Since the first text message was sent in 1992 digital communication has affected our lives in both positive and negative ways. It has changed the way we run our lives, making us more efficient, more effective human beings. However many people claim that digital communication has had a purely negative impact on our civilisation. They believe the only product from digital communication is laziness. It is widely believed that the current generation is more lethargic then any other that came before it, this is apparently caused by digital communication. We have become lazier in two ways with our actions and our language. Both of these have apparently been caused by digital communication, because we no longer have to leave the house as we can …show more content…
As stated in the introduction, when the first text message was sent in 1992 it provided the initial spark that digital communication needed. When T9 (predictive text) was invented in 1995 text messaging was bought to a whole new level, it made text messaging faster and therefore increased the use of text messages. People went from barely sending text messages to replacing face-to-face communication with them. But however useful T9 was it did have it’s downfalls, it was quite ineffective and quite often picked the wrong words this could of led to the use of abbreviations to avoid this problem. On the other hand abbreviations could be a product of older generations, as on the old pay as you go SIMS there was a 160 character limit, which could cause people to abbreviate simply to avoid spending more money on text messages.
Since the release of the first Smartphone in 1993 it has become a lot easier for people to avoid the spelling mistakes with auto correct and even access to the Internet to check spellings. One would assume that this would mean that fewer abbreviations were used and yet more and more are being created each day, and why is this? Simply because it is much more efficient and faster to send an abbreviated word in a text than a full length one. Abbreviations also allow the
Personally, I often abbreviate my words when I send messages. I type u for you, cos for because, 2moro for tomorrow, gdnite for goodnight, etc. I don’t think these will affect my sensitivity to standard English because I just use abbreviations for typing faster. The invention of SMS itself is for people to contact more convenient. By using abbreviations, I can save time and energy, which is adapted to the fast-paced life in New York City.
The result verified that there is evidence of a decline in grammar scores based on the number of abbreviations in their sent and received text messages (Swayne and Messer). In other words, the word abbreviations and punctuation short-cuts that famously used in text messaging can alter individuals’ ability to recognize and apply proper spelling, grammar and punctuation techniques in writing and daily life communication. If the uses of abbreviations are not controlled from the beginning, both sender and receiver of text messaging will be associated with how poorly they will perform on the test based on the level of standard literacy they have.
With new forms of communication such as texting, cell phones bring about a whole new language. Acronyms have become very popular because they shorten the amount you have to type. But is this interfering with proper grammar learning? Many people even misspell words on purpose so the text isn’t as long, and you can say more. But if this is something people do on a daily basis, what’s to say they aren’t going to start using those misspelled words on memos at work, or papers for school. Not to mention distract people during work or school. Which brings me to the next effect.
Writing College, Writing Life’s article Learning the Language by Perri Klass talks about how some professions require abbreviations, which is one of the few times it is accecptable. Abbrevaitons can be helpful and an easy way to write a few words in just a few letters. Teachers do not like abbreviations because the writer tends to assume the reader knows what each acronym means, the paper should be and enjoyable read, not a confusing puzzle. While writing a paper for school teachers do not approve of abbreviation and acronyms, the writer should just take his or her time to write our each word correctly.
In her essay “No Need to Call,” Sherry Turkle makes the claim that smart phones, texting in particular, are having a negative effect on the way humans interact and communicate with each other. The issue of how smart phones are changing our social behaviors is important because it can potentially impact the future of the human race. With smart phones, computers and tablets, our society is entering into uncharted territory and we cannot be certain of how the outcome will change our social interactions. Figuring out whether or not these changes are negative or positive is a pertinent topic for all people because everyone is affected by these new technologies in their everyday lives, whether they have them or not. Turkle believes that the way we are communicating through these devices is starting to develop us into humans who are too reliant on impersonal forms of communication to the point that it is changing how we interact with others.
In Crystal’s view, “If you are aware that your texting behavior is different, you must have already intuited that there is such a thing as a standard” (Crystal 345). When texting, it is important to be aware that texting is a different form of writing than writing a paper for a class in school. There are many people, including myself, who use “u” instead of “you” or “cuz” instead of “because” when texting. When texting a friend, the way we communicate is casual, so abbreviations and shortcuts are acceptable. When I am writing a paper for one of my classes, I know that I cannot use those shortcuts and abbreviations in my paper because it is not grammatically correct.
