It is really unbelievable taking a look down McKinley and see over 90% of the students walking around either on their cell phone talking or they were texting somebody. With all of the capabilities that a phone has, consumers are becoming way too dependable on their cell phones. There are people that would absolutely lose their mind if their cell phone became lost. Similar to the story in Shirky, the girl put way too much dependance into her phone and then when she lost it she was "lost".
With all of the capabilities, it has also become more and more dangerous as people become so engrossed into their phone that they get distracted while drive. People who are texting, browsing, or calling someone have been the cause of many accidents and sadly many deaths. Now with everthing else the phones can do, it makes you wonder how distracting it may be to drivers.
All in all, I believe we are becoming way too dependant on our cell phones. Although the innovations for the phone are great and very nice additions, the responsibility still lies on the user and to use the applications to their proper design.
I once had a teacher who said that it made her sad to notice that her students didn't talk to each other anymore. Perplexed, we all looked at each other wondering what exactly she was talking about. In fact, she was alluding to the idea of technology as taking over our lives. She felt that because we were so engrossed in technology, we were unable to communicate with one another face-to-face. She definitely has a point. I cannot tell you how many times I have looked at my phone to avoid engaging in an awkward conversation with someone or on the flip side, how many times I have missed talking to or seeing someone because I was using my phone. I do think that technology is transforming our ways of communicating and we are becoming reliant on it.
ReplyDeleteJust last week I had a professor address the student body on campus as zombies, and not only due to phones but also to iPods. And it wasn't until she mentioned this that I noticed the majority of the people I passed while walking on campus aren't really paying attention because of an electronic. I have to admit, I use to be addicted to texting. I constantly had to be on my phone. I went out of my way to start conversations. It was pathetic. And it took me awhile to realize that.
ReplyDeleteSounds to me like a lot of people label technology as a scape goat. It gives you an excuse to avoid an awkward conversation, and we may lose some face to face interaction, but it will never disappear completely. This is how we communicate now. We have public conversations rather than private (facebook, twitter)Everyone can be a part of our little worlds now, making them not so little. It is easy to call out technology for it's faults, but how about it's obvious benefits. However, i do agree that the problem may not be with the technology, but rather those who use/misuse it.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with C. Herron. Sometimes I don't even realize how much I am not paying attention because I am so connected with my phone, or ipod, or laptop. It makes me wonder if our culture will continue to evolve to a state where face to face interaction is not an important medium of communication.
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