6 O’Clock BS: Signs of the Times

Brianne Bilyeu, ,

First – Happy birthday to the Mall of America. This past Saturday marked 20 years since the doors first opened at the mall. Yeah, yeah… cursed MOA with it’s consumerism and overconsumption and blardeeblarblar. I like the mall. It has an aquarium. And LegoLand. And a ropes course.

Anyway, yesterday we passed this sign:

It is a digital display and the picture changed about every five seconds or so. I was waiting for it to scroll through so I could re-read an ad that I had caught out of the corner of my eye (oh you tricky marketers, you). While I was there a steady stream of people walked by, including a large number of spawnlings toddling after their parents. Here’s the interesting part: four young kids – we’re talking three and four years old – stopped, looked at the sign and then tried to interact with it. Each and everyone one of them looked confused when the sign didn’t respond. One girl tried to pressed harder on on the screen, and another took her finger and tried to swipe the screen across.

The future is here, y’all.

And here’s the ad that I was waiting for:

Le sigh. That’s what I thought it said.

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6 O’Clock BS: Signs of the Times

About the author

Thoughts from a Minneapolis-based nerdy, liberal, humanist progressive on topics such as science, skepticism, religion, atheism, critical thought, politics, and local and global humanitarian and equality efforts. Biodork <3's geek culture, groan-inducing puns, world travel, cultural exchange and sharing and listening to stories.
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20 thoughts on “6 O’Clock BS: Signs of the Times”

  3. lancefinney
    Reply
    3

    Last Spring, my then-2-yr-old saw a revolving ad on a screen like that and tried to swipe it back when the ad changed. He was so sad that the screen didn’t work like his Grandma’s iPad. He just looked at us crying, trying to figure out what was wrong.

    are we horrible people that we all found it hilarious?

  4. E.A. Blair
    Reply
    4

    Saw an internet joke today that applies here:

    I was visiting my son last night when I asked if I could borrow a newspaper.

    “This is the 21st century, old man,” he said. ‘We don’t waste money on newspapers. Here, you can borrow my iPad.'”

    I can tell you, that fly never knew what hit it…

    Not long ago I had a similar experience trying to tell a kid what a paperboy was.

  5. pipenta
    Reply
    5

    From the Mayo Clinic Website:

    Alternative medicine means practices not typical in conventional medicine and includes things such as herbs and dietary supplements, meditation, massage, and acupuncture. When an alternative practice is used in addition to conventional therapy, it’s called complementary. Evidence-based complementary therapies are being combined more often with conventional care, giving rise to a new term “integrative medicine.” You’re using integrative medicine when you add a complementary treatment to an existing conventional treatment.

    Although alternative and complementary practices are becoming more common, many have not been rigorously tested for safety and effectiveness. So before you try something considered to be alternative medicine, take time to investigate the risks and benefits. Your doctor can be a good resource — and needs to know about any alternative medicine you’re considering.

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