Humanity or mankind evolved from beasts. Any Beast can be called human if it is able to analyse, create, deduce and formulate. Human beings strive to invent newer from the new. There was a time when people used pigeons to send messages to one another but then as technology developed, things began to change. Technology came into existence when humans felt the need to perform tasks quickly but efficiently. Necessity is the mother of invention so, the need to perform tasks efficiently with least effort, made humans think of alternatives and thus came the era of inventions. Simply speaking, technology means implementing human knowledge for practical applications.
Since the advent of technology, mankind has strived to better its life standards. Today, technology is practised in every field, be it engineering, medical, educational or economic. Modern technology has reached to such high peaks that scientists are now working on a way to inject technology directly into human brains. Neurological Japanese Science Lab is working on how to transfer the data (memory) from human brain into a computer. They recently performed an experiment on a person, using a special electronic headgear that tracks the electric impulses of the brain. They placed some pictures in front of the said person and were able to obtain the same pictures on a computer screen. Through this experiment they predicted that in coming decades, people will be able to see their dreams in the form of a video clip.
All the elements of the universe exhibit two faces- a constructive face and a destructive face. Technology too exhibits both a positive and a negative side. Looking at the positive side first, as I already mentioned, necessities tend to spawn inventions and each invention is annexed with a need for betterment and transmogrification. Advances in technology are taking place at a very rapid pace and this is responsible for changing many of the secular trends in basic parameters of life, like the size of the human population, life expectancy, education levels, standards of living, nature of work and cultural habits etc. Other aspects of our lives and society are also greatly influenced by technology in direct or indirect ways. For instance, human relationships, morality, human nature and our mind are all effected by technology.
A new generation is being cultivated with modern habits without the need of human intervention. Technology is contributing a lot in the medical field. Every diagnosis and treatment is now being carried out with the help of technology. Technology has become the backbone of medical research. Be it building your home or making a mere wallet, everything today is made with the help of technology. Technology has touched every sphere of life.
On the other hand, society is becoming completely dependent on technology. People are getting more and more impatient and prefer getting everything done in the wink of an eye. We expect a call to be answered on the first ring, we expect to get an immediate response to an email. We hate waiting for a few seconds. In nutshell, we are losing patience as technology is advancing. We want everything done before we even finish thinking about it. Isnt this a dark side of technology? Widespread use of technology is making unusual changes in our minds. Nowadays we dont have time to spend with our family. Technology has already taken that time and space from us.
Technology is keeping us so busy that we cant even make time to spend with our loved ones. It is so surprising that despite living in the same neighborhood, people only talk to each other through chats and online messages. We prefer chatting as we think it is faster and effective but we forget that online chatting can never replace meeting personally. Technology has trapped us. We cant shun it completely but we cant also embrace it completely. Todays man is stressed all the time. An online survey has found that students are the most stressed in todays fast paced life. The reason is that students are the ones who are most connected to the advancing technology. There is no doubt that technology is making the world smaller but it is also creating horrible conditions for humans. Weaponry engineering is the darkest side of technology. Rivalries among the nations may be ascribed to technological advancements. Hi-tech weaponry system is creating a global threat among people, as the countries compete for a new warfare system.
Technology is as bad as it is good. Let us unshackle our minds and ponder over whether we should be completely dependent on technology or not. I personally think we should use technology to advance our living standards but we shouldnt let it overtake our lives. We are collectively imparting our knowledge to one focused thing and if continued, one day it will replace us. Technology is gradually making people dull and lethargic because it doesnt allow us to use our personal efforts. For example, we learn driving a car by putting our efforts and intelligence to work and it turns into a skill. Now cars that are self-driving have been invented. So, very soon there will be no need to drive. One will just have to sit in the car, choose ones destination and the car will drive itself. Therefore soon we will stop learning to drive and once again become completely dependent on technology. This is how technology is overtaking us and rendering our skills useless. If we continue advancing technology as rapidly as we are doing it now, the day when people will lack knowledge, intelligence, memory and skill is not far. Mark Kennedy truly says, All of the biggest technological inventions created by man – the airplane, the automobile, the computer – says little about his intelligence, but speaks volumes about his laziness. So the next time you are tempted to simply use google instead of picking up and opening a dictionary, choose to open a dictionary. We dont have to give technology up completely but at the same time we dont need to give in to it completely.
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