5 Reasons new technology is making us worse, 5 Reasons new technology is making us better

5 REASONS NEW TECHNOLOGY IS MAKING US WORSE:
1) Memes. These are sometimes funny, usually stupid, and have become so prolific on Facebook feeds that I wonder if anyone ever posts things about themselves anymore.

2) Political Passive Aggressivism. I don't think that is a real term, but it certainly expresses one of the most irritating things I have experienced lately. Anyone seen this lately?:

That is what some (thousands) people have thrown up as their FB picture to show support for gay marriage. While I don't support gay marriage, I have to wonder if any of these people have actually done anything to support what they so publicly support on FB. Ever wrote a letter to your senator? Ever donated to a campaign? Ever subscribed to a pro-LGBT publication? Did you even vote in the last election? How about your State elections? I have a sneaking suspicion that many more people threw up the "equal sign" then did any of the other things. FB also allows people to take positions and assert theories without having to actually engage anyone directly. Sure there are LONG comment lines over controversial subjects, but no one is really 'discussing' anything, it is just ignorant statement making at its finest (THIS GOES FOR BOTH SIDES, RIGHT AND LEFT).

3) Twitter and FB feeds. WHO CARES?! Obviously lots of people, otherwise they wouldn't be so popular. Here is where a balance must be struck. I am as guilty as anyone with obsessively logging on to FB and frequently posting asinine updates, but where this has made us worse is that we never feel the need to actually talk to people anymore. This goes for Texting as well. When we have 3 message exchanges with someone, it negates the need to actually call that person and to discover what is going on in their life.

4) TIME DRAIN. I wonder how much time I spent watching YouTube videos or just cruising around on Amazon in the last year (or checking FB). I probably could have lost 5 pounds if I'd have exercised instead. I probably could have mastered a complicated song on the guitar. I probably could have written half of the book that I am trying to write. When you think about how little you accomplish when you are trying to do something on a computer, it is sad. Right now I'm in law school, and I have to think that the poor people to attended law school 30 years ago learned a great deal more, even though they didn't have the wealth of information, because they likely focused on learning law without wondering what new phrase the "grumpy cat" has been assigned or checking out the "100 most epic fails of 2012."

5) Stunted Social Skills. To make this point, I shall use an image and one of the aformentioned 'memes' (What?, am I not human?)

I am a little surprised at how often I'll be in a group of people, and yet alone. See, I don't have a nifty phone with internet access, and so I cannot ignore everyone around me to see what my 600+ "friends" are up to or peruse the dozens of twitter feeds that I follow. Sometimes, it is hard to even talk to these people, because the second you turn your back, they are playing BEJEWELED on their Ipad or looking at pictures of LEGOS on PINTEREST on their Iphone. (You know who you are). I find it a little unsettling that everyone with a 1-2 year old gushes about how they can operate their _________(Insert random Apple product here) already. This is cool, but it worries me as well. As these kids grow up, are they going to be able to articulate in more than 150 characters at a time? Are they going to be able to focus on reading a whole book? Are they going to care about what happens in the world? Their own government? I think that my generation is sliding pretty badly, and I see no improvement with the next crop. I myself cannot function without music. Studying, working, etc. I probably listen to an average of 8 hours of music a day. I am not certain that it is bad per se, but this behavior and its possible impacts should be considered.


Quick recap: Weaker relationships, less ability to concentrate and accomplish, less time spend on producing valuable things (marketable skills/products), less thoughtful discussion, more bandwagonism (less individual/original thought), the fact that "tweet" is a word, the fact that the word "google" is a verb, over-dependence,  and Creed and Nickleback (Ok, so maybe they are unrelated but they are so bad I've decided that every negative list that I make will, by necessity, include them).


5 REASONS NEW TECHNOLOGY IS MAKING US BETTER:

1) Interconnectivity.

