Technology Good and Bad
In today’s world it seems that everyone makes use of technology in many ways. But is it all that good? Technology has both a good side, such as making our lives easier, and also a bad side, such as being a distraction.
“Today, thanks to exponential growth in processing power, storage, and bandwidth, we have the ability to do things that were literally impossible just a few years ago” writes Daniel Burrus (Burrus). Today’s world seems to be dominated with technology and we cannot seem to do much without it. Technology has definitely had a large impact on the way we do things. For instance without the computer and the internet it would be a large effort to research many topics at once. It would be difficult for us to share our writings with many others or edit the writing with ease. Another example of how technology can be at an advantage is it helping in classrooms. As Tim Elmore writes, “Right now, most schools forbid cell phones to be used during class time. It makes sense. However, other schools have decided to use this favorite device to further students’ education. Teachers actually text assignments to students, allow them to do research on their portable devices, spark discussions on the screen and even make videos to complete school work.” (Elmore). Classroom technology would not only make it easier to teach, but it could also help the students be more involved if the lesson is made more interactive.
Just as technology can be positive, it can also have a negative impact. Frequent use of technology, such as texting or gaming, can have negative effects such as an increase in frustration (Martin). Use of technology may also lead to a deteriorated patience, such as quickly getting frustrated when it takes too long for a web page to load (Martin). Technology can become distraction. “Students have always faced distractions and time-wasters. But computers and cellphones, and the constant stream of stimuli they offer, pose a profound new challenge to focusing and learning” writes Matt Richtel (Richtel). Modern technology allows almost endless entertainment. It is quite easy to get caught up in watching a T.V. show or texting instead of doing something productive. Technology can have a negative effect on ones social life. Communicating to people over the internet is a massive shift in social interaction (Dellner). “We may enjoy online relationships using social media sites like Facebook or Twitter, for example, but the difference between these kinds of interactions and interactions with people in the physical world is clearly vast” writes Alex Lickerman (Lickerman).
Technology can be a powerful tool in today’s world, but it can also present dangers to us as people and as a society. Technology has as many positive impacts as it has negative impacts. Whether technology is more good or bad is something of a subjective nature as it really depends on the person.
Works Cited
Burrus, Daniel. "Is Technology Good or Evil?." The Huffington Post. The Huffington Post, 24 Aug 2012. Web. 5 Sep 2013. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/daniel-burrus/is-technology-good-or-evi_b_1826270.html>.
Dellner, Tom. "Technology’s Impact on Social Relationships—The Data May Surprise You!." California Southern University. California Southern University, 26 Sept. 2011. Web. 5 Sep 2013. <http://www.calsouthern.edu/content/articles/technology-impact-on-social-relationships-surprising-data/>.
Elmore , Tim. "Is Technology Good or Bad for Us? (Part Three)." Growing Leaders. N.p., 06 Oct. 2011. Web. 5 Sep 2013. <http://growingleaders.com/blog/technology-good-bad-3/>.
Lickerman, Alex. "The Effect Of Technology On Relationships." Psychology Today. Psychology Today, 08 Jun. 2010. Web. 5 Sep 2013. <http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/happiness-in-world/201006/the-effect-technology-relationships>.
Martin , Alice. "The 4 Negative Side Effects Of Technology." Edudemic. Edudemic, 30 May 2013. Web. 5 Sep 2013. <http://growingleaders.com/blog/technology-good-bad-3/>.
Richtel, Matt. "Growing Up Digital, Wired for Distraction."The New York Times. The New York Times, 21 Nov. 2010. Web. 5 Sep 2013. <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/21/technology/21brain.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0>.
