With the rise of the digital age, technology has become increasingly important to our everyday lives. From doing school work to finding entertainment, the advances made in technology have in many ways, bettered our lives. But with all this progress, there are bound to be aspects that affect us negatively.
One major problem with technology is how connected we all are as a result.
With the internet, the world has become a much smaller place. We can suddenly connect with people all over the world, stay in contact with friends who have moved away and see the latest news. While this can be a good thing it also leads to an influx of problems.
Social media allows us to check up on each other and gives us a glimpse into the lives of other people. However, people tend to use these platforms as a way to portray a perfect life. People only post the good things happening to them and editing software allows them to curate the best possible pictures of themselves. This can lead to the idea that everyone must be perfect and in turn, gives rise to mental health problems such as depression and self-image issues.
Another issue with technology in our society is the attachment we have to these physical objects. Everywhere you go you see someone glued to their phone or mobile device. As someone who is guilty of this, I can say that if we didn't have access to this technology the world would in some ways be better.
People are slowly beginning to lack social skills.
At parties and social gatherings, many people can be seen scrolling through their phones, some even texting the person seated right next to them. This dependence on technology can even cause someone stress or anxiety because their lives are basically all in that small piece of technological metal.
Technology has also changed the way we read. Seeing someone read a physical book in this day and age is a rarity. As a bibliophile, this is a sad truth. People are now opting to read off e-readers or tablets. The time when you went to a library and picked out one of the hundreds of books that lined the shelves is a thing of the past. Now everything is online. No more feeling the crisp pages of a new book as you flip the pages. No more holding a freshly printed newspaper in your hands as the jet-black ink dries.
Now, all there is to do is merely press your finger onto the cold screen of a tablet.
Technology like many things has its positives and negatives. While it has provided our society with improvements, it has also caused many problems. I, like many others, could not imagine a world without technology. Here I am, writing to you on a laptop and sharing it on a website. Technology itself is not a terrible thing. But as the saying goes, too much of a good thing can be bad.