“A desk is a dangerous place from which to view the world.” –John le Carré, former British spy and English author

John le Carre is one of my favorite authors. His ability to weave a story and evoke a character with just a few details is remarkable. He didn’t get that from sitting at a typewriter all day. If he were still alive, he might say the same thing about Google. As a portal on the world, it has both disadvantages and advantages.

There are growing indications that people are realizing media saturation is leading to media-induced stress, that activity is not the same as productivity and that technology can be a hindrance as well as a help. Millennials, as the most connected generation, may be among the first to put technology in its place in favor of simpler pleasures.

Two articles last week alone about Millennials and ‘nostalgia’ seem to support my premise. Last week, an article titled, “Everything old is new again to Internet Weary Young Adults” appeared in the Australian. Judging by the discussion and number of Re-Tweets it generated on Twitter, the article seems to have hit a nerve. The article reports on a study of young adult culture and concluded 16-30 year olds “pine for a less complex time.”

“Communicating with friends online has lost some of its lustre even from as recently as a year ago and they now want to have more face-to-face time. And they increasingly prefer to do that at home rather than going out to noisy, potentially dangerous pubs and nightclubs. ….those still living with their parents (about half) have noticed the global financial crisis’s impact on the family and pared back their lifestyle in response. It also shows their love affair with technology is heading for a break-up, with time spent online down 30 minutes a week from last year, while their consumption of newspapers increased by the same amount. Facebook and Twitter are also still on the rise, but losing some of their cachet. “

Likewise the NYT this week made a stir July 23 with an article, “Harry Potter is Their Peter Pan” describing the new nostalgia among Millennials in the U.S. The NYT attributes the longing for the comforts of their childhood to the uncertainties of life today.

The research reported by the Australian article attributes the change in behavior and attitudes less to a longing for a simpler time than a desire for more immediate person-to person connection:

“And they want more connections with their friends that aren’t digital, that are tangible. They’re starting to question the authenticity of social networks such as Facebook and Twitter. They want technology to assist rather than dominate the way they communicate.”

I tend to agree with the Australian article. The driver is a desire for authenticity, not a return to safer more secure time. Millennials long to get out into the world and make a difference, or simply get out into the world. A newly released study by Timex on American Life and the Outdoors shows many feel trapped indoors, and struggle to find time to enjoy the outdoors. According to this study, “More than half of American adults (56%) fantasize about breaking free from their homes and offices to be outdoors, and that more than one-third expect the economy will negatively impact the time they spend outside this summer.” Millennials appear to be especially affected. “Millennials (ages 18-24) spend almost 10 hours per day on the computer and socializing with friends, yet less than two hours outdoors.”

As the most connected generation, I think it will be easiest for Millennials to put technology in its place. It may not be wholesale technology backlash, but longing for a simpler time and more genuine relationships may eventually diminish time spent online. Here’s Melbourne clothing designer Clea Garrick, 27, on her pursuit of simpler pleasures:

“We’ve definitely had more dinners at our house than we normally would, including a fondue party, would you believe it?” said Ms Garrick, who is married with no children. She agreed there was now a greater emphasis among her peers for human contact rather than online connections than a year ago. “Facebook, for sure, we’ve dropped our usage,” she said. “It’s just a time-commitment issue: how do you want to be spending your time?”