I am sometimes amused in taking the train to New York City. A young Johnny hops on the train with his me-Pod (I-Pod), cell phone and laptop. Johnny is fully wired - wires going from his I-Pod to his ears and from the PC to the cell phone. Johnny is on e-mail, music and commuting all at the same time.
With all this, multitasking Johnny has been on a train for one hour and not spoken to any human being. With such behavior day in and day out, Johnny has also forgotten how to smile. When all is wireless, then you may think Johnny is crazy.
In one case, a mother brings work home, stays up until 4:00 a.m. to complete a transaction, then e-mails the results to her boss, only to get a phone call at 4:30 a.m. the same day. That is efficient work wise, technology wise, but not from a work-life balance point of view. Those who pull the plug on the cell phone, e-mail and voice-mail have found lives that are more peaceful and a big improvement in domestic morale and individual productivity. In addition, technology makes folks very anxious; one mother insisted that her grown up son carry a cell phone for his bicycle ride fearing he would encounter a problem two blocks from home. I sometimes carry a cell phone when going on long bike rides where you may not see much human life for hours. So, one should apply commonsense, and if you have the three-ounce gadget, then just take it with you. Cell phones have saved lives too.
UNICEF Staff should reread the UNICEF Staff News of April 2004 that was solely devoted to stress. Some articles show there that technology has in fact created more stress in our lives as every query or question and work request demands an “immediate” answer. The degree of immediacy has grown with technology and everyone is racing to beat each other. These days when you are in a public train or bus so many folks are talking on the cell phone, a behavior that was not apparent just a few years ago. Therefore, you now hear everyone’s conversation and the ride is anything but peaceful and pleasant.
Today’s gadgetry has also translated into ailments. Humans were not supposed to do such repetitive tasks with little fingers for long periods. Thus, carpel tunnel syndrome and other repetitive strain injuries have also sprung up in recent years. Here again, humans have to learn to balance their lives in the physical pursuit of this gadgetry over the office use.
People must be wise to use technology to their benefit and bring meaning back to relationships in a dimension we lived before. People must reevaluate the lives they live with the gadgets that surround them and use the gadgets to make their lives better and not be an addict of it. Easier said than done I must say. The modern day virtual world of e-mail, websites, and gadget occupiers has created the norm or standard for human living today. People may get so gadget fatigued that eventually they may search their lives for a better life.
In Social Intelligence, David Coleman writes that ‘full attention’ is so endangered in this age of multi-tasking that it has split our focus. Self-absorption and preoccupations shrink our focus so much that we are unable to notice other people’s feelings, which even gets worse when much of face-to-face communication substitutes for electronic communication (even sending an e-mail to an office colleague five feet from your desk.) Therefore, when you are phoning or meeting with someone, place your memo aside, disengage yourself from all gadgetry, and focus on the person at the other end of the line or in front of you. Psychologists say that just “five-minutes’ is not much to demand for full attention. Recall the song: “Give me five minutes more, only five minutes more…...” Just think how you feel when someone is talking to you on the phone and you hear the sound of the PC keyboard in the background – you know that person is not giving you full attention. No wonder, the cry is now to make conversation the human relations leader.
What has really happened that the web started as a technology idea but now it has grown into a science encompassing traditional technology, sociology and psychology? Tim Bernes-Lee who created the web in 1991 sees many exciting things coming out of web 2.0. The web is fast moving from the PC to other hand-held devices like the cell phone for example. "Clearly, any technology can be used for good or bad" says Mr. Bernes-Lee. If we thought that air travel made the world a smaller place, the web has shrunk the size of the world and given communication a big boost. Activists who are fighting for democracy, freedom and human rights in their countries are able to use the web to get their message out in words and pictures. At the same time, the web also promotes criminal activity and helps terrorists use it as a communication tool or helps bad governments go after good people whom they brand as terrorists but are really dissidents fighting for political reform and democracy. However, web science can also help to counter the attempts of the criminals and bad governments. Like you can use an automobile to drive from point A to B or you can also use it to cause an accident or murder. Governments have thus posted speed limits, stop signs, driver proficiency tests, and other laws to guarantee public safety. Similarly, protectionist measures will evolve to protect the innocent public from web criminals so the web uses to benefit humankind.
Also please see Social consequences of gadgets - Part 1.
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