The Intermedia Network as Nature

As soon as I began reading this section, my mind immediately went to Marshall McLuhan: “The medium is the message.” Vasulka takes this point a bit further, tracing the evolution of man’s conditioning throughout the ages to the present “Cybernetic Age.” It is a tough pill to swallow. Here we are creating these technologies, yet we’re not controlling their power over us. Our environment has always conditioned us. This new technological era is no exception. We live in a society where those with decades of experience at their jobs are deemed worthless if they are not able to use technology to convey their messages. Our children are growing up in a completely connected world, and functioning within this world will be second nature to them. Hence, they will be conditioned to communicate and receive communications in this way, whether they realize it or not.