Technology is being relied upon too much. A lot of the time people can go without it, but they choose to turn to the computer for everything. In Smarter Than You Think, Clive Thompson the author, does a great job at demonstrating this. I loved reading this book, and I enjoyed the fact that he talked about recent events that I could easily remember. But most of all, I felt that I could better connect with the author and understand the point he was trying to get across, than with the other books. While reading through this book, I was constantly reminded of the previous book I'd read, Amusing Our Selves to Death by Neil Postman. Sitting there and reading felt like a long debate between Postman and Thompson. Using computers and other similar devices can be overwhelming and, like Postman says in his book, can harm humans. But Thompson explains how new devices could be used as an addition to the human brain and not a substitute, that we completely depend on. Some examples include the human/computer chess games described in chapter one. Another example would be the Google Glass like system a "lifelogger" wore everywhere, that allowed him to look through previous conversations, and practically give him a perfect memory.
The point is that technology shouldn't be completely relied upon, but only referenced to. Computers should be used to stimulate one's memory, not to just give the answer, in which people would most likely forget moments later. How much do you rely on computers and it's programs like Google? Do you think you could avoid using such things as often?
I completely agree with your statements that we are too dependent on technology but i think that computer are becoming our brains. There is almost no need for memory because we can google what we want to know. how can we stop using technology or even restrict it if our lives are much easier because of it? The future of society lies with technology and it only can get worse.
ReplyDeleteYou make a good statement there, Matthew. I don't think that people will ever NOT use computers or the Internet because it makes life so much easier! It actually scares me though to think of what the next generation will be like with a ton of new gadgets. Computer usage is just going to keep increasing as technology gets more advanced.
DeleteI agree with this whole statement, in this society we rely so much on the computer we don't even bother to use our brains to think. It's kind of sad how at school some of us don't even try to learn anything because they just think "oh well I can just go home and look up everything on the internet so I can pass the class". People just don't try to be educated for their own benefit they just worry too much about passing the class and thinking they can look up all the questions they need answered on the internet.
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