I think it is so crazy that we now live in a world that is so connected through the means of technology. We have the internet, cell phones, iPods, and devices like the iPhone which has all three of those things in one. I can’t help but wonder what is going to come next. Now it takes mere seconds to communicate with someone across the globe when years ago it would take months to send mail across the country! Or what about the fact that a decade ago the only way to buy music was to go the store and by a physical copy in the form of a CD, or better yet a cassette tape! Those times are far behind us and I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for us.
I think it’s safe to say that the “net and desktop manufacturers are making the average American kid a true citizen of the world” (196). There’s Twitter, and Facebook, Blogger, and Tumblr where kids can make friends with people from anywhere in the world. Borders don’t exist over the internet. One minute someone can upload a video onto YouTube and the next day it’s gone viral with millions of people having watched overnight. Actually one of my favorite videos on YouTube is a 1994 clip from NBC’s ‘Today’ show where Katie Couric is completely confused by the concept of the internet and can’t seem to understand exactly what it is. Seems ridiculous that it’s now almost twenty year later and even small children know what the internet is. According to a Kaiser Family Foundation survey, 31 percent of children age three and under are already using computers. Sixteen percent use them several times a week, 21 percent can point and click with a mouse by themselves, and 11 percent can turn on the computer without assistance.
However, there are some downfalls to all this exposure to technology. According to Leah Klungness, Ph. D., incessant exposure to "all day TV," violent video games, instant messaging, and the always accessible cell phone interferes with the development of the psychological traits known to be essential to positive outcomes for children. It’s a scary world out there and even though the internet is used to connect to people, you might connect with people that can be a danger to you and/or your family. It’s important that we know what are children are accessing through technology but it’s becoming harder and harder to monitor exactly what they’re doing when there’s at least one computer in every home and cell phones with internet capabilities are ubiquitous.
There are pros and there are cons to this greatly technological world we live in. The internet allows us to learn about everything and anything we can dream of with just a couple clicks of the mouse but it also provides a place for predators and cons to hide behind their screens. Kids can now be citizens of the world, but can also be exposed to things that they shouldn’t be exposed to. I wish I could say that technology has done nothing but benefit society, but unfortunately that just isn’t the case. We’ll just have to stay tuned and hope for the best.
Very good blog. I was interested in it once I read your title. I was curious to what you were going to talk about. I was with you most of the time as I read it. At first I thought you were going to talk about all of the “bad” qualities it brings to our society, luckily though it was, for the most part, the opposite of what you spoke of. The internet is capable of many bad things, but it is nothing we wouldn’t see outside in the real world. Technology, or rather the internet, has just given a new disguise. Before it was a car in promise of giving candy or an ice cream man, which are probably still in use, but with the internet and people wanting to grow up too fast; it leads to other bad positions. The internet gets people in trouble for those looking for it. if you used it for the helpful ways it was mainly for then there would be no issues, well except for the possible viruses, but even then those are usually found on questionable sites. The internet is a tricky place. Outside you have to street smart, where in the internet you have to almost a different type of smart. I wouldn’t know what to call it. Either way though, I found your blog quite amusing Alexis, I’m sure there would be more to come.
ReplyDeleteI am pretty much having difficulty with the research paper as well. Don’t worry you are not the only one who is feeling over whelmed right now. Apparently all of my professors have decided to assign papers that are all due around the same date and they all have to be at least six pages long. That along with having tests back to back and not being able to find appropriate sources for my paper, I am really starting to feel the stress so I can relate to what you are going through. Luckily for me I do not work yet so I don’t have to worry about balancing my school schedule around that, I am sorry that you have to that must really bit. At least you are doing a topic that you in a way like so you will not have to suffer too much lol. I am like you, I also do not like procrastination, I am already stress enough as it is and so I know I would not be able to handle procrastination on top of that. I wish you the best on your research paper and that you do not go to crazy with all the stress that school has in store for us. Good luck with your finals.
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