There’s no doubt that technology has become an integral part of our lives, but how much is too much? We’re living in an era where we can do a majority of our daily tasks through our phone, from checking the weather to googling the answers to our homework questions, but is this constant dependence on that tiny screen really doing us any good? I can’t even count the times that I’ve been studying for a test or writing a paper, only to interrupt myself to mindlessly check my Twitter feed or scroll through Instagram. In fact, I’ve already done it a few times while writing this first paragraph.
While there are now limitless exciting possibilities when it comes to technology, it also seems to be holding us back in other ways. It has basically become second nature to scroll through all my social media sites when I first wake up in the morning, as if I’ve missed something ground-breakingly important during those eight hours I was screen-free in the middle of the night. I cling to my phone throughout the day, rarely leaving without it in my hand or nearby in my pocket. But why? When you’re hanging out with friends, are you actually hanging out or are you just silently looking at your phones in the same room? It seems that our generation has replaced genuine human interaction with tweets, texts, and Snapchats.
Whenever I need to be the most productive, the screen seems to be even more tempting than normal. As soon as I get a little writer’s block or frustrated with a math problem, I immediately turn to my phone as second nature. Checking my texts or sending a few snaps has never given me inspiration or solved any of my problems, so why is it always the go-to? With the time I take to check my phone in between problems, I probably could have had my whole assignment done. It’s a constant cycle that leaves us disconnected and idle from what is in front of us.
For most of us, it’s pretty hard to imagine a world without all of this technology. The idea of taking out a paper map to find your way seems ludicrous now, but that was simply the way things were not too long ago. There was once a time when people actually stepped outside to see if they should wear a jacket or not, rather than relying on their phone to give them an hour-by-hour update. And believe it or not, people used to actually go to a restaurant and order food without posting a picture of it on social media. Imagine going a full day without these simple luxuries and shortcuts - would you even survive? Our phones are consuming our lives so much that we forget to put them down and actually live it every once in awhile.
