The vice principal, Steve Gallagher, told the boy he needed to focus on the teacher, not his cellphone. The boy listened politely and nodded, and that's when Mr. Gallagher noticed the student's fingers moving on his lap.

副校长加拉格尔告诉这个男孩，要把注意力放在老师身上，而不是他的手机上。男孩礼貌地听着，频频点头，而就在这个时候，加拉格尔发现他放在膝头的手指还在动个不停。

He was texting while being reprimanded for texting.

他在发短信，在因为发短信而受训的时候。

It was a subconscious act, says Mr. Gallagher, who took the phone away. Young people today are connected socially from the moment they open their eyes in the morning until they close their eyes at night. It's compulsive.

加拉格尔拿走了手机。他说，男孩的动作是下意识的。如今的年轻人，从早晨睁眼直到晚上睡觉，一直都处在社交网络中。都已经上瘾了。

Because so many people in their teens and early 20s are in this constant whir of socializing--accessible to each other every minute of the day via cellphone, instant messaging and social-networking Web sites -- there are a host of new questions that need to be addressed in schools, in the workplace and at home. Chief among them: How much work can 'hyper-socializing' students or employees really accomplish if they are holding multiple conversations with friends via text-messaging, or are obsessively checking Facebook?

很多十几岁、二十出头的人就像这样一刻不停地进行着社交活动。他们无时无刻不在通过手机、即时通信和社交网站相互联络。这个人群之庞大，让学校、工作单位和家庭面临着一大堆新问题需要应对。而其中首要的问题是：如果都在通过短信跟不止一位朋友交谈，或者是止不住地查看Facebook，那么这种“高度社交”的学生或雇员到底能够完成多少课业或工作?