--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The web: yet another total disorientation…" description: "\"“The web: yet another total disorientation that becomes status quo without anyone realizing it.”\" — Richard Powers" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/346/richard-powers-8111_disorientation_the-web-yet-another-total-disorientation_3139558.jpg" --- # The web: yet another total disorientation that becomes… ![“The web: yet another total disorientation that becomes status quo without anyone realizing it.” quote by Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/346/richard-powers-8111_disorientation_the-web-yet-another-total-disorientation_3139558.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/346/richard-powers-8111_disorientation_the-web-yet-another-total-disorientation_3139558.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/346/richard-powers-8111_disorientation_the-web-yet-another-total-disorientation_3139558.jpg) > ““The web: yet another total disorientation that becomes status quo without anyone realizing it.”” [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote highlights how pervasive digital networks can reshape reality unnoticed, becoming the new normal. **In simple terms:** Technology can subtly dominate our lives without us noticing. Key Takeaway Stay aware of tech’s impact on perception. Themes technology society awareness Mood thoughtful critical Type observational philosophical When to use this quote - workplace - social media use - education - policy making Key Concepts digital media cognitive bias norms Questions to Reflect On - What signs show technology is reshaping your worldview? - How can we reclaim agency over our attention? A Different Perspective It may overstate the uniformity of experience across all users. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Disorientation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disorientation/) [Disorientation Status](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disorientation-status-5587920/) [Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet/) [Realizing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realizing/) [Status quo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/status-quo/) [Total Disorientation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/total-disorientation-5587919/) ## Related quotes > [It feels like everything's been decided in advance that I'm following a path somebody else has already mapped out for me. It doesn't matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/it-feels-like-everything-s-been-decided-in-advance-that-i-m-following/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Most of the truly remarkable experiences I've had in theatre have filled me with uncertainty and disorientation”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bogart/most-of-the-truly-remarkable-experiences-i-ve-had-in-theatre-have/) [Anne Bogart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bogart/) > [Future shock is the dizzying disorientation brought on by the premature arrival of the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-toffler/future-shock-is-the-dizzying-disorientation-brought-on-by-the/) [Alvin Toffler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-toffler/) > [One of my inspirations, Harry Houdini, remains an icon of the art because he defied our primal fears. His demonstrations in the early 20th…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-angel/one-of-my-inspirations-harry-houdini-remains-an-icon-of-the-art/) [Criss Angel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-angel/) > [Every orientation presupposes a disorientation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-magnus-enzensberger/every-orientation-presupposes-a-disorientation/) [Hans Magnus Enzensberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-magnus-enzensberger/) > [Future shock is the disorientation that affects an individual, a corporation, or a country when he or it is overwhelmed by change and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-toffler/future-shock-is-the-disorientation-that-affects-an-individual-a/) [Alvin Toffler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-toffler/) > [A long flight. Jetlag. Immigration. Customs. And then finally, that first step into a new place, that moment of exhilaration and disorientation, each feeding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/a-long-flight-jetlag-immigration-customs-and-then-finally-that-first/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“The only thing all the intended disorientation had accomplished was to familiarize her with the building. Idiots.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/the-only-thing-all-the-intended-disorientation-had-accomplished-was/) [Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/) > [Transition is the natural process of disorientation and reorientation that marks the turning points in the path of growth...transitions are key times in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bridges/transition-is-the-natural-process-of-disorientation-and-reorientation/) [William Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bridges/) > [“I felt the disorientation of a generous offer that in no way lines up with anything you want to do: like a promotion to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sloan/i-felt-the-disorientation-of-a-generous-offer-that-in-no-way-lines-up/) [Robin Sloan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sloan/) > [“Let us say that science fiction is a kind of conceptual disorientation of the familiar.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-roberts/let-us-say-that-science-fiction-is-a-kind-of-conceptual/) [Adam Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-roberts/) > [“In fact, I would suggest that what each moment produces is the inherently ambiguous affect of affective disorientation in general—what we might think of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sianne-ngai/in-fact-i-would-suggest-that-what-each-moment-produces-is-the/) [Sianne Ngai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sianne-ngai/) > [The past is a stronger influence in the South. But I think everywhere you have this sense that the world changes faster than you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-frazier/the-past-is-a-stronger-influence-in-the-south-but-i-think-everywhere/) [Charles Frazier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-frazier/) > [Even when change is elective, it will disorient you. You may go through anxiety. You will miss aspects of your former life. It doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-mackay/even-when-change-is-elective-it-will-disorient-you-you-may-go-through/) [Harvey Mackay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-mackay/) > [I know what the problem is, of course. The disorientation, the distraction, the difficulty focusing - all classic Phase One signs of deliria. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/i-know-what-the-problem-is-of-course-the-disorientation-the/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) ## More by Richard Powers > [I write the way you might arrange flowers. Not every try works, but each one launches another. Every constraint, even dullness, frees up a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/i-write-the-way-you-might-arrange-flowers-not-every-try-works-but/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [If you're going to immerse yourself in a project for three years, why not stake out a chunk of the world that is completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/if-you-re-going-to-immerse-yourself-in-a-project-for-three-years-why/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [“It seemed to me that half of life’s problems would be solved if one of us had a vagina.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/it-seemed-to-me-that-half-of-life-s-problems-would-be-solved-if-one/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [“Information may travel at light speed, but meaning spreads at the speed of dark.