The Digital Poorhouse Analysis

People rely on technology to survive in today’s society. People feel like they have to always be on their phones to be accepted, but they are missing life as it passes right in front of them. For example, I tend to get annoyed when I try to have conversations with my little sister and she sits on her phone not talking or paying attention. I have to take her phone to get her to look me in the eye and talk about things. People in today’s society lack socializing skills and that is all thanks to technology.

In today`s society, it is simply impossible for anyone to go a single day without hearing these phrases, “Hey guys did you hear there`s a new iPhone?” or, “I`m out of Xbox live so I can`t talk, Sorry bud!” maybe even, “My phones at 12%, I am going to die!” They sound so familiar in today`s time, don’t they? This leads to take a step back and ask ourselves, “Is society addicted, and dependent on Technology?” The amount of technology used has tripled since the 1990`s. Look around to see all of the people glued to I-Pads versus books or even newspapers. Technology is used every day in schools, friendships, and even in our food. Technology is overused because it is dumbing down society, negatively affecting our health and ruining socialization

It is no question that technology is changing people and the way we live. Almost every person depends on technology in some way to get through the day. Weather its smartphones, washing machines, toasters, or refrigerators, all of these common technologies were invented to increase our productivity and make life easier. The underlining question in this essay is to highlight the concerns of technology and prove that people are being blurred in their connections to digital reality and physical reality, work life and family, and our dependency on technology.

The society is in such a way that it falls into categories of people who belong to different social classes and this creates a difference in the way individuals lead their lifestyle, and in the way individuals interact with each other. The working poor refer to a social group which develops as a result of the social inequalities which exist in the society. The population comprises of individuals who put a lot of effort in their activities but still fail to witness growth and development in their socio-economic being. It is normally wrong to categorize such persons as being lazy, and instead, one may argue that nature dictates the fate of these beings.

As a college student, and as an American, everything revolves around the internet, computers, and smart phones. It’s crazy to think only 12% have a computer, and only 8% have an internet connection. It made me think about what’s really important in life, the bigger picture. Yes, there are certain things that we need to learn and use in order to fit into our society, but so many people in the

For the last couple of years’ technology has augmented our everyday life. Alex Williams, a reporter for the New York Times and an editor of the New York Magazine, would strongly agree with this. Williams believes technology has changed the way we live, and the way we interact with each other. Schools are loaning iPads, tablets, and laptops to students so they can immerse their self’s in a world of cyber learning. Teenagers are drooling over their cell phones for hours upon hours, ready to text back the boy in their Algebra class. Parents are preoccupying their little kids with games on their phones. Nevertheless, this is making life easier and simpler. Alex Williams hypothecates that technology might actually have “beneficial [attributes]

Technology is very odd because it allows users to have access to a vast amount of knowledge, but it can isolate and disconnect them from the real world. People are surrounded by technology as soon as they wake from their alarm clock to staring at their phone when they go to bed. It seems no matter where you go, everyone has some sort of electronic device on them. Over the past decade, technology has been rapidly evolving to help the advancement of society. Consequently, this creates an urge in people to join the ‘band wagon’ in owning their own piece of technology.

In her recent book Updating to Remain the Same: Habitual New Media, Wendy Hui Kyong Chun looks at how modern technological innovations force us to adopt new habits. She claims that technology has become more habitual than advanced and that its users are no longer bargaining on tech’s emancipatory qualities, rather it has become something that is part of our everyday lives that is often overlooked. Chun’s writings made me think a lot about technologies role in my life. I am huge advocate for becoming less preoccupied with our devices (first/last thing we see in a day) but I am not critical of others who are dependent on technology simply because I do not know what their needs are. It primarily comes down to the way I choose to go about my life

Steven Spielberg, who is an famous American director, producer, and screenwriter, said “Technology can be our best friend, and technology can also be the biggest party pooper of our lives. It interrupts our own story, interrupts our ability to have a thought or a daydream, to imagine something wonderful, because we're too busy bridging the walk from the cafeteria back to the office on the cell phone” (Brainyquote.com). The lifestyle for today's world is totally different from our parents world. As the days go on it’s a big gap between us, as in education methods, social media, and all the advanced technology in our lives. Untimely, there are many forms of technology in today’s world that is different from our parents world.

After reading Carr’s article, I found that David Carr explains the disrespect that people show to each other while using technology. This article has humor inserted into it to take away a serious tone that could be perceived as mean. The three-main points I pulled out of this article are that David feels people disrespect each other without realizing it, people miss opportunities because of the obsession with technology, and lastly finding humor in the reading. Those three main points will be discussed in the following paragraph.

It’s hard not to see or use a technology tool in our daily life, if we live in a modern world. The bombardment starts early in the morning and it will be manifested through our day in several ways, the regular person will wake up and check the apps on the cellphone while drinking a coffee, it can be for example to read news on the web, daily market numbers or for social interaction with others. The expansion to advanced options of communications like smartphones and tablets are great examples of the accelerated transition to a mass online communication. The social use of technology is influencing adult population in our present. According to Pew Research Center (n.d) data collected up to September 2014 in the online environment:

We grew up in the age of transition. Our childhood previously consisting of jumping rope, going outside, and playing in playgrounds quickly changed into something more technological. We watched handwritten letters became electronic, film became digital, a huge corded phones become small computers in our pockets. Now we are becoming dependent on these new technologies.

Technology has provided us with many opportunities. It has allowed us to achieve many feats and shatter expectations, as well doing something as simple as make our making lives easier or more comfortable. Of course, like many things, many people point out that there are downsides to technology. Although it may seem as though technology is socially isolating us, it actually allows us to connect with each other in many different ways.

Technology, can’t live without it anymore, or can we? Almost everyone uses technology. It is estimated that 100 million people use Facebook, 300 million uses Instagram, and 974 million use Twitter. In 2012, a program called “Shut Down Your Screen Week” was started to get people off of mediatic devices for a week. Over the past few years, this movement, to temporarily get off technology, has racked up a substantial amount of followers, including Mrs. Menge’s English and Literature Class. It is an idea I personally agree with and am in favor of trying. Shut Down Your Screen Week has also inspired many articles. Some of which are: Social Media as Communities, written by Nytimes, Is Google Making Us Stupid?, by Nicholas Carr, and Attached to Technology and Paying a Price, by Matt Richtel.

As I sit here and recall my last nineteen long years on this planet and my various interactions with different mediums of technology, it has become very obvious to me that I, like most people where I am from, have had really no major interactions with technology compared to others in my age group. I sit in coffee joints at night and watch people become more introverted than a turtle, ducking into their little shells of technological safety. They look at you through their faux, so-call trendy DKNY knock-off glasses, dressed in their Abercrombie clothes, hiding behind nothing but the glow of a laptop or in the corner talking to someone on their cell phones which just happens to match what they are