Harley Hahn Newsletter #68

Harley Hahn Newsletter
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  HARLEY HAHN NEWSLETTER
           #68

   September 15, 2010

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"We aren't pushed by the past.
 We're pulled by the future."

 -- Harley Hahn


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    The Island Syndrome - Part II
A Link Between Biology and Technology
=====================================

In my last newsletter, I announced Part I of a
brand new Web site based on research for my latest
book:

   The Island Syndrome

The subtitle of this book is:

   Important Ideas to Help You Understand
   Life in a Dehumanizing Culture

With this newsletter, I am announcing that Part II
of the Web site is ready for you to read.

I have been working on The Island Syndrome
for several years.  In that time, I have done a
large amount of research and a great deal of
reading, thinking, and talking with people.  In my
conversations and speeches, I have found that the
topics I am researching are of great interest to
just about everyone I talk with.  My guess is
that once you read what I have to say, you will
feel the same way.

So what is the Island Syndrome?

The "Island Syndrome" is my name for a ubiquitous
condition: a mental health epidemic of overwhelming
proportions, created by an over-abundance of junk
communication and bad technology habits.  The
symptoms caused by this epidemic are endemic to
the developed world.  As such, you will find these
symptoms, not only in the U.S., Canada, Europe,
and so on, but wherever the dominant, Western
technology-based culture is adopted
indiscriminately.

On the Web site, I have divided the discussion of
The Island Syndrome into two parts.  In Part I,
I take an overall look at what is happening, why,
and how it is important.

In Part II, I explain many of the scientific
details, in order to give you a firm understanding
of the reasons behind many of these changes.
Specifically, I want you to be able to understand
why so many people continue to embrace the
behaviors and habits that are giving them so much
trouble.

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If you haven't yet had a chance to read The
Island Syndrome, please start with Part I.

"Look around and you will see that something
strange is happening.  People have become
habituated to their mobile smartphones, laptops,
Internet connections, music players, video games,
television, and other 'conveniences' of modern
life to the point of addiction.

"Since the early 1990s, the way we talk,
communicate, amuse ourselves -- even the way we
think -- has changed radically.  Some of this is
good; much of it isn't..."

The Island Syndrome — Part I

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Once you have looked at Part I of The Island
Syndrome, I know you will find it interesting
and intriguing to continue with Part II:

"Our brains are 'wired' in ways that render us
susceptible to certain types of troublesome
stimulation and behaviors, even when engaging in
such behaviors is against our own best interests.

"Modern technology, however, makes it possible
(even likely) that many of us will indulge in such
behaviors without fully recognizing the long-term
consequences of what we are doing.  In such
situations, the parts of our brains that make up
the so-called 'pleasure center' are stimulated in
ways that, in some of us, lead to unexpected and
unpleasant consequences.  Once we understand how
the brain works in this regard, the link between
biology and technology becomes clear..."

The Island Syndrome — Part II

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In addition to the Web site, you may enjoy looking
at a painting I have created that embodies the
spirit of the ideas I cover in the new book:

The Island Syndrome painting

-- Harley Hahn