Is technology narrowing our perception of life?
I came across this question in some reading I was doing and it made me stop and think. With computers and instant access to the Internet via smart phones and tablets, has the perception of "real life" changed? Instead of going and doing things out in the world, more are relying on the "world wide web". Interesting thought to ponder.....
Interesting question, our lives are changing in many ways, some good, some not so much.
Children are desperately lacking in creative exposure due to the internet. All they do is listen to music and movies while texting their friends in idle gossip. This problem is definitely narrowing. My childhood before internet was spent being inventive, reading, getting involved in hobbies, etc.
Adults now have resources available to them instantly and mostly very authoritative content. Google search can find any reference just about anywhere. So in that respect we are not narrowing but rather broadening.
Our perception of real life is also suffering since we are isolated to a keyboard and we no longer have personal contact with others. I would much rather be discussing this with you in person, but that is impractical compared to what we are doing right here.
Well said, Don, and spot on. I'm thinking that a lot of natural creativity and innovation is going to be lacking in the world when the present generation of kids grow up and the present 'older generation' has 'Gone to God.'
I agree with Don. Technology offers us a wider scope of opportunity in many educational, entertainment and research areas but limits our social interactions with reality. I would love to discuss issues in person instead of online.
What is sure is many things have changed.
What I think is the changes have come through Internet, not through technology in general. Internet somehow allows everyone of us to develop a second personality, call it virtual if you want, which can be used online for social purposes.
We are not the same person when we are online; maybe because we know that side-effects of our behaviour will affect our virtual self and not our real one.
I have had some thoughts on it, but maybe I cannot clarify yet well what I am thinking. It has to do with spending more time on the social activities of our virtual self and not the real one too.
Who knows how things will go? I am quite worried on the effects of social networks over us...
I think the internet is narrowing our connections to reality (however you define it) in some areas and broadening them in others.
I have "met" people in social networks I would never even know existed otherwise and it has given me the chance to work in countries I would otherwise never have even visited.
It has also let me find, easily, people in those countries who shared interests with me and that is a big bonus. Without the web this would have been virtually impossible.
But your question mentioned technology in general: I think my first paragraph also applies to technology generally.
Not merely an interesting question but tricky, too! As technology broadens the scope of our vision, is it narrowing our perception? I'm certain an entire book is in that question. I'm equally certain I don't want to write it!
I think, ultimately, it come down to the individual and his/her responses to and uses of technology. While researching a hub about cows (which I "should" be working on at this moment!), I found myself taking a fascinating virtual tour of Lascaux caves in France. Now, it is highly unlikely that I will ever physically visit that cave complex to see those wall paintings with my own eyes. Still, I have experienced the next best thing.
Obviously, I'm a hubber; therefore, I embrace technology, working my fingers to the keyboard to establish multiple online revenue streams. Yet, I am still a writer, photographer, addicted road tripper and alpha pack member to a boglen terrier who insists on running down scent trails. I would be dead in the revenue stream without my techie tools, but I'd be plain old dead without life on the other side of the front door.
In depth answer, Jim. I suspect that Technology, especially the Web, is increasing our academic knowledge but narrowing our ability to feel. Feelings and the resultant wisdom they bring comes from REAL experience, not pictures and words on a PC.
Yes you are right, our curiosity is fulfilled by internet and we never think about inventing and getting knowledge by reading books or visiting labs. We only rely on internet and that is why now I am answering to your question via internet as Don Fairchild said before.
Instead of going to the library or using the dictionary, we just go to google now. Most people live connected to their computers and cell phones instead of seeing the world. I entirely agree with that comment. Some of us need to see the world.
For some technology narrows their perception of life, for many they narrow their perception around technology.It all depends to what extent technology is part of our life or our life is part of technology.
I use it and i have to admit, in todays world i believe its a struggle living without it.
Yes it has..we are removing our selves from nature, and what will be the price of doing this?
Technology is exposing us to more information in a faster and broader manner yet we are growing more ignorant in many ways as a result of it. Much misinformation is passed and far too many of us multi-task all the time making mistakes in many areas at the same time. We are slowly losing our ability to converse orally face to face and far too many cannot get through a 15 minute period without succumbing to the over-whelming desire to make a worthless phone call. Electronic media is the new smoking; the new pacifier with so much communication potential but at the same time doing so much damage to our true abililty to communicate. Surely this is part of the "dumbing down of America". ~WB
'Narrowing our perception of life" is a rather vague statement...surely the original author meant it to be "thought provoking" in hopes that anybody could read with it and agree, after coming up with their own definition for the phrase (Which may be completely different from the person across the table).
Technology changes things, but that IS life as a human being. Don't forget, we use to be cave dwellers who were lucky to live to the age of 30, hunting for dinner with sharpened sticks.
We now have the ability to travel to the moon (Mars isn't far behind), use high powered orbital telescopes to explore the vast reaches of space. We can take mechanized submarines to explore deep under the sea, where there is still massive amounts of unexplored territory.
I went to see Hubble 3D in the Imax a couple of years ago. Narrowing? No - I think if anything, that completely opened up my perception of life to a whole new level.
I don't think it is the technology that is the problem. People are just becoming less sociable in the real world.
These shows where the judges tear people to pieces because they cannot dance or sing. There is the reality of life that is portrayed in the broadcast media.
Some people seem to like negativity otherwise these shows wouldn't be so successful.
The technology can allow some people to be more insular and turn away from the world. This is not the technologies fault, just the nature of some people.
You could say it has liberated them from having to interact at all. Which they may prefer.
Technological is changing human contact with cyber contact.
The plus is that now we have national and global friends that we would never have before.
The con is that friends that we do have now are contacted with less real presence as in actually physically being there.
The other con is that even when they are there in the flesh, many people text to others that are not there physically.
Such an interesting discussion that might be worth following. My initial thought is that deceptive is the word that describes too many peoples' experiences on the internet.
To a certain degree - yes. We just have to make sure we don't become obsessive. Technology can be a great extension for us in reaching out to others. But, on the flip side it can make us feel even more isolated from the world. We may feel as if we can communicate entirely through technology and the internet when in fact we are far from it. Great question.
Not at all. It's just the opposite. Technology, througout ages, has always been a tool of progress and emancipation, even though it also has its bad side.
Technology is a double-edge sword that is both narrowing and expanding our perception of life. To those who decide to tune out to life and live in the virtual world of video games and/or the Internet for most of their awake existence, technology is narrowing their perception of life. For a lot of other people technology is expanding their perception of life. What used to take a trip to a library and hours of research can now be done in a matter of minutes from any computer that has an Internet connection, which leaves time to compete other tasks and also exposes one to a lot more information that in years past they would not come across. People are exposed to a lot more information and potential learning opportunities due to the expanded perception provided by the Internet. Thinking of doing something this outdoors weekend? You can plan your trip on the Internet and pick up a lot of time saving and useful tips that can enhance your outdoor venture, which can expand the perceptions you experience during your weekend outting. I guess it all depends on how one uses the technology at their disposal.
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