That however is most certainly not the case; I struggle to keep in touch with the events in my own backyard.
I started noticing my lack of up to date information on current affairs when large events, wars, natural disasters and the likes had happened a week ago and the only way I found out about them was reading someone's post on a social media site.
I assume I'm not alone in this, and also feeling that it is rather sad that with all this access to information I use so little of it.
I've heard it said that while the information on the internet increases the breadth of people's interests narrow and that, in this age of connectivity, people are condensing into their own little niches instead of connecting with the wider world.
While this shouldn't be totally unexpected I don't think it could be seen as a very balanced interaction with other people.
Seeing this I think that while we have a lot of information available to us we still are required to put in effort to connect with information and people.
The issue is that we get caught up in our own worlds and realities while living only a click away from the rest of the world.
My week is so compacted with this activity and that requirement and this deadline, and that appointment and this commitment, that I'm finding so many of my peers are in the exact same position.
I'm unable to speak about previous generations, what I can say is that the more technology in communication and the ease to which it can be put to astonishing uses, for many of my generation it means less information as we're so focused.
However, much of what is happening 'out there' often doesn't directly have an impact on me (my generation) when something happens. When it does (like the Government cutting out university student finding) and we hear about it, in reality we have no say or contribution onto such decisions in any case. It's beyond our reach.
In the weekly 'memo' I receive as a young writer for Christian Today, there are regular comments from other young writers from across Australia and New Zealand, both students and those working, who speak of this 21st century busyness phenomena in their lives.
Whenever I see fellow students 'somewhere, anywhere' (other than class) I see them Texting as they walk, on the bus, the train, sitting at a cafe, wherever, which is what we all do, keeping up with a minimum of personal contact.
Time for anything else?
But there is something else. I for one would like to know if there is anything I could do for someone else, and prayer in the very least, is taking a step towards caring for others in need. As a young Christian this seems justification enough to put effort into keeping abreast of events as best I can – whether at home or abroad.
I'm keen to know, to have some time in my week, to see what is happening around the world so that I can pray. They say that there's only ever bad news, could we instead say that there are only people to pray for?
In our hectic lives at university juggling so many mandatory commitments and equally committed to my youth ministry and church life, maintaining the relationships in my life including parents and family, I trust this has affirmed your resolve or, like me, opened my eyes a little more to the 'outside' of our day to day lives.
Sam Gillespie is an Undergraduate Composition student and a computer programmer based in Sydney
Sam's previous articles may be viewed at www.pressserviceinternational.org/sam-gillespie.html