Final PLE Entry

FINAL PLE ENTRY

This has been quite an exciting journey to be able to research and learn more about the negative, or down side of our every increasing technologically advanced society.  I have learned about some aspects that I personally had not even considered before I  began researching the topic. There has been some debate on the validity as well as the extent of just how much negative publicity technology should get. However, it was universal that there was defiantly a down side to our love of technology.

First, is the obvious, we as a society, are almost addicted to our cell phones.  How many of us have left our homes, and been almost to work or school, and realized you did not have your phone.  Most of us would turn around and go home and get it. And those who don't, had to seriously consider it, and most likely had an important engagement that could not be missed, in order not to return home for it.  How many of us would react the same way if it were a book, or your lunch? I am guessing not many.  We have a dependency on our phones like no other society before us.  Gone are the days of corded house phones, and the new technology of the time, "answering machines".  These almost seem archaic in today's world.  I have had the luxury of living in both worlds, and while today's world is more "convenient", it most defiantly is NOT a necessity. 

  

This area of cell phones obviously also covers the excessive "texting" world we have developed. Individuals are so attached to their cellular world they are loosing the ability to effectively communicate orally with one another.  The texting craze has also developed a new and expanded system of acronyms, Most of us will need an additional college degree to learn and understand most of them!!!!

It seems the next logical area that has a negative effect upon our society is the personal computer, and its sidekick, the Internet.  True, the internet is a valuable too, when used properly, however, for the majority it has become a faux world. Today many people don't leave their homes as they can pay bills and shop and socialize all via their personal computer. Again, not all roses. People are loosing valuable social skills and are developing illnesses due to the lack of human interaction.  Humans are social beings, and that being said, we require a certain amount of quality time with other human beings. It is in our nature, and that is a large part of the post techno age that is suffering. 

Children are a large portion of our society that are unknowingly suffering from the negative aspects of technology.  They are spending more and more time in front of screens and less and less time outside playing. A large majority of children today don't play outside for days or weeks at a time. They are however spending in excess of 50 hours a week in front of a screen.  That is MORE then a work week for an adult. That is pretty scary. They are also developing health problems never before seen in children, such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease.  Children are also suffering the negative aspects of technology socially as well. They will prefer to play a video game rather then interacting with another child.  Over three fourths of children given the opportunity would choose screen time.  I see a gradual yet continual decline in human social interactions, thanks to technology.  

I know this photo may seem ridiculous, however, the reality is it is not. Children younger and younger are being exposed to technology, and they do not know any other way of life.  

Even dating has gone techno.  Gone are the days where people would go out into public places and interact with others and meet "someone special". That can be done with the aid of your computer, at home, in your jammies.   To me, this is a sad, sad realization. I wonder how much of my personal beliefs are grounded in the fact that I have lived in a world that was not so tech savvy as we are today? 

The medical field, while I am sure will be argued had seen the bright side of technology, also has it downsides.  I know, we are not quite to the point of making artificial humans, (humm,, ,hope I don't ever live long enough to see that), we are at a point that we are extending lives, and sometimes that is not always a good thing. With that comes population issues, housing issues, quality of life issues, and in general, issues that our society either is not ready to address, or is not equipped to address.  We are seeing rises in obesity and the related illness' that go along with that. Rising is the gastric bypass surgeries, that people are hoping will cure obesity, it doesn't!!  Other illnesses are on the rise as well, including many emotional illnesses. These are another direct link to the negative side of technology.

   

Finally, I would like to touch upon the financial/economical downside of technology.  So much technology, so little employment. Technology while it creates jobs, only does so for a select few.  The majority of workers out there are becoming displaced, and that in turn is causing a downfall in our economy.  As more and more older individuals return to school to become more employable (usually online classes,,, yet another technological advancement,,,, ,or is it??)  Email, instant messaging are all replacing the pen and paper.  The post office is suffering financially as well as newspapers and other publications.  It seems that there is no end to the downward spiral.