In all honesty, this can cut both ways, and there are plenty of negative aspects. But upon thinking about it, I would have to consider this a net positive. I would say that it is a good thing that we are more globally connected. This enables us to broaden our frame of reference and to be more understanding of other people's perspectives. It is a lot harder to hate/demonize/ignore other countries/people/cultures when you know things about them and have talked to them. Like I said, there is a flip side. Knowing more about Hugo Chavez and Kim Jong Il did not make me love/understand them more. BUT, I would point out that being aware of these people and knowing them for the threats to society that they were was valuable, and knowing about some of the difficulties that their subjects faced does make me more concerned about them. Being able to perform family history research and keeping in touch with people that you normally would lose contact with are other ways in which this is beneficial. Currently, I still have an idea about what most of the people I met on my mission are up to. Also people from high-school/college.

2) Educational Opportunities. Sadly, I doubt that new technology is used principally for this, but it is a nice feature. Do you want to know how to do something? "Google it." -or- "Watch a YouTube tutorial." This is one of the greatest things about living in this day. I learned how to iron shirts. I learned the quick and perfect T-Shirt fold. I learned how to make Tartar sauce. I learned how do edit a photo to achieve the 'Gatorade sweat' effect.

There are lots of cool things to learn. I can currently access pretty much any Case/Regulation/Legislative History in the US. That is amazing. My friend is building a 3D printer from scratch. I have learned various Chile and Latin American Folksongs by looking up tabs and finding the music on YouTube/Itunes. The list goes on and on. Wikipedia. You can find out anything you want about most businesses, including reviews (although usually the only people who comment on those are people who have had negative experiences, so they aren't as helpful as one would think, but that could be a post of its own). Want to learn how to write code? Want to know where to eat in a foreign country? Want to take a practice LSAT? All of this information is found in nifty things called books, WHICH I LOVE!, but when you need to know something and don't have the money to buy a book or the time to find one, the internet is amazing.

3) Access to AMAZING CREATIVITY. Every now and again, I am glad that I monitor thousands of stupid and pointless status updates/posts when I find the proverbial needle in the haystack. Here are a few nifty things:
"Best Coin Ever Spent"




Side note: I feel bad for the guy who died trying this a few weeks ago.







There are many other things, but that is what your 'search bar' is for. I have seen awesome art, heard great music, etc, etc.

4) Improved Networking. This is no small shakes. I firmly believe that:

This has never been easier. You can find people all OVER. Linkedin is based solely on this concept. But it is not just networking, it is professional facility. It is so easy now to communicate. You can e-mail a college, create a PDF or word document, you can use Google Docs to organize signups and do mass scheduling, you can scan anything you need and send an electronic copy wherever, you can pull money from virtually anywhere in the world, and spend your $$ without ever seeing Washington's face. This is great for business. Like anything, there are dangers and negatives galore, but in my own relatively short life, I have seen the benefits and blessings in being able to become aware of, and apply too, a myriad of opportunities while never having to leave your chair. This was not possible 30 years ago. And lets not forget initiatives like Kickstarter, and crowd-sourcing in general

5) Blogs. I'd be a fool to not include blogs, wouldn't I? Obviously I see negatives in blogs as well, but I enjoy the idea that if you feel like you should have your own editorial column, no you have one.

Here are 2 Things that I honestly can't decide are good or bad: GPS on mobile device and Sheer Mass of Info.
GPS Pro: People can locate places easier and even share pictures and information as easily as pushing a button and swiping a screen. Con: people are becoming blind to what isn't on the device, and often suffer if there is a glitch or for some reason they are without the device. This is in the vein of over-dependence.

Sheer Mass of Info Pro: There is anything you would want to know. You can investigate agencies, check out salaries, etc, etc. Con: There is so much, that people often don't know where to begin, or if they try, sometimes it's hard to see the forest for the porn ... I mean trees. (seriously, Porn must be about 2/3rds of the internet, and FB probably is the other 1/3rd). But this is a serious problem, people seem to be less educated than ever, and yet there is such a surplus of information, I think we are trained to just skim upon the surface.

And to close, why the H*** not? MORE MEMES!

One last Negative for Big Steve: Blog Writing Negative: No grammer/spell checking, generally hasty and poor righting. I KNOW!

(And I know that "grammar" and "writing" is misspelled, I am just keeping you on your toes and making a point :) )

OH! I forgot about emoticons... oh well...