------Program code: DO-081027-02953 (what's this?)
Source: CCTV.com
10-27-2008 10:07
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"The business has expanded from there. Soon, some content providers started providing a selection of video backgrounds, like in the street, in a meeting, or taking a shower."
" You can download them and send them to your wife or girlfriend if she asks where you are. So, they’re making money from both parties the one who wants to know the secret and the who wants to keep the secret."
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"It’s an era of mass consumption. Consumption is the priority. Consumers are suffering from “affluenza”. Supermarkets are getting bigger and bigger. The number of cars is soaring. People are feeling caged in.They’re chasing larger and larger houses. But the family members in different rooms are engaged in different forms of consumption; surfing the internet, watching TV…Whenever technology comes up with new forms of convenience and efficiency, communication is further stifled."
"Since we started using mobile phones, we spend less time communicating face-to-face with our relatives and friends. If we want to talk to someone, we send a short message or call him on a mobile phone. The advantages of mobile phones are obvious, but there are disadvantages, too. They create a distance between people. A student once told me how she fell out with her roommate. They wouldn’t talk to each other directly, so they communicated over the internet. We’re living in the modern world. They live in the same room, but they talk to each other over the internet."
"On the one hand, we have little communication with our neighbours. On the other, the internet brings people who are far apart, closer. People have far more choices today. We could only talk to people around us before. But now the Internet can connect us to people far away. While our virtual world is expanding we’re feeling more distant from the people around us in the real world."
"Music is like coffee. Poetry is like running water. Your mood is like a road. My friend is like wheat. Beauty is like great changes. Dear you are like me. The distance between us is like our life. Why is the distance between us like our life? Life can be long or short, near or far. Today, I can reach you immediately via a mobile phone, wherever you are. The geographical distance between people is diminishing. But between souls, without any real communication, it can be thousands of miles. Technology brings us greater freedom but also a greater burden. Freedom is precious. Technically speaking, cars give us more freedom and so do mobile phones. But what does this kind of freedom bring? As Milan Kundera described, in “The Unbearable Lightness of Being”, total freedom can become total restraint. When something reaches its extreme, it reverses its course. So the more physical freedom you enjoy the more psychological pressure you may be subjected to."
"In the evening, the television is plastered with commercials for mobile phones. The advertisements are a nuisance. What if there was no television. What if there was a blackout tonight. A long time ago, people sat together telling each other stories when there was a power cut. Today, a blackout makes us angry and uneasy."
"I heard there was a group of people in the U.S. trying a new lifestyle. They’d gone back to Nature. They were self-sufficient in food and clothing. They stopped their children from receiving a secondary education. They never ventured more than 30 metres away from where they were born. They never moved house. They rejected televisions, computers, mobile phones and all other modern inventions. Their life was simple and poor, but none of them suffered from any anxiety disorder. Maybe I’m going too far. I should have focused on talking about mobile phones. Anxiety disorder is a modern disease. It’s part of modern life, just like the mobile phone. There's a term: mobile phone anxiety disorder. You can’t leave your mobile phone, otherwise you’ll feel anxious. It’s not just about the mobile phone. It’s an inevitable mental problem suffered by modern people."
"I get quite absent-minded these days. I spend a lot of time looking for my mobile phone. My mobile phone takes up much of my time. You don’t feel like answering the phone when you’re tired. But you’re still worried, in case you’re missing something. It’s a love-hate relationship. Sometimes, if my mobile phone doesn’t ring for half an hour I worry that it’s got no money or I’ve forgotten to bring it with me, or I’ve left it in vibration mode. I’m always thinking about my mobile phone. We need to rest after a day’s work. But it’s difficult when you’ve got a mobile phone with you. For example, if I was really tired now and wanted to rest for 2 or 3 hours people could still reach me by mobile phone. You don’t have a minute’s rest. You’re always conscious that someone may call. Sometimes, when I’m about to take a break, someone calls me. I have to start working again. I hardly get a break. Turn it off? Impossible. I must be responsible about my work. So I’m available 24 hours a day. I always have to be prepared. When it rings, I immediately have to be ready to work. Before we had mobile phones, we were carefree. Now it’s impossible to return to that time. Just like the film “Cell Phone” pointed out, we really miss those days. But it’s impossible for us to return to that era."
"I’m certain that mobile phones will cause mental disorders. I started using a mobile phone in 1995. Now I’m suffering from mobile phone anxiety disorder. If my mobile phone doesn’t ring for a while, I feel anxious. Then, when it rings one time after another, I become quite fearful We miss the old days, because we’re anxious. We possess modern tools, but we spend more time working than connecting with each other. We’re no longer capable of getting along with other people. We’re even less capable of getting along with ourselves. Modern society offers us various opportunities and a lot of problems as well. Some people readily accept these problems. Some try their best to adapt. But some still harbour doubts, while others choose to escape or resist. Lao Li is a documentary film director. It’s a profession that requires him to communicate with people. Yet Lao Li refuses to carry a mobile phone. It’s near Baita Temple. I’ve been there before. Right. People in Beijing hang their clothes this way. What are you doing? He’s recording my life. Really. I have few social connections. Is that because you have so little contact with other people? Yes. I don’t use a mobile phone. Right. You don’t have a mobile phone. You’re probably the only person in China who doesn’t use a mobile phone. I’m not the only one. Many farmers don’t have mobile phones, either. But most people in the cities do. Right. That’s why he’s such a rare case. He’s probably the only person in Beijing who doesn’t have a mobile phone. Foreigners can also send short messages. Sure. They do it a lot. I send short messages in English. I type too slowly in Chinese. Really. Yeah. Extremely slowly. But I can send short messages in Chinese. People are impetuous. We rarely do the right thing. Think about your own life. We seldom speak honestly. For half the time, we’re talking nonsense or making small talk. Most of our time is taken up with social engagements. We’re seldom doing what we really like. Even if you’re working for someone else you need your own independent space. I find my mobile phone disturbing. It rings like a pager. When it rings, I look at the screen and wonder who’s calling. Should I answer it or not? Finally, I decide to answer it. “Hello.” It’s so irritating. If you’ve got a mobile phone you’re always available and open to being disturbed. He never has a free moment. He’s always available to other people. He’s like a kite at the end of a string. Wherever he goes, he can be pulled back. So he’ll never feel free and relaxed. I think we really need peace. Life without mobile phones, would be fine. You mean spiritual peace, right? Do you really think you’ll have peace, after you stop using a mobile phone? It’s hard to say. Lao Li doesn’t use a mobile phone. He wants to enjoy his peace. However, he needs to work and to communicate with others. Although he doesn’t have a mobile phone he can’t avoid reaching others on theirs."
"Guo Degang is a fashion and entertainment icon. His cross talks always deal with the latest fashion. It’s convenient to communicate with others via a mobile phone. Mobile phones are constantly being updated. There were only ring tones before. Now there are so many colour ring back tones. And there are all these functions. My mobile phone has so many functions. You like listening to colour ring back tones, too? Different people use different colour ring back tones...A colour ring back tone; it can create the miracle of a brand new life."