In this crazy technologically advanced world that we live in, I have come to the conclusion that there is a very real down side to the conveniences that we  take for granted each and every day.  I think it would be irresponsible to say anything to the contrary.  However, with that said, there is a plus side to it all.  What it boils down to is not weather or not is is ALL good, or ALL bad, but finding a balance between the two.  There are definite positives to all the technology that we have available to us, What we do with it, and how we utilize it is where I believe the problem lies.  Yes, I may be a bit jaded to the "good ole day's".  Could I live that way again? I would like to say YES,,,,,, and I probably could. but I would miss SOME of the comforts that are available to me in my world today.

Research Round 3 April 17, 2012

http://www.personal.psu.edu/djw5068/assignment%205.html
This is a short, but fact filled article regarding the negative effects of technology on our children, It is packed with plain facts that simply hit home. For example, the author states some common issues that technology causes with children. The first that the "average" child spends 7.5 hours a day in front of a computer/tv/video games, and only 38 minutes reading. If that weren't enough, technology is increasing obesity in children.  The obesity rate in children has tripled since 1980. Children are also suffering in school, They are accustomed to multitasking and are having trouble focusing on single subjects. The author quotes here., "I worry that young people won’t be able to summon the capacity to focus and concentrate when they need to,” said Vickey Rideout, a Vice President at the Kaiser Foundation."   
The children's need for immediate response leads to laziness and impatience, they expect answers before they give the time to work out problems.  They want to be responded to immediately from their teachers, and have trouble waiting their turn.  Finally, family life is taking a back seat to children's love of technology.  Given the opportunity over half of the children studied chose to utilize some form of technology, rather then spend time with their family. To me, these are staggering and frightening statistics.


http://www.articleonlinedirectory.com/128143/the-negative-effects-of-advancing-technology-on-society.html
This was a short article again, about the negative aspects of technology. This article acknowledges the benefits that increased technology offers to us as a society, such as the advancement of cell phones to the point today that they are small personal computers that we carry with us. Although, on the opposite side of that lies issues that are often overlooked. For example, this article talks about the loss of jobs and the complete shut down of newspapers and printing companies. This could also trickle down to magazine and book publishing companies as well.  While this article did not specifically mention the United States Post Office, they too have been greatly impacted by electronic mail, textings and cell phones.  Finally, the author once again discusses laziness and social withdrawal, both seem to be recurrent common issues with the advancement of technology.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090128092341.htm
This article was interesting in the fact that it did not so much bash technology, but offered alternative to dealing with the new technology. The author claims that critical thinking skills have declined in the general population, however, the trade off being that our visual skills have increased and sharpened. With these facts, the most productive thing to do, is to take the positive, in this case, improved visual skills, and utilize them to their fullest. The author states, "No one medium is good for everything," Greenfield said. "If we want to develop a variety of skills, we need a balanced media diet. Each medium has costs and benefits in terms of what skills each develops."  

I believe this author to be on to something. 

  

http://relationship-psychology.knoji.com/the-negative-effects-of-technology-on-relationships/

This article brings to light a completely new aspect of increased technology.  It concentrates on relationships and the effect that technology has taken on them. I like that the author begins by claiming that in this day of cell phones, email and texting, no one would think that dating, would be an issue. He goes on to say how a text does not substitute a phone call. Also people sending e-cards instead of taking the time to go to the store, read and purchase a "real" card for a birthday or other special occasion .Social networking has also distorted the definition of "friend". Really now, who has 2,432 "friends"?  No one, does, and it is also disheartening to see that a prospective boyfriend/girlfriend still has close contact with former "friends".

http://relationship-psychology.knoji.com/the-negative-effects-of-technology-on-relationships/

This article by Matt Ritchel, (who also wrote some really good books about technology) explores another overlooked area of technology. Society is so geared toward how technology is effecting our children, and that is true, however, technology is also making a huge impact on parents. It effects how we parent as well as the quality of our parenting.  This article specifically speaks about Mrs Im, and just what her young son has to resort to in order to get his mother to switch her attention from her Blackberry to her child.    Children are feeling jealousy, hurt and competition. To me, this is unacceptable. When an adult, a parent no less, cannot take time away from a cell phone to acknowledge their own child, technology may be teetering on the edge of "too far". I do think the Mr Ritchel has a wonderful grasp on just how far technology has gone. If you get a chance, you should read his book, "Hooked", you will never view technology the same way again!!!