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/information-may-travel-at-light-speed-but-meaning-spreads-at-the/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [Science is not about control. It is about cultivating a perpetual condition of wonder in the face of something that forever grows one step…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/science-is-not-about-control-it-is-about-cultivating-a-perpetual/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [What we can do should never by itself determine what we choose to do, yet this is the way technology tends to work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/what-we-can-do-should-never-by-itself-determine-what-we-choose-to-do/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [I really like science because it seems to be that place where you get the big picture, everything connects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/i-really-like-science-because-it-seems-to-be-that-place-where-you-get/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [For me, university was just awful because it was closing one door after the other of all these candy shops of professional possibilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/for-me-university-was-just-awful-because-it-was-closing-one-door/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [We will live with racism for ever. But senses of self, senses of belonging, senses of us and of others? Those are up for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/we-will-live-with-racism-for-ever-but-senses-of-self-senses-of/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [Reading is the last act of secular prayer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/reading-is-the-last-act-of-secular-prayer/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [Time passes, as the novelist says. The single most useful trick of fiction for our repair and refreshment: the defeat of time. A century…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/time-passes-as-the-novelist-says-the-single-most-useful-trick-of/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [A book is still atemporal. It is you, in silence, hearing voices in your head, unfolding at a time that has nothing to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/a-book-is-still-atemporal-it-is-you-in-silence-hearing-voices-in-your/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [My dream has always been to suspend myself in space when I write, and lying horizontal in bed is the closest to doing that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/my-dream-has-always-been-to-suspend-myself-in-space-when-i-write-and/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [“Je ne fais aucun mal en restant ici. I do no harm by remaining here.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/je-ne-fais-aucun-mal-en-restant-ici-i-do-no-harm-by-remaining-here/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [The use of music is to remind us how short a time we have a body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/the-use-of-music-is-to-remind-us-how-short-a-time-we-have-a-body/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) [Explore all 84 Richard Powers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) ## More Disorientation quotes > [It feels like everything's been decided in advance that I'm following a path somebody else has already mapped out for me. It doesn't matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/it-feels-like-everything-s-been-decided-in-advance-that-i-m-following/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Even when change is elective, it will disorient you. You may go through anxiety. You will miss aspects of your former life. It doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-mackay/even-when-change-is-elective-it-will-disorient-you-you-may-go-through/) [Harvey Mackay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-mackay/) > [The past is a stronger influence in the South. But I think everywhere you have this sense that the world changes faster than you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-frazier/the-past-is-a-stronger-influence-in-the-south-but-i-think-everywhere/) [Charles Frazier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-frazier/) > [“In fact, I would suggest that what each moment produces is the inherently ambiguous affect of affective disorientation in general—what we might think of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sianne-ngai/in-fact-i-would-suggest-that-what-each-moment-produces-is-the/) [Sianne Ngai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sianne-ngai/) > [“Let us say that science fiction is a kind of conceptual disorientation of the familiar.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-roberts/let-us-say-that-science-fiction-is-a-kind-of-conceptual/) [Adam Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-roberts/) > [“I felt the disorientation of a generous offer that in no way lines up with anything you want to do: like a promotion to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sloan/i-felt-the-disorientation-of-a-generous-offer-that-in-no-way-lines-up/) [Robin Sloan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sloan/) > [Transition is the natural process of disorientation and reorientation that marks the turning points in the path of growth...transitions are key times in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bridges/transition-is-the-natural-process-of-disorientation-and-reorientation/) [William Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bridges/) > [“The only thing all the intended disorientation had accomplished was to familiarize her with the building. Idiots.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/the-only-thing-all-the-intended-disorientation-had-accomplished-was/) [Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/) > [A long flight. Jetlag. Immigration. Customs. And then finally, that first step into a new place, that moment of exhilaration and disorientation, each feeding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/a-long-flight-jetlag-immigration-customs-and-then-finally-that-first/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [Future shock is the disorientation that affects an individual, a corporation, or a country when he or it is overwhelmed by change and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-toffler/future-shock-is-the-disorientation-that-affects-an-individual-a/) [Alvin Toffler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-toffler/) > [Every orientation presupposes a disorientation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-magnus-enzensberger/every-orientation-presupposes-a-disorientation/) [Hans Magnus Enzensberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-magnus-enzensberger/) > [One of my inspirations, Harry Houdini, remains an icon of the art because he defied our primal fears. His demonstrations in the early 20th…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-angel/one-of-my-inspirations-harry-houdini-remains-an-icon-of-the-art/) [Criss Angel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-angel/) > [Future shock is the dizzying disorientation brought on by the premature arrival of the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-toffler/future-shock-is-the-dizzying-disorientation-brought-on-by-the/) [Alvin Toffler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-toffler/) > [“Most of the truly remarkable experiences I've had in theatre have filled me with uncertainty and disorientation”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bogart/most-of-the-truly-remarkable-experiences-i-ve-had-in-theatre-have/) [Anne Bogart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bogart/) > [I know what the problem is, of course. The disorientation, the distraction, the difficulty focusing - all classic Phase One signs of deliria. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/i-know-what-the-problem-is-of-course-the-disorientation-the/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) [Browse all 35 Disorientation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disorientation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The web: yet another total disorientation that becomes status quo without anyone realizing it.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Powers" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/the-web-yet-another-total-disorientation-that-becomes-status-quo/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Disorientation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/the-web-yet-another-total-disorientation-that-becomes-status-quo/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/346/richard-powers-8111_disorientation_the-web-yet-another-total-disorientation_3139558.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/346/richard-powers-8111_disorientation_the-web-yet-another-total-disorientation_3139558.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/346/richard-powers-8111_disorientation_the-web-yet-another-total-disorientation_3139558.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The web: yet another total disorientation that becomes status quo without anyone realizing it.” — Richard Powers", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Richard Powers", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The web: yet another total disorientation...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/the-web-yet-another-total-disorientation-that-becomes-status-quo/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/the-web-yet-another-total-disorientation-that-becomes-status-quo/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```