Great post, Matt! Disconnecting has become increasingly more difficult despite its power to put life in perspective, which may be the byproduct of creativity.. Btw--Victor Nell studied readers who burrowed away from life in reading and grew anxious when they were in a bookless environment. I believe he published his study in RRQ and wrote a book. Ludic reading he called it, from ludicrous. These were extreme cases with traits similar to any other addiction--it interferes with your job, it creates problems in your marriage or family, you worry about not having access to books, etc. He used medical grade monitoring of blood pressure heart-rate etc. and documented physiological responses consistent with addiction. No brain imaging:) It would be tough for me not to read, especially at this point. I’ve never been hungrier for books.
Great post, Matt! Disconnecting has become increasingly more difficult despite its power to put life in perspective, which may be the byproduct of creativity.. Btw--Victor Nell studied readers who burrowed away from life in reading and grew anxious when they were in a bookless environment. I believe he published his study in RRQ and wrote a book. Ludic reading he called it, from ludicrous. These were extreme cases with traits similar to any other addiction--it interferes with your job, it creates problems in your marriage or family, you worry about not having access to books, etc. He used medical grade monitoring of blood pressure heart-rate etc. and documented physiological responses consistent with addiction. No brain imaging:) It would be tough for me not to read, especially at this point. I’ve never been hungrier for books.
Thanks Terry. I had not heard about the Nell study. Interesting stuff.
I appreciate your company in the "need to read" camp.