Have smartphones killed the art of conversation?

By David Le Breton, Professeur de sociologie et d'anthropologie, Université de Strasbourg

Once upon a time, human relationships unfolded without smartphones. The reality may be hard to recall, so profoundly have these devices transformed the way we relate to the world and others in fifteen years or so.

As an anthropologist interested in modernity, I am particularly preoccupied by the impact of these devices on our conversations. In my book, The…

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~	How collaboration from across Canada, and the world, is helping fight the Alberta wildfires

~	Video game performers are becoming Hollywood stars in their own right − and are on strike to be paid and protected accordingly

~	Paris Olympics: Canada’s soccer drone scandal highlights the need for ethics education

~	World News in Brief: Historic Palestine monastery on World Heritage in Danger List, rights office condemnation as Ghana upholds anti-gay law, free jailed Russian activist

~	Nearly half of children born in Wales in 2002-3 classed as having special educational needs – this may have negatively affected their attainment

~	Bosses are increasingly forcing workers back into the office – but evidence suggests it could backfire

~	Commonly used drug may extend women’s fertility, claim researchers – here’s what you need to know about rapamycin

~	The first farmers often made landscapes more biodiverse – our research could have lessons for rewilding today

~	An artist has stolen a coin from the British Museum as part of a performance piece – but is the artwork ethical?

~	Books That Shook the Business World: The Ecology of Commerce by Paul Hawken