On top of eating up our time and attention, all this connectivity is changing the language we use. Take the popular “instant messaging” feature — first popularized by AOL — that lets you type a note to a friend and have it appear instantly on the friend’s computer screen. The fast-paced nature of IMing (Instant Messaging) helped spread an online shorthand, which AOL has compiled in a 77-term “dictionary”: LOL (“laughing out loud”); IMO (“in my opinion”); YT? (“You there?”). Don’t forget AFAIK (“as far as I know”), and DQMOT (“Don’t quote me on this”). Chamath Palihapitiya, AOL’s vice president for instant messaging, says he often has five distinct IM conversations going at once while at work. I’m sure this greatly enhances his productivity, but come on: Five simultaneous dialogues, each one made up mostly of acronyms? Is this really “conversation”?