By: Nirusha Maheswaran
Technology is amazing! In reality, it allows us to take pleasure with a high level of solace in our day-to-day activities, enhancing the circumstances of our working, functioning lives. But don’t you think we’re pushing it? Don’t you feel that our dependence on technology has gone a little bit too far?
Ever come across a cashier who wasn’t aware that there was a sale on a specific item? You tell her the coat is priced at $50 but is 20% off and she can’t do the math because she doesn’t have a calculator! I’m no mathematician but instances like these astonish me! This may just be a minor problem we encounter in our daily lives but it seems to me that this is just representative of a larger issue. We’re surrounded by technology; it’s at our fingertips and definitely makes several things a lot simpler, but that doesn’t necessarily suggest that we should depend on it to the point where we can’t think and do things for ourselves. People would lose their minds at even the thought of another blackout! Thu thu thu!
Keep in mind, it isn’t simply the way we utilize technology, but the way in which individuals tend to lose themselves over it and develop this kind of fixation. For example, it seems we can no longer live without our mobile phones. We have it by our sides when we’re eating, when we’re driving, while in class, texting while in the middle of a conversation with actual real human beings in front of us!
Don’t get me wrong, technology has more ups than it has downs. We can heat up food in minutes, people can be sent to the moon, diseases have been cured and we no longer have to jot down directions due to GPS systems. What I’m saying is we need to find a balance. When I woke up this morning and tuned in to the news, one of the “breaking news” was a report on the backlog of messages causing problems for BlackBerry users. THIS is breaking news? More important issues like the ‘Eurozone Crisis’ may be of more relevance to news, but no, BlackBerry’s backlog is a headliner.
My point is that we should try to find a balance, as with everything in life. Instead of always listening to your iPod or iTouch, it’s okay to buy a CD. Instead of reading novels by swooping your finger across your PlayBook, it’s okay to go to libraries. Instead of texting away or FaceTiming a friend who lives a block away, it’s okay to get out and chat with them over coffee. If we’re capable of looking forward to the future without forgetting our past, we’ll have nothing to worry about.
Tags: Cafe, Speak Out, Workaholics
