The quality and decorum of online interactions matter. Otherwise, we’re all just screaming at the top of our lungs.

“Star Wars” and its sequels were touchstones, mind-bending fantasy movie experiences into which I poured my longings for escape, creativity and adventure.

The venerable holiday special turns 50 this month. (Good grief!) But its key message remains as relevant as ever.

Facebook may finally be getting a button that lets you quickly express something beyond a “like.” Ethan Gilsdorf takes exception to the idea, and proposes something else entirely.

To save, or not to save your shoveled out parking spot? The answer to that question reveals more about us than we may realize.

Why shouldn’t we be able to go for the gold in “Grand Theft Auto”?

That inward-turning posture of checking our devices — call it the “iPhone hunch” — not only wards off conversation, it prevents us from being aware of the spaces we pass through.

Our digitally tethered, couch potato lifestyle has reached its logical conclusion. Namely, death and ignorance.

What accounts for Middle-earth’s appeal? And why do so many readers want to make a return visit?

What navel gazing — literally — taught one boy about the value of being different.

Legoland Discovery Center Boston is set to open in Somerville this week. This has Ethan Gilsdorf thinking about whether the toys he grew up with have become too commercial.

There are many reasons, both logical and romantic, to bravely pedal your way through our fair city.

I’m less worried about technology’s de-socializing effects than I am about my own loss of humanity.

Should companies reward hard work just at the top, or share profits with everyone on the payroll?

Remember when food was just something you ate?

How many people retweet, “like,” or comment on something I’ve posted, can become dangerously synonymous with acceptance, even love.

Without shared media experiences, how will younger generations find common cultural ground?

With tracking programs, Santa’s been reduced to just another pixel, just another video game.

Was the decision to turn a 300-page children’s adventure into not one, not two, but three nearly three-hour movies made in the service of telling a better story? I think not.

Does our scientific justification of the arts suggest that we’ve lost faith in literature?

After a poor performance in Saturday’s ALDS game 2 against the Red Sox, Rays pitcher David Price took to Twitter to bash his critics. There’s a few lessons here.

If only we could spare Uncle Sam and shut these things down instead.

We’ve gotten so used to seeing TV screens everywhere — taxis, gas stations, elevators, even bathrooms. It seems we’re never more than a foot or two away from our next media experience.

It’s September. A time of new beginnings. Of promise. Though I left behind the classroom decades ago, I still think of the year in academic terms.

Don’t get me wrong: I adore Stewart. But if push came to shove, I’d pick Oliver.

The fight for women’s rights has moved to a new battlefield — one where conflicts are typically resolved with swords, laser blasters and AK-47s — the video game industry.

Sports allow us to express our tribal tendencies and blow off steam, in a safe way.

After acts of random or senseless violence, our natural instinct is to retreat. But what we really need is to come together.

For many, Mother’s Day is a joyous celebration of the here and now. For others, it’s more complicated.

Happy birthday, iTunes Store. A look at how the revolutionary media player, library and sales portal has upturned the way we consume media.

As we recover from the Boston Marathon bombings, the lock-down, and from our media hangovers, out gushed the words, like a fresh wound. Not spoken words, which can evaporate as soon as they are voiced. But stories, written down.

At what cost have we invited these tools into our lives?

After an abysmal 2012 season, management is trying to woo back beleaguered fans. But Ethan Gilsdorf says they’re gonna have to do better than discounted Fenway Franks. He has some ideas.

My MFA program gave me thick skin and knocked me down a few notches, both of which I desperately needed.

As electronic gaming grows, and the digital world becomes more ubiquitous, interest in participatory storytelling is on the rise. Audiences don’t just want to passively absorb, they want to participate.

A story about compassion, growing up, and why you should never use glue mouse traps.

With its blanket of pure white, a blizzard transforms not only the landscape, but people.

The decision to bring J.J. Abrams on board to direct the new “Star Wars” movie was cause for much rejoicing. But can he reboot our imaginations? Our innocence?

Could it be that violent video games are an important outlet for aggression?

Tolkien reminds us how to be a hero, how to take risks, how to be a good man or woman — or elf, dwarf, or hobbit.