Stanford professor Brian Knutson describes the way the internet has changed his thinking:

In terms of how I think, I fear that the Internet is less helpful. Although I can find information faster, that information is not always the most relevant, and is often tangential. More often than I’d like to admit, I sit down to do something and then get up bleary-eyed hours later, only to realize my task remains undone (or I can’t even remember the starting point). The sensation is not unlike walking into a room, stopping, and asking “now, what was I here for?” — except that you’ve just wandered through a mansion and can’t even remember what the entrance looked like.

This frightening “face-sucking” potential of the Web reminds me of conflicts between present and future selves first noted by ancient Greeks and Buddhists, and poignantly elaborated by philosopher Derek Parfit. Counterintuitively, Parfit considers present and future selves as different people. By implication, with respect to the present self, the future self deserves no more special treatment than anyone else.

Thus, if the present self doesn’t feel a connection with the future self, then why forego present gratification for someone else’s future kicks? [read more]

[h/t Andrew Sullivan]