Oh, sure: We're communicating with something maybe thousands of miles away (i.e., beyond our normal sensory range) - but we can't see their faces, interpret their gestures, fully grasp their situation (sitting on the can, standing at the kitchen sink, etc.).
All those visual clues provide loads of valuable info.
Regards,
“No, the problem is quite the reverse! Such media (the telephone, instant messaging) actually restrict our perceptions.”
They do and they don’t. The scope of these interactions far exceed the capabilities we developed with. We couldn’t friend 20,000 people or whatever. But you are right that we don’t get all the sensory cues and it is a huge part of the problem. You can’t smell through texts or see someone’s eyes narrow or whatever.
Freegards