The Advancement of Technology

Nowadays, teenagers spend more and more time texting each other. Laws are being created against those that text and drive, and teachers are more harsh about those that text in class. As texting becomes the "in" thing, what is happening to email? Back when I was in middle school, email and instant messaging on AIM were the way to go. As time proceeded, these fads became obsolete.

I once heard that technology doubles in its efficiency every 1.5 years. Not for one second do I doubt that. We have found ways to make things faster, communicate over social networks, and talk face-to-face over the computer. I am not stating that instant messaging is obsolete, but the use of AIM among teenagers certainly is. Teens are now using Facebook and Skype to communicate amongst one another. When one thinks of emailing, they think of the ways to give people information or invite them to do something, but as I recently found out. Email isn't that reliable. Now, for those that check their email regularly, it's not a problem, but for those that do not wholeheartedly use their email, you can find it hard to give them information. Don't get me wrong, email was an amazing invention, but when one needs to get information to another quickly, it is just simply inconvenient.

I must admit that on social networking I am a bit of an addict. I tweet and text just about 24/7 and I am constantly on Facebook for my phone. I just find it an easier method of communication. Texting takes up a huge portion of the teenage society. You can ask just about any teen if they text and 9 times out of 10 the response will be, "Of course!" Lately, school districts have been coming down on the whole texting during class thing. Teachers resort to taking the phone over night. I know that I would not be able to function without my phone for a day. To follow on that last statement, I think it is sad how the teens of today have been basically brainwashed into NEEDING their phones. We technically don't NEED them, but we rely on them so much that it is a necessity in life.

Finally, the use of social networking within schools. Teachers will argue that it distracts from class time, but I would like to pose an argument against that. Websites such as Facebook and Twitter actually have a learning curve. If you are doing research on a celebrity, nowadays just about every celebrity has a twitter and you can really dig into their personal lives. On Facebook, there are many different ways in which (in psychology) the user can do research on the way people represent themselves online and in person and their differences.

The idea that technology doubles is not just put in the back of my mind. I think about it quite a bit. Teenagers have to deal with the constant changes and just adjust to the latest thing, whatever it may be.

Will you be enthralled by technology?