Marix: yes, the problem of sequels, may be? Or: after deconstructing false hopes (of stability, security, identity...), there seems to be a need to nevertheless re-establish some new "sense", even if very strange indeed? It's even in the Cynefin model: from anywhere to dis-order and then to where we feel most comfortable, right?
My favorite work of fiction about this "virtual reality" is Stanislaw Lem's http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Futurological_Congress . It's short, it's really funny, it's well thought through. And it's based upon chemistry, not electronics or implants.

Dave

It's been fascinating watching this issue build over the past week - and the various responses I've heard to it, tending to switch between a) dismissing reports from wishy-washy; b) blaming governmental changes in education; and c) putting it down to too much Playstation and internet. (The social downside of Tebbo's recent postings perhaps?)

The piece that struck me - as it always has - is the degree to which patterns of perceiving the world are framed by the way media portray issues and stories. The focus on fear and danger towards children, the demonisation of teenagers and the dismissal of examination achievements as "easier than in my day" create an atmosphere in which young people (God I sound old when I type that) are constantly belittled or scared.

Surrounded by that negative environment, is it any wonder that mental health problems are cropping up?

Its a complex system - its all of those things and they are starting to interact
The media acts as a stabilising influence on a particular pattern - maybe premature convergence.
I think stress has always been there on teenagers - but at the moment the old support networks of the extended family are gone

Teenagers became visible most recently in the 1950s I think (as a cultural demographic). Talking with my father in law about his experience growing up in the 1940s, it seems that children were children until 16 or 17, then they were adults (this kind of fits with your comment regarding short vs long pants on an earlier post Dave). In the 1950s in the USA, and maybe a little later in NZ, Britain, Australia, it seems that teenagers became something that their parents were not able to understand.
My mother experienced the "generation gap" while in her teens in the 1960s - she has told me many stories that illustrate how her actions were incomprehensible to her own parents. Perhaps the growth of the middle class in the mid-20th century resulted in more time or money (which could be the same thing) for teenagers to express themselves as a distinct group - not yet adults, but not children either.
I often look at the latest cultural manifestation (video game /rock group / hip hop "artist") causing parental concern and outrage and see that what they do has been done before, but to shock a generation that has seen war on prime-time tv and Ozzie Osbourne bite heads off bats, they need to ratchet up the offense factor to make an impact.
Teenagers have a need to express themselves as separate from their parents, establish their own identity. I hope that when my child becomes a teenager I can offer space and guidance, along with boudaries to give some comfort, without being too stifling and causing a major emotional rift between us.
Time will tell.

I agree with most of this Ana, and I think we all agree with the final paragraph. However I have one soon to be ex-teenage, and one about-to-be teenager and harsh reality intrudes somewhat! One piece of advice I was given by a psychologist who specialises in this area was "Add three years to their age before you react", she then added, "well two in Canada, one in New Zealand". Now my observations would support that. My visits to New Zealand are always welcome, for the people, the land and the cafe culture of Wellington (not to mention religious matters such as Rugby). One of my observations from visiting friends homes is that the family connections are tighter than in the UK. My worry about the "rebellion" via the virtual is a step change, or just more of the same. My worry is that it is a step change for the worse.