Three months
before I was born, Google was launched. The next nine years brought with them
other society-molding inventions such as Facebook when I was five, YouTube a
year later, and in 2007 the first generation iPhone. Starting fifth grade,
these four inventions were the staples of modern society – cool fifth graders
(not me) lied about their age to be on Facebook and you were weird (me) if you
didn’t browse YouTube in your free time. iPhones quickly took over and before
we knew it, instagram and snapchat had become the primary forms of
communication. These are things that, had I grown up 20 years earlier, never
would have been on my radar. Everything would have been different. There would
have been no Google for research or for looking up random curiosities. I would
not have had a phone to text my mom everyday after school and find out where
she was picking me up. Social interaction is another story. While I personally
don’t partake in much social media anyway, and therefore that wouldn’t have been
hugely different, I think that the fact social media exists at all affects the
way we interact. Standards of social interaction as a whole have changed. The
expectation at this point is that people would rather interact via technology
than in person. It’s easier to be bold over text or over social media because
there’s distance. Twenty years ago people didn’t have that to hide behind. I
have friends now who will wait to resolve a fight when they can text because
they don’t have the guts to say what needs said aloud. And in this, I think
society has lost something. Don’t get me wrong; I love technology. Plenty of
tech has made life easier and better for many. I love the internet, and I love
the convenience of having a phone. To answer the question of which I prefer,
the answer is now. Despite my dismay as far as our situation on the social
front, I am rather fond of recent technological developments.
hey now - i grew up 25 years earlier and they are way on my radar.
ReplyDelete