One mini technology that I had to go without was my iPod. Music is an extremely large part of my life. In addition to listening to music casually, I listen to my iPod while I do homework, work out, and even while I drive. The phrase "you never really know what you've got until it's gone" definitely applies to my experience because as soon as I couldn't use my iPod, I realized how large of a role it plays in my everyday life. Spending a day without being able to use my cell phone was just as hard, if not harder, than not being able to use my iPod. Not being able to call someone is a terrible feeling! I felt completely isolated from the rest of the world. I found myself surprising my parents at home because I couldn't call in advance to tell them I was coming to visit.
A lot of the technology that we have learned to live with is just extra. Technology is a great thing to have but things like the electric razor or the foot massage machine are things we should be able to live without. One technology, however, that I believe is essential in this day and age is the telephone. being able to talk to someone that isn't right in front of you is a great advantage. It helps transfer messages, warnings, and anything else you can think of. Living without one for 24 hours was hard enough, but I think it would be impossible to live without one forever.
One thing that this experience has opened my eyes to is how important technology is in our society. Millions of people all over the world rely on technologies like television and radio to obtain information about current events. Before technology, people would use newspapers to read about what's going on in the world, but technology has changed the way we live. For many Americans, technology makes obtaining information like this a lot more convenient. My experience without technology was also very similar to those interviewed in the article by Danna Walker titled "The Longest Day." For several hours, I found myself with absolutely nothing to do. Usually when I'm bored I watch t.v. or surf the web, but unfortunately, those weren't options at this time. One comment that I completely agree with was the one that said maybe we have over media medicated ourselves. I think that as a society we have become very dependent on technology, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing. We are a technological generation so is it really that bad to be dependent on technology? I think it's safe to say that it isn't a bad thing at all because with technology comes more technology. Technology will continue to evolve until we are able to get dressed in the morning with a clock of a button, and will also continue to make our lives a lot easier.
Our recent discussion about early motion pictures and how they began reminded me of how the world was when the technology outbreak began. Much like motion pictures, both were instantly popular. The first movie houses in 1918 only took a few years to become popular. Pretty soon, the thousands that paid a nickel to see a fifteen second clip turned into millions. Due to this popularity, the length of the showing began to increase, and so on. The growth of technology is almost identical. St first, only a select number of people owned technologies such as television's, radio's, computer's, and car sell phones, however, it didn't take long for the rest of the world to count on. Now, basically every home in America owns at least one t.v., radio's come with cars, and computer's and cell phones have become portable so you can take them wherever you'd like to go.
This experience definitely taught me not to take anything for granted. Of course it's nice to have fun things like cell phones and iPods, but they don't just fall out of thin air. I really want to emphasize the fact that technology isn't a right, it's a privilege. It becomes very easy to think that everyone has all these different technologies given the time we live in, but the reality is that everyone doesn't. I have now seen how horrible life would be if I didn't have these technologies and if nothing else, it has motivated me to work so that I will always have the privilege to have them.
Our recent discussion about early motion pictures and how they began reminded me of how the world was when the technology outbreak began. Much like motion pictures, both were instantly popular. The first movie houses in 1918 only took a few years to become popular. Pretty soon, the thousands that paid a nickel to see a fifteen second clip turned into millions. Due to this popularity, the length of the showing began to increase, and so on. The growth of technology is almost identical. St first, only a select number of people owned technologies such as television's, radio's, computer's, and car sell phones, however, it didn't take long for the rest of the world to count on. Now, basically every home in America owns at least one t.v., radio's come with cars, and computer's and cell phones have become portable so you can take them wherever you'd like to go.
This experience definitely taught me not to take anything for granted. Of course it's nice to have fun things like cell phones and iPods, but they don't just fall out of thin air. I really want to emphasize the fact that technology isn't a right, it's a privilege. It becomes very easy to think that everyone has all these different technologies given the time we live in, but the reality is that everyone doesn't. I have now seen how horrible life would be if I didn't have these technologies and if nothing else, it has motivated me to work so that I will always have the privilege to have them.
2 comments:
I think it was really great that you could go a whole day with out media. However, when you said you are going to work hard to recieve these new technologies I believed you could not live without them if you didn't have to. I mean try living with less technology everyday, and you would appreciate life more.
I think it's funny that you expected it to be easier than what it turned out to be. I felt the same way and was surprised how hard it was to not be able to use my ipod. It was harder for me to go without that than my cell phone! Your point about technology constantly advancing is so true. I'm not looking forward to just pushing a button to put my clothes on. It emphasizes how lazy we all are and will soon become but I'm glad you were able to do it, even though it was difficult.
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