I have the same experience as well. Whenever I'm most proficient with coding and have to leave for lunch with my coworkers, I find myself just sitting there not participating in the conversation at all. The reverse is also true, it often takes me substantial amount of time to get back to my most efficient coding mode after going out.
I think the reason is more than just b/c my mind is immersed with the problem. Even when we work in the same team and discuss the same technical problem I still find it difficult to engage in the conversation. As a bilingual speaker it's always awkward for me to switch between English and my native language, especially if I spend a long duration using one exclusively.
My guess is developers won't feel awkward if we can socialize in machine language. That also saves tons of time spending on switching in and out of the awkward mode.
I think the reason is more than just b/c my mind is immersed with the problem. Even when we work in the same team and discuss the same technical problem I still find it difficult to engage in the conversation. As a bilingual speaker it's always awkward for me to switch between English and my native language, especially if I spend a long duration using one exclusively.
My guess is developers won't feel awkward if we can socialize in machine language. That also saves tons of time spending on switching in and out of the awkward mode.