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/21/technology/21brain.html?ref=yourbrainoncomputers

This is yet another awesome article by Matt Ritchel, and discusses the connection of technology and our children. Here Mr Ritchel states, "Researchers say the lure of these technologies, while it affects adults too, is particularly powerful for young people. The risk, they say, is that developing brains can become more easily habituated than adult brains to constantly switching tasks — and less able to sustain attention."  

This quote easily sets the tone for his article. He explains how children/adolescents prefer social media to sitting down and reading a book. These children are so "programmed" to technology that they are beginning to enter a phase that they do not have the ability to function any other way. I don't know about anyone else, but to me, this is the beginning of an extremely scary trend.  

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/07/technology/07brain.html?ref=yourbrainoncomputers

I didn't really want to do this, but Mr Ritchel articles on this subject are so profound, that I HAD to include this one more.  This article really hit home.  Again it is about interpersonal communication and the negative effect technology is having on them.  How many times have you gone out and have observed a couple out to dinner, and one or both of them are individually on their I phone, or I pad, texting, face booking, or just talking to someone else?  Technology, I believe if left unchecked will eventually lead to severe social disturbances People are beginning to lack necessary social skills that are needed to just survive in a society. Again, the beginning of another sad downfall of technology on our society.

http://www.bukisa.com/articles/264872_the-downside-of-technology
What an interesting article regarding some of the downsides to technology. Some I have thought about quite extensively, and some other ones I have not. For instance, the issue of privacy that is brought up in this article.  While our cell pones are usually a blessing to have with us in case of an emergency, our personal privacy is certainly infringed upon with GPS technology infused within our beloved phones. Normally, I am sure most of us do not have issues with that, however, I am certain that there have been issues that GPS has invaded the personal privacy of certain individuals. In police work, that lack of personal privacy is an advantage, as it has provided another source for police to accomplish their tasks.  This article also takes a brief look at the world of video games, and how life like they are. The author suggests that the technology in today's video games is serving as a method of desensitization of the issues of the world around us. I feel this article is of  importance as it addresses some of the issues that are not more commonly addressed.

http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2010/s2870870.htm
I liked this source, it was basically an interview about technology, however, what intrigued me the most was the interviewee's referrals to the "axemakers". It defiantly caught my attention as he spoke of the hand axe and how its use and the use of language has formed our society. This article brings some new light to the topic of technology which includes the use of language. This is a very good article, I think and really appreciated this quote from the text, "In a sense, early humans or pre humans, if you like, manipulated their own evolution by building hand axes which meant that we could then scavenge meat and we would communicate in groups to hunt and those two features seem to be very important in the building of the human brain which was much bigger than any other hominid at the time."

Research Round 2 March 27th

http://communicatebetter.blogspot.com/2008/08/technology-and-its-influence-on.html
This article is to the point of many aspects that are contributing factors to the negative side of technology on our society. It delves into many interpersonal communciation deficits as well as how the internet has altered the way people communicate and interacts. I found this to be instrumental in strengthening my original opinion that technology is not all it is cracked up to be.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110806203538.htm
This article is also quite interesting on  yet another note.  It goes into detail on just how the social networking of today has a detrimental effect on our children.  Our children are exposed to too much information at too early of an age in today's society with the assistance of social networking.  They are growing up too fast, in a world that they are not ready for. This is the backbone for many other negative effects of technology.

http://www.livestrong.com/article/85306-negative-effects-computers-children/
I picked this article primarily because it showcases children and the effects that computers have on them. As I have stated before, children are now growing up in a world that there were always computers in, unlike the adult generation, who can remember a time when life did not include PC's and cell phones. It is interesting to see what effect these have had upon children, as well as the trickle down effect this leads to, such as medical, social and emotional issues.

http://doctor.ndtv.com/photodetail/ndtv/id/7885/Technology_and_health_problems.html
This article, while not too entailed or long, was easy to read and understand, and at the same time, supported the notion of the health problems that our current day society deals with as our technology increases.  We are dealing with things today, that doctors and medical employees rarely saw fifty years ago. What is really alarming however, is the adult type illnesses that children are now demonstrating at very early ages. Again, I believe this article to be another strong ally in my hypothesis that technology really does have a down side to it..

http://www.collegiatetimes.com/stories/16170/technology-destroys-interpersonal-communication-
This was an awesome collection of information discussing the breakdown of interpersonal communication in today's techno advanced society. It speaks of how social media has changed the way people communicate, and texting as well as other "new" forms of communication are having a negative effect of humans. We are a species of people that need contact with each other, and as our society advances, we seem to be loosing our ability to interact with one another.

