The Technology Blackout : The Importance Of Technology And Technology

As humans, we detect that we are unable to function without the use of our technology. Does this excessive usability of technology affect how we analyze and operate daily? Nora Volkow, the director of National on Drug Abuse, states “The technology is rewiring our brains” (Ritchel 2). Individuals have demonstrated how this has become a valid statement in society today. In Ritchel’s article “Attached to Technology and Paying the Price” Mr. Campbell, an active technology user on and off the job, suffers from being incapable of detaching himself from his technology. Mr. Campbell falls asleep every night with his cell phone on his chest and initially rises in the morning to flee to the Internet. His lack of disengaging himself with his technology not only affects himself, but his family as well. His wife states that “I would love for him to unplug, to be totally engaged” (Ritchel 3). As shown in the lifestyle of Mr. Campbell and his family, technology has not only dominated his life but his families as

Stewart explained that kids who can recognize their regret for being on electronics have the ability to regain their lost skills, such as time management and denial. Dr. Stewart dismissed that technology was not addictive: “Technology is a drug... it makes you feel as if you lost your sense of things.” As adolescents mature, they become less active in their family if they are influenced by technology, whereas if not influenced by technology they would be more active in family affairs. She notes my “personal” experience and maturation with electronics; because of my “rural upcoming” and “care for nature” electronics have less of an impact on myself. “Electronics were just another hobby” that one of her kids had. This hobby of building computers for peers, fixing electronics around the house, advising strangers how to troubleshoot and fix their problem accordingly, even finding expertise in becoming anonymous across the internet has affected siblings, parents, friends, and strangers. Nevertheless, there are severe downfalls to this hobby. Just as professional sports players spend the majority of their time training and playing, I experiment with various electronic devices and research them. If one considers a passion for any activity healthy then my passion should subsequently be considered healthy. Any one event while using electronics i.e. a laptop, can set one up for aliment, as it modifies how they interact and socialize with others. It also shows how they would

Ever since technology began so prominent in the modern world, can anyone remember going outside for more than 30 minutes and not see a cell phone or computer? Probably not, as these pieces of technology have become so ingrained in people’s lives, no one wants to leave their home without still being connected. And there is no reason to, as friends, family, and strangers share the same sentiments. Unplugging from technology is not only a decision people don’t make for personal reasons, it simply isn’t conducive to a productive life, as many people’s work and social lives wouldn’t be the same, if exist at all, without being connected to other people or the internet with just a single touch.

People spend a lot of time on technology each day. Right now, according to cnn.com, “Adults in the United States devoted about 10 hours and 39 minutes each day.” From spending so much time on technology we are becoming addicted. It is becoming a big problem.

For this assignment I chose to record my technology use the day I left to go back to Boston for thanksgiving break. I have to say it was quite surprising to see how much I use technology to get through my day. The morning I got ready for my flight to Boston I had an alarm set on my phone for 3:30 AM. My friend was supposed to give me a ride to the airport so ended up using my phone to call her five times but no answer. I got scared that I was going to miss my flight so I texted my friend and told her to call her. She still didn't answer.

What is technology to you? For some people, it's a lifeline they can't go without it. If you were a gamer, how would you feel about not being able to play for a whole week? What about music junkies? Not being able to match a song to each of your feelings for a whole 168 hours. Possibilities are endless but participating in “Shut Down Your Screen Week” is not one of them. For instance, being plugged into social media allows you to look over and receive news, and look at the diversity of the world. Also, the internet contains so many astonishing materials. Although, screens provide us with many convenient things it is also addicting.

When her family got their first color tv, her father was so happy because now he could see the different football team’s colors when he watched the game. But no one really sat in front of the tv all day, because there weren’t many shows on. She then got her first computer in her house in ‘98, a little after she had her first 3 sons. She thought it was so neat that she was able to email her old high school friends and reconnect with people who she wouldn’t have ever talked to again. Of course, her boys liked to play video games, but they were largely outdoor people. Today she mostly uses an iPad, for business, research, and the occasional Netflix binge. Sometimes when work is getting hectic, she says, “It helps stop my mind from thinking about everything at work.” She can use it as a stress reliever, or a distraction. But even then, sometimes she feels that she has to pull herself away and take a walk. At work, she notices that when people are in the waiting room, they no longer reach for the magazines that have been set out, they are all on their phones. She deals with lots of parents at her job, and she realizes that parents seem to be using technology as almost a “babysitter”. When their toddler gets fussy, their mom hands them her phone so that they have something to do. That is starting the dependency from an

The types of technology I interact with throughout a typical day are: my phone, laptop, and TV. I use my phone at the start of the day (as an alarm clock), and then throughout the rest of the day I use it to communicate (text/call) with friends/family. Basically, my phone stays with my 24hours of the day. I use my laptop as much as I use my phone. Typically, I am on my laptop 70% of the day. This includes browsing the Internet, listening to music, and using word/ other applications to complete homework. I would say that the TV is only used for a short period of time, only to watch the news, or a show.

