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Today, digital devices are in the hands of everyone from babies in their strollers to the grandparents who FaceTime with the tots while dining in the middle of an otherwise quiet restaurant. Technology has enabled us to connect like never before. But, it is also creating a new “normal” in behavior that seems anything but normal.

Here we will explore topics ranging from modern manners in the digital world to the impact of constant connection on our well being. We'll also explore the fun connections we can make when we put our devices down and lift our eyes up to the world around us. Let’s decide whether this new normal is really the one we want.

Hi! I’m Kay and I’ve been in the world of tech for nearly 20 years. I started my career at Microsoft when smartphones were just becoming a thing. It was a time when being connected, “anytime, anywhere and from any device” was more of a dream than reality. Now that dream has become a bit of a nightmare - we are connected everywhere, all the time and from any device we can get our hands on! It sometimes feels like an addiction!

Walk into any coffee shop in any part of the world and what do we see? Mostly faces looking down into whatever device is in hand. Children are peering into digital devices as soon as they are old enough to grasp them and couples at dinner stare into phone screens rather than into one another’s eyes. I have been one of these people! Technology has enabled us to do some pretty cool things, but it’s also creating a new norm that feels anything but normal.