There is an ongoing curiosity about why electronic devices are so irresistible. It is flabbergasting and utterly disappointing that people of all ages, including hypocritical parents lecturing teens about their texting addiction, “would prefer to communicate over text rather than meeting face to face”(mobile commons). Although technology has its benefits of quick communication and always staying in touch with others, the amount of common sense lost to technology has a stronger and more detrimental effect on one 's future. As people become more dependent on the technology that sits in the palms of their hands, the social skills one
The abbreviation is usually caught in student’s paper as well as they are so used to it that they don't even recognize using it. That may cause a bigger issue when they start writing a job application or business proposal within using a bunch of shorthand and emoji faces. In fact, texting acronym and shorthand as “ttyl"( talk to you later) or “gr8” (great) restrict young writers’ mind. It shows a decline in building complete sentences or accomplished a critical idea. And yet texting does not “stress the importance of punctuation". However, It seems like Cullington is trying to persuade people to the opposite idea. The sources have an accurate data and those situation, such as teachers are complaining about their students are lack of writing skills which is blamed on texting addiction, are real. It’s obviously an evidence whether it’s limited or not. Nevertheless, Cullington believes that It just "based on just a few personal experiences rather than on a significant amount of
“2b or Not 2b” exemplifies that texting is just another form of communication and the language used in text messaging will not destroy our standard language because of the use of history of abbreviations, promotion of creativity and the studies that show higher test
First of all, most people can no longer able to hold a conversation without looking at their phone every few minutes. Our ability to conversant is dwindling due to text lingo. As Nicholas Carr, said 1“Just as there’s a tendency to glorify technological progress, there’s a countertendency to expect the worst of every new tool or machine”. As I was walking through the mall one day I overheard a group of teen girls talking and every few words was either “omg”, “like” or “seriously”. Nowadays, when writing to friends common words are often shortened to save time, but what most people do not realize, is that people develop habits and after so many uses of text lingo the actual way to spell the word goes away.
Abbreviations such as lol (laugh out loud), brb (be right back), and ttyl (talk to you later) are commonly used when texting, yet are not really shown in formal writing. Students reported that text speaking formal writing. “Other students use these abbreviations and other speak text in their writing, but catches their mistakes quickly”. (Cullington 364). Supporting her research Cullington asked participants to complete questionnaires’’… the research hypothesized that texting and the use of abbreviations would have a negative impact on students. However, the results did not support their hypothesis. (Cullington 369).
The subject of how technology is changing written English is a touchy subject; many people believe that our current technology is allowing us to become lazy. Text messaging being the ultimate reason we are taking so many short cuts when it comes to writing proper English. There are so many abbreviated words and meanings in text messaging, I sometimes find myself confused when I receive messages from people that I have to google what they are trying to say. I don’t want to respond and assume I know what they are trying say.
Texting is a fairly new form of communication that has taken the world by storm. It became popular around 2001, and originally had its limitations, such as the 160-character limit. But now that technology has advanced, texting has followed along and is now a convenient, casual, and a more immediate way of communicating. So naturally, texting has evolved also in terms of the language used within it. We see this mostly in the form of abbreviations and short hand spelled words. Some people argue that texting has ruined the English language. Studies and observations have shown that the benefits of texting and cyber speak are much more broad then expected. Textisms have been shown to increase phonology skills, brain activity, creativity and provide a relatable outlet for students in education.
We use abbreviations and emoji’s to get our point across. As college students we send so many texting messages that we do not realize that we hold on to those habits of using incorrect spelling and full sentences. Using this way of communication so often has caused college students to carry it over to formal writing projects. Texting is another form of writing, some would believe that it will help with our writing skills but at the same time it making us lose our depth when it comes to writing. Students don’t use a much detail when it comes to writing papers. Grammar gets affected and we get in the habit of abbreviating our words which do not help enhance our writing at all. This articles just goes through saying that texting reflects on a lot more than just students language skills.
Tweeters and texters try to refine sentences into a few characters, and this results in excessive use of abbreviations which makes it inevitable to miss some important information. Using initials of a word or totally different characters to form a shorthand acronym is unreliable and confusing. David Crystal wrote in his article that “No texter is entirely consistent and no two texters use identical conventions” (245). Someone who text CYA (see you) in a text message will most likely pronounce it the same way as his text, making it an unclear and unpleasant phrase for the listener. Critics say abbreviations save us time, and there is no connection between how we tweet and how we speak. I have been in many situations where I have to search for the meaning of an abbreviation in a text message. An abbreviation doesn’t necessarily save you time. To the contrary, the ambiguous nature of an abbreviation