Paula and I attended her high school class reunion this past weekend. It was great to see people reminisce and catch up; some of them hadn’t seen each other for 40 or 50 years or more. Some still live in the same community, some left but came back to live near where they grew up, and some, like Paula, have bounced all over the U.S. There were marriages, births, divorces, and deaths as you might expect and an incredible diversity of careers. But there were also enduring connections between human beings from different backgrounds who were thrown together in school. This was an example of a true social network, and it has endured for over 50 years.

I also noticed that just about everyone had a cell phone. I watched a group of men standing around talking and one began to show pictures. It could have been of grandchildren or even great-grandchildren. One comment I heard was “If we’re looking at pictures, I’m getting my phone, too.” The technology of today hasn’t escaped this Baby Boomer generation.

It made me wonder how things would have been different if they had today’s technology back then. A recently published study on the use of digital media by teenagers could give us some insight. We’ll take a look on Thursday.

What are you prepared to do today?

Dr. Chet