All of these articles contained some great information to support my opinion that the expansion and growth of technology,while having some good aspects, is not all it is cracked up to be. There is very real negative effects that new technology brings with it, and we as thinking, intelligent beings must make our selves aware that there will be a price to pay in the long run for all of these "luxuries". It will come in many forms and infiltrate many aspects of our lives.

Round 1 Research

The first asserts that technology causes change in society, with society having a minimal
influence on technology. The second reverses the causality of the relationship,
maintaining that society and its values drive technology in certain directions and that
technology is therefore subservient to society and its values. The third argues that the
relationship between technology and society is intricate and complex, and that in given
situations and circumstances, either can influence the other to move in a different
direction.
http://www.dodccrp.org/files/Alberts_Anthology_I.pdf
I have found this author to be really insightful about his views on the negative aspects of technology. I have stated from the beginning, that every action we take must have an equal adverse reaction. This article is quite extensive, and goes into a lot more topics then I plan to cover in my research here, but as I enclosed atop, the basics are all the same. Technology controls us, therefore, we are victims of technology, and unable to be in control of it. To me, this is the very real issue that most individual never even consider when they think about their  Ipad, or smart phones. It is very disheartening to think of where we will be in another fifty years or so. Just how far can we go before this techno revolution backfires on us and leaves us standing in its dust. Will we one day answer to these computers that we now use for virtually every aspect of our day? It is truly a very scary thought indeed.

Technology and Human Values Topic Post

I had a lot of trouble picking out "a" topic for my research in this class.  I searched and searched and tossed around various ideas. I finally figured out "what" I want to research and write about, however, I still can not figure out how to condense this "idea", into a "topic". I would appreciate any input or suggestions from anyone after they read what I am considering.
I have never been a really BIG fan of technology, however, I have participated in enough of it to get by. For example, I have a laptop, and I surf the internet, post on Facebook, etc. I have a cell phone, and just recently, upgraded to a "smart phone".  I held out on all of this for quite some time, but eventually gave it.  My husband is much more into "techno" then I am, and was always encouraging me to take the plunge. Truth be told, I still prefer to reconcile my checkbook on paper, rather then a computer, and I still like to write letters ( I am truly worried about the inevitable future of the United States Postal Service). So what I am getting at is I want to research about the losses we endure as humans and a society, with the technological advancements of today. I can appreciate the advancements, but they always come at a cost, and just how high is that cost to us as social human beings? We are loosing so much interactions and personal contact, for the gain of instant gratification. The question is, is it worth the loss. I personally don't know where the line is for gain/loss, but I know its out there, and I am fearing we have begun to cross over to the other side.

this too

Technology itself does not signify any concrete object or thing; instead it collectively portrays human kind’s achievements as a whole. Any advancements, abilities, creations, undertakings, views, or knowledge of us as humans are in essence technology.

Read more: http://scienceray.com/technology/applied-science/the-effects-and-influences-of-technology-on-society-and-human-kind/#ixzz1mKrSs5Pj

I thought this was pretty interesting......

Technology, a word with Greek origins, is defined as, “the practical application of knowledge especially in a particular area” by Merriam-Webster’s dictionary. Despite this definition, it is an abstract term lacking a concrete meaning. Technology is a word used to collectively describe or portray the advancements, abilities, creations, undertakings, views, and knowledge of a singular group of persons: we as human-kind

Read more: http://scienceray.com/technology/applied-science/the-effects-and-influences-of-technology-on-society-and-human-kind/#ixzz1mKpNCbf8