It contained experiments performed by credible scientists of this field and scholarly quotes from experts within the realm of this extent. Its main focus is to portray that technology is becoming an addiction that is rapidly spreading throughout the entire world, causing us to become impatient and forgetful. One of the investigations was an experiment with a college student who couldn’t use any technology for one day, and she reported feeling very lonely and secluded from her life. She said “Although I go to a school with thousands of students, the fact that I was not able to communicate with anyone via technology was almost unbearable.” This goes to show how much of a toll technology has taken in our lives. People can barely survive without the comfort and luxury and technology in life. Nicki Dowling, a clinical psychologist who led a study on technology dependence, prefers calling it “Internet dependence”

People have found it hard to function without their technology. Parents have been known to go hours without feeding their children, or feeding themselves sometimes causing the child to die from being malnourished, or the parent to fall ill due to the lack of nutrients (Maney 1999). In 2013, Mark Knapp and wife, Elizabeth Pester were charged after their three year old child was rushed to the emergency room, weighing only thirteen pounds; the couple was then arrested from their Tulsa home after they left their child in the hospital to return to their video game (Kemp 2013). Research shows that too much time spent with a tablet or cell phone and the radiation that it emits has led to minimal cases of cancer as well (Nordenberg 2000). Teenagers on average check their phones thirty-seven times an hour (Ritchel 2010). Teens report feeling anxious or sick to their stomach when their phone battery dies, saying they “need to have it back” (msv13 n.d). America has fallen in love with gadgets that will consume the ability to function in the “real world” (Della Cava 2011). Not being able to perform daily activities without your phone or tablet should be considered an addiction, it needs to be cured. Actions to prevent a technology dependent society include company management having “no-tech meetings” to insure that decisions are not being made without communication in the group, as well as schools having a “no cell phone policy”

As much as it was fun to not use technology for day I did miss it. It’s fun to watch my favorite Youtuber rage while playing a game or taking a silly snapchat and sending it to my friends. I think in the future I’ll try to this sort of thing. I’ll try to unplug, what I mean by that is no phone, no TV, no video games. I will however use lights, running water, that sort of thing. I’ll do it so I can appreciate the things around me. Even though while I was unplugged I did lose some connections I noticed made new connections as well. Whatever you do there will always pros and cons.

In today’s society with cell phones, television, internet, and social media, it is very difficult to stay connected. Our ability to stay balanced in a society with technology exponentially improving will benefit us when connecting to more things that are real and in the moment. The idea is not to become completely disconnected with the tech space, but rather to connect and be involved with life outside of technology as well. The point is to become more involved with family and quality time. Yes, we can still be “connected” with technology; however, if we take time to disconnect we can understand what is really going on in our society. Technology is universal no matter where we go, one use it every day if its traffic lights, bikes, phones, cars,

Looking back over my week of tracking my electronic device usage, I was surprised to see how much time I actually spend consumed by these different mediums. Giving an analysis of the data that I have gathered, it would seem that my selected devices are tied between cell phone, TV, and radio usage. Despite my full-time school and work schedule I still have time to spend approximately 37 hours total a week on using these devices.

I am getting ready to enter a technology blackout for two days and I am already starting to complain about it. However, I am curious to see how I will do with this experience. I want to take this challenge seriously since I am consistently on my phone, texting, and on social media (Facebook, Instagram and twitter). This project may take a positive effect on me and allow me to see the things I miss out on while I was connected to my phone.

Over the past week I have been keeping track of my media use. I discovered I lead a pretty repetitive technological lifestyle. Weekday mornings I start my media consumption via my alarm clock on my cell phone. Why not use the regular alarm clock? Because with a cell phone I do not have to get up and out of bed in the morning- the snooze button is even closer to my barely awake fingertips. After hitting the snooze button at least once I make a point to check out Facebook because we all know everyone is constantly updating at 5:45 every morning.