Technology and gender equality

Are we socially hobbled by our little screens? Digital technology has changed our lives, but for better or worse?

When I look up at a line forming at my cash register, I breathe a sign of relief when I see a customer occupied with her cell phone. I know she will be less likely to be impatient.

Do we idealize the past? Are public spaces less communal than they used to be? A sociologist named Hampden has found that we are actually interacting more with other people than we used to. He actually got the bright idea to look back, and compare now with previous years. One of his most notable findings is that there are more women in public than there used to be.

Go read this article by Mark Oppenheimer in the New York Times to find out more about Hampden's work.

Thanks to Conor Friedersdorf for linking to Oppenheimer.