# The Cellphone Has Become a Social Prosthesis and Almost a Brain Implant by Robert Provine > “The basic cellphone has morphed into a powerful, mobile, multimedia communication device and computer terminal that is a major driver of Internet society. It gives immediate, constant contact with select, distant conversants, and can tell you where you are, where you should go next, how to get there, provide diversions while waiting, and document your journey with text, snaps and video images. For some, this is enhanced reality, but it comes at the price of the here-and-now. Whatever your opinion and level of engagement, the cellphone and related Internet devices are profound social prostheses — almost brain implants — that have changed our lives and culture.” > **— Robert Provine**, *2010, Edge Annual Question, “How Is The Internet Changing The Way You Think?”* ## Sources and Context - **Direct Edge response and surrounding essay:** [INTERNET SOCIETY](https://www.edge.org/response-detail/11277) — Edge published this exact passage in its 2010 Annual Question collection, *HOW IS THE INTERNET CHANGING THE WAY YOU THINK?*. The response page preserves the surrounding argument and qualifications. - **Complete local collection index:** [[research/Edge 2010 Full Quotation Curation|Edge 2010 Full Quotation Curation]] — retained source-first record for the complete response cohort and this passage's promotion status. ## Related Articles and Collections - **Collection:** [[collections/Edge|Edge]] - **Collection:** [[collections/Neurotech|Neurotech]] - **Collection:** [[collections/Consciousness Continuity|Consciousness Continuity]] - **Article:** [[articles/Technologies for Consciousness Mapping and Transfer|Consciousness Mapping and Transfer]] - **Article:** [[articles/The Organic-Synthetic Brain Atlas|Organic-Synthetic Brain Atlas]] - **Article:** [[articles/2026 Annual Report on Brain-Computer Interfaces|2026 BCI Report]] - **Article:** [[articles/The Next Interface Layer|Next Interface Layer]] - **Wiki map:** [[wiki/Neural Interfaces and Continuity Architecture|Neural Interfaces and Continuity Architecture]] ## Related Topics - [[wiki/Neural Interfaces and Continuity Architecture|Neural Interfaces and Continuity Architecture]] - [[wiki/Brain-Computer Interfaces|Brain-Computer Interfaces]] - [[wiki/Human-Machine Symbiosis|Human-Machine Symbiosis]] - [[wiki/Neural Interface|Neural Interface]] ## Share on Social Media ``` “The basic cellphone has morphed into a powerful, mobile, multimedia communication device and computer terminal that is a major driver of Internet society. It gives immediate, constant contact with select, distant conversants, and can tell you where you are, where you should go next, how to get there, provide diversions while waiting, and document your journey with text, snaps and video images. For some, this is enhanced reality, but it comes at the price of the here-and-now. Whatever your opinion and level of engagement, the cellphone and related Internet devices are profound social prostheses — almost brain implants — that have changed our lives and culture.” — Robert Provine, 2010, Edge Annual Question, “How Is The Internet Changing The Way You Think?” https://bryantmcgill.com/simple-reminders-robert-provine-cellphone-become-social-prosthesis-almost ```