Is Computer Technology Ruining Society Today? Ever since the beginning of our existence, man has been trying to forge ahead and better himself. Throughout history man has pushed to achieve that which had always been considered unachievable. Sure some have shunned advancements and some have even tried to destroy it, yet it and we still move on. At the point we have reached today, technology not only enables us to have better lives, it also gives us the opportunity for global unity and advancement.
I feel that the major effect that computer technology has made is to make us a global society, made communication as fast as the blink of an eye which results in quickly sharing ideas therefore making it possible for us to work with others in our fields to make those technological advancements at quantum speed. To assess what the affect of computer technology has on our culture we must look to the past. We would do this and we will see a magnificent difference between now and then. In the past hours upon hours were spent on projects and work that today thanks to computer technology only takes minutes.
This technology enables us to do these projects with much greater accuracy and precision than we could ever hope for without their help. Some say that because of our reliance upon these machines we are giving up our work ethic and becoming lazier, that we rely on equipment and cannot function without them. To that comment I must say, the emergence of computer technology not only created thousands of new jobs and fields it also stimulated and drove countless others to set out upon this new venture and begin their own business or even create a whole new field. It is because of this technology that our working environment has improved to today's standards. "I think that computers are have given us the freedom to achieve so much of our "original" work. They have freed us from the repetitive tasks that took up much of our time so that we can really think about the important things in our work and lives.
" (Cecile Chase) People work just as hard with the computer or device as they would any other way. I admit that since the integration of computer technology there have a lot of drastic changes in our society and economy, but just because there is change does not mean that it is for the worse. A perfect example is the medical field. Thanks to computer technology this field has made a quantum leap from the point where it was at before the surge in computer technology.
The medical field now has greater ability to respond to the medical needs of our society than ever before with tools such as the M.R.I, computer directed laser surgery, sonograms and many more. For the first time in history we have the ability to diagnose and treat complicated illnesses without invasive surgery making increases in the quality and the length of our lives.
On the other hand there are many that say that with the increase of technology we are losing the personal touch. Some say that doctors and medical staff today rely solely on diagnostic equipment and lab work to make a diagnosis and that there is no time to get to know the patient or learn their history. Many people in our culture today have a hard time integrating modern technology with their current business practices. "I don't see the purpose, things work smoothly so I won't fix them.
It's too much of a hastle." (Dennis Sweeney) These people feel that a blend of the two is unachievable and choose to still rely on the old ways. I don't believe these people are completely wrong, they just do not understand computers or haven't received proper training. Tailoring training programs to the individual and showing them just how much of their work can be accomplished with ease will go a long way to making these people comfortable with new tools to complete their work. Let's take for instance schools, the school area is an area of great turmoil in this debate.
They have the technology to take the students learning to a new level with new budget thanks to the government for computer technology to be brought into the classroom. "The government initiatives purpose is to improve the quality and the availability of classroom computer technology. As a result, the next few years will bring an enormous investment of computer equipment and technology directly into the nation's classrooms" (www.ohioeic.
org/computertechsept.html) The only problem is it moving at incredibly slow rates because of a great percent of teacher's inability, or unwillingness to integrate the technology into the classroom. Teaching is one of the oldest professions in our history, which means that it may be one of the lasts to completely integrate. Many of the teachers are against it and are completely satisfied with the status quo. Apparently the state governments of several states do not agree, they are now forcing all schools to integrate, a move that is quickly spreading across the nation. It is their thought that with no room for growth or improvement it is a failing system, schools must be able to contend with the changes of the society, to teach their students in the ways of today not the ways of yesterday.
It is an ongoing battle that will continue on as long as there are those who cannot bring themselves to integrate the technology of our culture into the classroom. The issue of technology in our culture is a discussion that many have and will debate and with good reason. Computer technology has brought us so far in a short period of time and by all preset standards it seems impossible yet it has done it. It has connected us to everyplace on the globe and enabled us to save lives and make lives better.
Computer technology is the future of our culture; it is the next stepping stone in man's eternal quest for a better life, the very thing we as a culture have been striving for since our creation thousands of years ago.
