Technology Flood

It is out of people’s expectation that while they are happily using their technology chronical harms are approaching. Technology has been changing people’s lifestyle for several generations. People thought they were improving everything, including learning, studying, working, entertaining, and socializing. Even time, finance, and health management are regarded as advantages brought by technology. However, more and more scientists point out that technology is harming humans in many ways, especially with young adults. The reason is that the new generation is experiencing a burst of technology development. The new generation cannot live without technology because they think technology is a strong and smart assistant.

According to Steven Pinker’s “Mind Over Mass Media”, people who use PowerPoint as a learning tool could learn nothing more than the surface of the knowledge (Pinker). What about Twitter? People will not waste too much time surfing Twitter because every post is short. But,  Pinker says, “…, they assume that watching quick cuts in rock videos turns your mental life into quick cuts or that reading bullet points and Twitter postings turns your thoughts into bullet points and Twitter postings” (Pinker). It is the way the human brain acts. To be efficient, it tends to choose a shorter and easier way to transmit messages. In other words, if the brain absorbs short messages, after a period of time, the brains cannot deal with completed or complicated messages anymore. This is what Twitter and Instagram have done with human brain. People should notice that there is a fact which cannot be ignored: Modern people are mentally, physically, and socially too dependent on technology.

Many people have been aware of the anxiety due to the habit that they check their smartphones every two minutes in order not to miss any messages or notices from social media. What causes the anxiety? Imagine that in a social media afternoon, thousands or millions of young adults are talking about a worldwide event online. At that moment, a power outage occurs. The beautiful and energetic social media afternoon collapses all of a sudden, so does their mental safety zone. That is, the lack of internet can take their mental world away, and deprive their life of the meaning. Moreover, people who have compulsive behaviors of using internet tend to be anxious and depressed. They might be addicted to smartphones or do not like in-person interactions. They are anxious and depressed to in social interaction. Consequently, the technology compulsion brings a more stressful lifestyle between young adults and leads to several obvious symptoms: sleep disorder, phobia, depression, anxiety, distraction, and irritation. People are enjoying the convenience brought by technology, and tasting the bitter results simultaneously. This is the first wave of the technology flood.

Besides the mental disorders, overusing the internet could be physically harmful to human bodies. People have been convinced that technology addiction might hurt their mind, and they might also feel sick after a long time usage of the internet. That is because of the physiological changes occurs. For example, the hormones will alter and impact immune system because of the emotion; also, heart rate and blood pressure increase. In fact, for teenagers and young adults, the most common problem they are suffering from is the modern civilization’s diseases. For instance, a lone time usage of the internet could cause nearsightedness and cataracts; focusing too much on online games often leads to a headache; sitting in front of the computer without moving for a while may hurt elbow joint, shoulder, and spine. Many diseases have occurred because of this technology addiction. Imagine that someday these internet users are deprived of all the access codes. Perhaps their bodies would react as they are drug addicts: shivering, sweating, and thirsty. This is the second wave of the technology flood.

After individuals are hurt, a social disaster is coming. Many people may have experienced a scenario: after surfing Facebook or Instagram and clicking lots of “like” in two hours, they feel like a loser because they do not understand why other people have such a more gorgeous life than they do. Many people travel, hang out with friends, enjoy some fabulous food, or go to an exhibition not only for a meaningful moment but also for another purpose: to check in on Facebook! The show-off time is the most important thing! This weird phenomenon has become a trend which inspires a jealous and competitive atmosphere in the society. Then, Mammonism, which is a belief that means money is the best, is formed. People look at the successful models without thinking how struggling they once were. Instead, people say, “If I had money, I would be as successful as him/her!” It seems to be logical, but one thing is missing: less proportion of people post their tragedy and sadness on Facebook. Facebook cannot reflect the whole picture of the society, but many young adults misunderstood it. They keep tracking an illusion and maintain many unreliable relationships on Facebook, yet they spend less time on interacting with their family and real-world friends. At the same time, the social media users may have exposed the personal information to an unsafety internet environment which might have provided the users’ GPS locations to baleful guys.

Another social disaster is about media. In Mary Eberstadt’s  “Eminem is Right”, the author observes the connection between rock music and people’s life, and then she found the rock music reflects a specific culture and inspires more emotion from a specific group at the same time (Eberstadt). Similarly, in Salman Rushdie’s “Reality TV: a dearth of talent and the death of morality”, the author mentions a TV show as an example of the preferences of the audience (Rushdie). When the audience addict to The Truman Show, they adjust their values, and the TV companies will match the popular heavy flavors because they want to earn better reputation and more money. It is hard to say who is changing whom or who is controlling whose thought, but it is true that the society, art and media, are deeply influenced by one another. This is the third wave of the technology flood that could make a society submerge.

Technology flood has brought a lot of fish to people, while many buildings are partly or totally damaged. It is sad to see such a picture: teenagers and young adults addict to video games or social media, and then chronically hurt their bodies and minds; media audience is facing the value war; e-shopping users are suffering from thefts and the pressure of paying bills. Is society too dependent on technology? The answer is yes. Positive influences cannot make up the negative ones, and the technology development will keep going in the fast-paced society. Therefore, a limited using is essential. In some countries, the government has set up internet guardians in order to protect teenagers. In addition, due to the awareness of technology addictions, many educational institutions have opened related classes for both teachers and students. Moreover, famous searching engine companies, such as Google, have developed better filters to stop millions of users visiting phishing websites. Finally, being cautious and aware is a smart technology user’s unforgettable duty.

Works Cited

Eberstadt, Mary. “Eminem is Right.” Hoover Institution, 1 Dec. 2004, hoover.org/research/eminem-right. Accessd 29 Dec. 2017.

Pinker, Steven. “Mind Over Mass Media.” The New York Times,10 June 2010, nytimes.com/2010/06/11/opinion/11Pinker.html?_r=0. Accessd 29 Dec. 2017.

Rushdie, Salman. “Reality TV: A Dearth of Talent and the Death of Morality.” theguardian, 1 June 2001, theguardian.com/books/2001/jun/09/salmanrushdie. Accessd 29 Dec. 2017.