Are today's children consuming a healthy, balanced "media diet"?

I was reading the paper a few weeks ago and as the father of two teenagers was blown away by the following study:
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The average young American now spends practically every waking minute -- except for the time in school -- using a smart phone, computer, television or other electronic device, according to a new study from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Those ages 8 to 18 spend more than seven and a half hours a day with such devices, compared with less than six and a half hours five years ago, when the study was last conducted. And that does not count the hour and a half that youths spend texting, or the half-hour they talk on their cellphones.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/20/education/20wired.html

Turn it on to turn it off

I haven't touched an iPad yet. By the time I get the chance, I hope that the product lives up to the hype. Last week I got to use a product that exceeded the hype in my estimation. I flew from Detroit to Las Vegas sporting a new pair of Bose QuietComfort 15 headphones. The minute I flicked the on switch the cabin went nearly silent. (My seatmate went silent.) And the music out of my iPod was stunning.

I first tried these headphones on a display at Best Buy. It was eerie how quiet the busy store became. Yet I was unsure how effective they'd be in-flight. After using the Bose headphones on the flight out and on the red-eye home I can say my eyes were definitely red, but my ears were golden. And the beauty of it all is that I used my frequent flyer miles to buy the headphones for frequent flying.

I always found a plane flight to be a great escape. Now I've found a way to escape the jet engine background noise and arrive fresher. (Note to Bose: if you enjoy this unsolicited review please feel free to send a pair for my wife.)