The Shallows updates Marshall McLuhan's thesis that "the mediumisthe message"--the technology we use to share our thoughts inescapably shapes how we think.
After having seen that brilliant scene in the movie line in Annie Hall, one is always wary of quoting Marshall McLuhan, but we should remember that themediumisthemessage, the tetrad of media effects and all that other good stuff he said.
It isthe conversational nature of themedium that engenders engagement, and the fleetingness of each individual message assures the attentiveness of both the sender and recipient.