[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"$fakPSQVPXNfSEJaPpchlvhhpT2EPY1Vlh2rQciUQO6d4":3,"$frTu-vtGRhIhyoZV7-pbL0WgQ6jPTwFMW78O9n-svYcA":12},{"author":4,"tags":11},{"author_id":5,"author_name":6,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"bio":9,"short_bio":9,"bio_jsonld":9,"slug":10,"image_url":9},37031,"Tom Chatfield","T",27,null,"tom-chatfield",[],{"quotes":13,"pagination":127},[14,27,38,49,60,72,83,94,105,116],{"id":15,"quote_text":16,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":19,"source":20,"quote_tag":21,"commentary":9},1289187,"The earliest known writing probably emerged in southern Mesopotamia around 5,000 years ago, but for most of recorded history, reading and writing remained among the most elite human activities: the province of monarchs, priests and nobles who reserved for themselves the privilege of lasting words.",4,false,{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[22],{"id":23,"tag":24},4286838,{"id":25,"tag_name":26},25502,"among",{"id":28,"quote_text":29,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":30,"source":31,"quote_tag":32,"commentary":9},1289184,"Unlike us, machines do not have a 'nature' consistent across vast reaches of time. They are, at least to begin with, whatever we set in motion - with an inbuilt tendency towards the exponential.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[33],{"id":34,"tag":35},4286834,{"id":36,"tag_name":37},25099,"across",{"id":39,"quote_text":40,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":41,"source":42,"quote_tag":43,"commentary":9},1289181,"For all the sophistication of a world in which most of our waking hours are spent consuming or interacting with media, we have scarcely advanced in our understanding of what attention means.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[44],{"id":45,"tag":46},4286830,{"id":47,"tag_name":48},12408,"advanced",{"id":50,"quote_text":51,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":52,"source":53,"quote_tag":54,"commentary":9},1289177,"The biggest neurological turn-on for people is other people. This is what really excites us. In reward terms, it's not money; it's not being given cash - that's nice - it's doing stuff with our peers, watching us, collaborating with us.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[55],{"id":56,"tag":57},4286827,{"id":58,"tag_name":59},24364,"biggest",{"id":61,"quote_text":62,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":63,"source":64,"quote_tag":65,"commentary":71},1289172,"Once the words of a book appear onscreen, they are no longer simply themselves; they have become a part of something else. They now occupy the same space, not only as every other digital text, but as every other medium, too.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[66],{"id":67,"tag":68},4286823,{"id":69,"tag_name":70},10053,"appear","**The Backstory**\n\nThis poignant observation is attributed to Tom Chatfield, a British writer and historian known for his insightful commentary on technology's impact on society. Given the context of digital media's rapid proliferation during the 2000s, it's reasonable to assume that this quote emerged from one of Chatfield's essays or lectures around this time. As a scholar who had been tracking the intersection of media and culture, Chatfield was likely grappling with the implications of how our digital presence reshapes our understanding of information.\n\n**The Hidden Insight**\n\nWhat the author is getting at here is not just that digital texts are now part of a larger online ecosystem; it's also that they've become indistinguishable from other forms of media. This blurring of lines between text, image, and sound reveals a profound shift in how we consume information: our brains are no longer able to differentiate between distinct mediums, but instead experience them as an undifferentiated flow.\n\n**How to Use This**\n\nTo apply this insight today, consider the importance of **multimodal storytelling**: when crafting messages for your audience, remember that text alone may not be enough. Incorporate images, videos, or sounds to convey your message and make it more memorable, especially in a crowded digital environment where attention is scarce.",{"id":73,"quote_text":74,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":75,"source":76,"quote_tag":77,"commentary":9},1289168,"The really interesting stuff about virtuality is what you can measure with it. Because what you can measure in virtuality is everything. Every single thing that every single person who's ever played in a game has ever done can be measured.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[78],{"id":79,"tag":80},4286818,{"id":81,"tag_name":82},56698,"played",{"id":84,"quote_text":85,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":86,"source":87,"quote_tag":88,"commentary":9},1289164,"For the moment, machines able to 'think' in anything approaching a human sense remain science-fiction. How we should prepare for their potential emergence, however, is a deeply unsettling question - not least because intelligent machines seem considerably more achievable than any consensus around their programming or consequences.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[89],{"id":90,"tag":91},4286815,{"id":92,"tag_name":93},23062,"consensus",{"id":95,"quote_text":96,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":97,"source":98,"quote_tag":99,"commentary":9},1289160,"We are all amateur attention economists, hoarding and bartering our moments - or watching them slip away down the cracks of a thousand YouTube clips.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[100],{"id":101,"tag":102},4286811,{"id":103,"tag_name":104},21753,"amateur",{"id":106,"quote_text":107,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":108,"source":109,"quote_tag":110,"commentary":9},1289156,"As a medium, electronic screens possess infinite capacities and instant interconnections, turning words into a new kind of active agent in the world.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[111],{"id":112,"tag":113},4286806,{"id":114,"tag_name":115},67541,"agent",{"id":117,"quote_text":118,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":119,"source":120,"quote_tag":121,"commentary":9},1289152,"Vast volumes of mixed media surround us, from music to games and videos. Yet almost all of our online actions still begin and end with writing: text messages, status updates, typed search queries, comments and responses, screens packed with verbal exchanges and, underpinning it all, countless billions of words.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[122],{"id":123,"tag":124},4286803,{"id":125,"tag_name":126},1599,"actions",{"currentPage":128,"totalPages":129,"totalItems":8,"itemsPerPage":130},1,3,10]