Is Technological Advancement Making Us More Productive Or More Dependent?

Technology has been essential in making life more manageable, almost to the point of effortlessness in some areas. It is within that space that there is a danger to be aware of. Are we being more productive or are we becoming utterly dependent on the technology we utilize? If for some reason some, or heavens forbid all the technology we use were no longer accessible, would we still be able to function as a society? Click to Read More...

What do you think?

Josh Ray, Tyler Murata, Preston San, Ben Reed

Professor Kelly Rowley

English 115

December 5, 2012

Drawing the Line of Technology

Technology has come a long way from what it used to be. Now, we live in a world run by the mass media. As a result, we have a constant need for the latest and greatest technology. Each year, our technological abilities become greater, as well as our cravings for new technology. However, when many think of new technology, and what they can get their hands on, they become anxious. They will stop at nothing in order to get something new. Many are starting to question whether this addiction for technology is becoming a pro or a con in today’s society.

Technology can be very helpful to a lot of people, mentally and physically. With all the endless amounts of opportunities technology has given us, we as a species have been able to succeed. Thanks to technology, people with certain disabilities that have lost their hearing or limbs are able to make up for it using hearing aids and prosthetic limbs. Technology has helped people become more productive by allowing us to create major advancements such as televisions, phones, and computers. Over the years, technology rapidly started to become more advanced. Because of this, people began to break the privileges we have been given by our technological knowledge. As a result, have simply become lazy. With the introduction of social networking, one of the largest technological advances we’ve ever had, human laziness has significantly increased.

You may ask yourself, “but wait, how can social networking make us socially lazier?” Social networking has had a substantial impact on the way humans choose to live. Before social networking was ever even conceived, people used to talk on the phone, write, and visit each other if they ever wanted to get in contact. People still do all of these things, but with the introduction of social networking, people have become less inclined to do so, because all of these things can now be accomplished behind a computer screen. Writing physical letters, talking on the phone, and even visiting other people has become a burden to many in this day and age, and that is because social networking now exists. Because of email and text messaging, many people no longer have the want or need to mail out letters or talk on the phone. Technologies like texting and Facebook have taken away many of the emotional aspects of human communication, because texts or wall posts lack emotion. The smartphone in particular has given us the ability to access these same distractions on the go, causing our lazy human nature to reveal itself in places other than in the comfort of our own homes. With all the many applications these new smart phones have, we are able to access the necessities we need in a day by a few touches of a button. Smart phones are a wonderful luxury to have, but when we overuse them, we become too familiar with the idea of having everything that we think we need in the pockets of our pants.  Nowadays, too many people have become more concerned with their social statuses rather than their statuses in the real world. According to apa.org, “studies found that middle school, high school and college students who checked Facebook at least once during a 15-minute study period achieved lower grades.” One check does not seem like much, but without a doubt, Facebook and social networking have contributed to the increasingly bad grades that many students obtain in school. In short, social networking combined with advancing technology is a large reason why people become increasingly lazier each year.

In conclusion, technology has become a powerful force in modern society. As our technological abilities became greater, so did our lust for the latest and greatest things they have to offer. The pros versus the cons of technology have become a major topic of debate. Technology has been very helpful, and necessary, in order to help us evolve into the advanced society we have become to this very day. With advancements in medicine and an overall understanding of the human body and the world in which we live, we have been able to successfully prosper. Major technological inventions, such as the television, prosthetic limbs, and smartphones, have without a doubt made life more convenient for most. However, these same conveniences we have been privileged with have brainwashed us, causing us to become excessively lazy, and too focused on the newest advancements. Technology has made plenty of us forget what it is like to be human, and interact with others properly. It has essentially given people a new outlook on life, a lot for the better, but a lot for the worst as well. But at the end of the day, technology is necessary for our survival, and it will naturally become a larger part of our daily lives as time passes. It is ultimately up to humans to decide whether they will use the technology, or let the technology use them.

            

The Truth Behind Our Laziness & Technology

Has technology made us lazy or are we making ourselves lazy?

Find out here! The TRUTH

The Opportunities Technology Gives Us

     Technology gives us the ability to do things more precisely, quickly, and even to do jobs that we could not do at all. With technology we are making the impossible possible; prosthetic limbs and hearing aids bring people close to regaining what they have lost. We are even sending drones to different planets to further our knowledge of space. Some say that with the evolution of technology, humans are having to use less energy, do less physically, and are becoming more lazy as a result. While it is true that some technology can reduce the need to physically do some things, it is equally, if not more, true that technology gives us the time and tools to be more productive.

     Technology can be split into two groups, how it affects us mentally, and how it affects us physically. Mentally, technology helps us so that we can use our time more effectively. With technology we can do more things at once, and faster, which relieves some mental stress and lets us think about more important things. However, by using technology we reduce the need to do most things that are physical. We have created machines and such that do certain jobs for us, for instance, the automobile. With the invention of the car, walking became an exercise and a chore; taking a car would get you to your destination much faster and with much less physical effort. If productivity is measured by quantity or quality of output per time spent, then taking a car is being more productive, although you lose the physical benefits from walking, you have saved time and can do more. With the advances in medical technology, we are close to giving people back full functioning limbs that almost look and feel like the real thing. 

     Prosthetic limbs give people the ability to regain their life and do things that they would otherwise not be able to, due to their missing limb. People who have lost a leg, or a part of it, and would not normally be able to walk, can now run. We can almost return full hearing back to those who are severely hearing impaired. Technology gives us so many resources to be more productive.

(see full essay HERE)