Thanks to all of this digital technology, the way people commute, control data and communicate has radically changed and shaped the way people carry out their lives. It's magnificent to think how it was all created by man; it was the human mind that began this explosion of inventions that has made life so much easier.
The intentions of all this new technology was to help people accomplish tasks quicker. We no longer have to go to the library for information or mail a letter to send a family member pictures. We are saving a lot of time thanks to computers and cell phones, yet many use that additional time to slave in front of a screen some more.
I wonder how bad it would be to stick to a more natural way of living. I don't mean sleeping with the animals, but is it really a necessity to be up to date with all the newest technology? Is it so bad to STAY a couple steps behind the rest in order to just appreciate what we have now, instead of CONSTANTLY looking into the future for the next big thing?
How much more could we appreciate literature, music and art if we dedicated more time to it? Do we know one another better because if Instant Messaging and Web Cams? Or is it easier to reach out through a computer screen because we can turn it off at any time?
It irritates me how disinterested people on the bus are when they have their cell phones in their hand. How oblivious teenagers are on the street with their iPod headphones in their ears.
These gadgets have become our comfort zones, an escape from the people around us. But it also seems like its actually an escape from seeing our surroundings. And its not only that, they have become accessories for us to parade around as proof that we are wealthy or stylish or cool enough to have the trendiest phone or the newest iPod.
Coincidentally as I write this, the movie Into The Wild is playing on HBO. This movie triggers a lot of thought on reliance and independence. The movie happens to be a true story of a college graduate who decides to abandon all possessions, give away his savings account to charity so that he can hitchhike across the country to Alaska to live in the wild. He leaves behind his former life and possible future in pursuit of freedom from obligation and money. To me it is everything us New Yorkers do our best to prevent. Even though the man never made it back from Alaska, the movie reveals many different aspects of the kind of lives people could be leading but choose not to in fear of going against the norm. Its inspiring and seems as if this is how some can get "a high out of life".
Its fun to entertain the thought of one day backpacking across the country, carrying all my necessities on my back - ones that don't require an outlet to work. To have an appreciation for nature in all its glory and beauty that isn't infested with sky scrapers and factories would be a treat.
But I'm afraid at this time in my life, I am a lost cause and would feel dysfunctional going a week without my computer. Its an obsession to be constantly invested in the newest fads. I would get an itchy feeling to update my facebook status or upload current pictures of myself. My peers and I enjoy documenting almost every part of our lives and downloading them onto websites for all to see and sometimes praise. I'm sure its meant to bring us together, but the internet in many ways is just a way to gossip and pass judgments in the safety of your own home.
These gadgets are an addiction that I see only getting worse as new developments are released to the public and for new generations to become invested into too much.
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I totally agree with you about staying a couple of steps behind new technology or the new fads. Everyone is on this twitter high and i feel like i'm the only one without one lolz. i just don't see the point of posting you every action for almost everyone to see..
ReplyDeletegreat post though =D
Its so weird your in Andy's class now.
ReplyDeleteSo anyways, I agree with the point that technology is suppose to make things "easier" for us, but maybe expand a little more on how? Is this a good or bad thing? Is it a good or bad thing for you, how has it affected you? I would like to hear a little more about how specifically it affects your life and what kind of technology you use or can't get away from?
For one example you wrote "To me it is everything us New Yorkers", I think its cool you think of the whole society itself and this is what you think but it would be cool if you were a little more personable :)
And the part where you wrote that that you would feel like a lost cause without your computer, why do you think that? What are some ideas that you may have that these gadgets trigger our addiction?
This is chloe btw..duh
Love you<3
jesus i mean moses you wrote a lot, good shit.
ReplyDeleteAlicia i really enjoyed reading this. What I like and makes your post unique is that you involve exactly what you see in your life. When you talk about people on the bus with cell phones and teenagers walking down the street with headphones. Those real life examples do a great job of getting your point across.
ReplyDeleteYour contrast of the life we live especially in new york and the life of another person who is desperate to get away from our society. The way you say the necessities of life don't need an outlet help express a main point.
Your post is a lot like the things we've discussed in class where we use the internet and technology to have a more interesting life but from the safety of our own home.
but what about the positive aspects? you mention it in the beginning of your post but you should add on to it. exactly how good is the good of it?
you make me think of how i act in my life. i think about when I'm on the bus or train and am completely unaware of the outside world, sometimes so much so that I almost miss my stop.
Can't wait to read the next one
Evan
Hey Alicia,
ReplyDeleteLol yes its ok to call me brit,
Your comment to my post, was very helpful. I really like that you tried to push my thinking by asking me questions.Thak you that was very helpful. I also like the fact that you stated that you agreed with me about the fact that internet is addicting, but why?
I really don't understand what you mean by the bigger picture, the big picture to me is theres soming addicting about internet and t.v and i want to know what it is.
i think if we didn't have internet other our will be spent doing different thing like going out to do thing that will be better for our futuer.
the person that commented my blog before yu said that i should have conneted what i said in my post to the out side world like what i hear from t.v and the internet its self, but you said that it was good that I talked about myself , what do you think?
thank you for leaving such a good post and it really helped me deeper my think.
Take care
Brittani
Evan,
ReplyDeleteI'm relieved you were able to relate to some of the points suggested in my blog. I was afraid my babbling would be too much to comprehend, since i got a lil carried away in some paragraphs.
Thanks for your feedback about my connection to people who live a more primitive lifestyle then we do being residents of New York. I was trying to stress the idea that its not only our generation so dependent on these gadgets but especially us New Yorkers.
Your third paragraph in response to my blog makes me rethink how we usually rely on these devices to make our forced time at home fore enjoyable. We aren't only addicted but put a lot of expectation into what the internet will do for us once we dedicate a night to it.
I think we can both agree that people need to put more thought in what they are doing when they sit down with a digital device in front of them. People should wonder what they are losing and gaining by enslaving themselves to something that should only posses a small fragment of time a day. If these inventions were meant to save us time then why do we still continue to waste so much of it doing the same thing every day?
Perhaps the next time we're on the bus we can take in our surrounding and make observations that we would have never come across before.
:D