More on mindfulness and technology

More from the New York Times on how the overuse of technology can be counterproductive:

The technology makes the tiniest windows of time entertaining, and potentially productive. But scientists point to an unanticipated side effect: when people keep their brains busy with digital input, they are forfeiting downtime that could allow them to better learn and remember information, or come up with new ideas.

Read the rest of “Digital Devices Deprive Brain of Needed Downtime.” In related news, the second Wisdom 2.0 Conference has been announced. From their website:

There is little question that most of us will live “connected” to technology … the more pertinent question is: Amidst this life, will we live increasingly distracted and hurried, disconnected from a sense of purpose — or can we live with mindfulness and wisdom, and engage the great technologies of our age in ways that benefit us, our society, and world?

As somebody who helps work on a Buddhist website, I understand full well the difficulty of finding the right balance between technology and a mindful way of living. I get lost looking through Buddhist Twitter accounts, navigate the web in a dreamlike state for Buddhist news, and read multiple articles simultaneously about the value of one-pointedness and focus. I see the irony in this. It’s a question that I enjoy working out. I’d like to spend some more time fleshing out rules that I would like to follow re: mindful technology use, but I’ve got a million other things to do. Besides, maybe if I go tweet the link to this blog post and put it on Facebook then you all can work out the details for me. What methods do you employ in your own effort to use technology with awareness?