the book’s content. She believes that society is gradually hea ding towards a bleak future because of a stagnant culture and society. She believes that society is fast losing its ability to focus because of the nature of contemporary life, and that this lack of focus has corroded the ability to be keen and aware. Attention is crucial for intimacy to develop between the members of the society, and this intimacy contributes to cultural development. Jackson’s point that the society is headed towards a dark future because of an attention deficit provokes the reader’s thoughts. All the nine chapters of Jackson’s book are organized under three major parts including lengthening shadows: exploring our landscape of distraction, deepening twilight: pursuing the narrowing path and dark Times†¦or Renaissance of attention. The chapters under the first and second parts of the book are each titled â€Å"Focus,† â€Å"Judgment† and â€Å"Awareness.† In the last part of the book, she reveals that the titles of the chapters in the first and second parts are the three levels of the attention system. Chapter one of Jackson’s book focuses on presenting Jackson’s idea on distraction and the role that technology plays in society’s attention, or lack of it. The second, third and fourth chapters reveal what Jackson sees as the three main settings that shelter the problems that encourage the continued lack of attention. In chapter five, Jackson highlights privacy issues, with arguments that revolve around how social media like Facebook and surveillance impact negatively on trust whereby she indicates, â€Å"†¦we are nurturing a culture of social diffusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (94). Chapter six of the book focuses on the written word concerning interaction with individuals. In chapter seven, Jackson questions the impact of technology on society. She leaves the reader to ponder the thought whether machines are evolving to be more like humans or if humans are evolving to be more like machines. The eighth chapter addresses the idea of preservation and the challenges it faces. In the ninth and last chapter, Jackson focuses on the duty and importance of attention. It is in this last chapter that Jackson explains the three networks of the attention system as she offers the solution to distraction. One could argue that Jackson’s move of dividing the chapters under titles is a forced construction. Jackson’s books focus on individuals in United States of America. Despite her sources and facts being from credible sources, a reader outside of the United