Is Technology Causing Us More Harm Than Good? Essay Example

to connect on a real, personal level. Robots are being designed to replace the bobs of humans. Another quote from Alone Together remarks, "These young people have grown up with sociable robot pets, the companions of their playrooms, which portrayed emotion, said they cared, and asked to be cared for. We are psychologically programmed not only to nurture what we love but to love what we nurture. So even simple artificial creatures can provoke heartfelt attachment.

Many teenagers anticipate that the robot toys of their childhood will give way to full-fledged machine companions. " It is unfortunate that programmed objects can supersede an intangible soul and presence. People are adjusting to human replacement, and are slowly moving towards isolation. "There's technology for communicating, selling, socializing. Mobile technology, micro technology, technology built Into our thermostats. Our refrigerators can Jonathan Mead, author of Source B. Mead addresses the extreme level of convenience that exists in the gamut of technology.

If you think of any task that takes considerable time or effort, there exists some device that will reduce most if not all of the work that goes into that task. For example: cell phones are used instead of going o the neighbor's doorstep, cars are used to drive down the street, and emails are used instead of handwriting a note. When was the last time you received a handwritten letter in the mail? It's sad that bytes and pixels can take the place of real feeling and sentiment. With these technologies, people have lost their patience to complete a task with effort. Source D, the woman inside the phone, is an example of convenience.

Instead of accessing

a book to get reliable information, you cue SIR and she'll answer any question for you by using a not-always-reliable internet search. Source E shows how the progression of technology directly exemplifies laziness in an inverse proportional manner: the screens get smaller and the users get bigger. The convenience factor of technology and the laziness of citizens are increasing together, and are ultimately contributing to the attrition of human interaction. As humans adapt to their lazy behaviors, they feel deprived when the "easy way' isn't available.

It has become human instinct to search for an easy way out. Source B asserts the neglect of using Technology Accelerators?you only adopt technologies that directly purport what you're trying to achieve in a pause-think-crawl-walk-run manner. Source F says, "Just because all of this marvelous technology exists does not mean that we have to use it all at the same time. " However, many people still go on "sprees" of downloading software and songs, or buying devices and gadgets. People replace their appliances without even trying to fix what's broken, and don't even know how to fix things anymore.

The desire to always have the "newest" or "best" products makes human satisfaction an illusion. People will never be content with what they have cause of their underlying instinct to always update and replace. Most people can say that they come in contact with technology more than once a day. With this sense of routine, we have adopted technological interactions as sentiments in our life?not necessarily in a good way though. After interacting digitally, technology has altered our perception of reality. In Source A, Sherry Turtle says, "We talk of

getting "rid" of our e-mails, as though these notes are so much excess baggage.

Teenagers avoid making telephone calls, fearful that they "reveal too much. " They would rather text than talk. Adults, too, choose keyboards over the human voice. It is more efficient, they say. Things that happen in "real time" take too much time. Tethered to technology, we are shaken when that world "unplugged" does not signify, does not satisfy. " Furthermore, Source F says, "Sometimes people experience no sense of having communicated after hours of connection. And they report feelings of closeness when they are paying little attention. " Digital images are becoming mental possessions and we are becoming the technology we use.

Another example is how teenagers convey and experience emotions through sending and reading emoticons n text messages. Plain-faced and silent, teens send "LOL" or ":)" to convey a half- hearted laugh or smile. Technology is actually causing mental harm, believe it or not. Source F explains that attention to even the direst matters can be interrupted by the buzz of a pocket. By trying to multicast, such as testing while having a conversation, successfully put our attention to more than one thing at a time. This affects our memory abilities later on, also?you won't be able to recall what happened due to the lack of attention at the time.

An overload of noise can wear down our memory, also, which is why we should turn off the clicking and beeping devices for some peace and quiet. Some people may argue that the technology being created is only for our utmost benefit because it gives more time for other things

when we complete a task. However, that thought is refuted by this: people complete tasks in the most convenient way, and then go play video games (or some other technological device). Despite the argument that technology is causing us more good, there is more evidence of its detriment. In fact, it wouldn't be surprising if technology caused our demise.

For example, in Source G, Dry. Frankincense uses advanced technology to create something that hadn't existed before. After realizing it wasn't what he wanted (even though it didn't do harm), he avoided it, and it eventually destroyed him. The same thing can happen to us as the devices we use are slowly turning us into slaves of the devices (which will probably control themselves in the future). With everything Just a click or a verbal command away these days, life has never been easier. However, the degree of convenience is causing us laziness, loneliness, isolation, mental deterioration, agitation, and erasing what makes us human.