Professional Documents
Culture Documents
From one of the first iterations of the internet in the late 60’s, to self driving cars and
microscopic robots in the 21st century, the past 50 years of technology has drastically changed
how society performs its everyday functions. With change, controversy has a tendency to follow
close behind; With half a century worth of advances, many people have conflicting arguments on
whether or not the new age of technology has a net benefit. Some frown upon the recent
everyday use of new technologies, especially when relating to youth. Others argue that
technology has changed their life for the better, that they couldn’t image life without it. It’s an
issue that has ensued for decades and continues to boil over even today. As a society, we have
arrived to a point where we must adapt to the changes of the world. With new processes comes
new tools for utilization, learning, and advancements. With technology at the forefront of our
lives, discovering new ways to harness the potential that technology has, while still minimizing
As said before, the evolution of technology has sparked concerns from many speculators
of technology. Esther Dyson and David Gelernter are both presenting clear and plausible
In source C, Dyson has observed how technology has fundamentally altered our mind,
and our perception of time. Frequently using the phrase “thinking shorter”(Source C), Dyson
refers to how the automation that machines provide have allowed us to accomplish more work in
less time, “making every minute not used productively into an opportunity lost”(Source C). What
this has done is stretched our attention over multiple areas at one time. Dyson’s concerns are that
technology is making us think slower, shorter, “short-term” based(Source C), and stifled our
youth’s imaginations and attention spans. Unfortunately, technology has caused negative
In Source E, Gelernter has similar concerns like those of Dyson; He first states what isn’t
the situation to giving kids scuba gear, “it’s irresponsible; they’ll drown”(Source E). According
to Gelernter, children’s shortening attention spans, lack of knowledge of older entertainment (ie
Symphonies, Shakespeare, Wordsworth, and books in general), and the internet’s “lies, garbage,
and pornography”(Source E), are all effects caused by lack of “quality control on the
Internet”(Source E). Our ignorance to change has made us irresponsible. For our society to
improve ourselves we must change our way of thinking towards technology. We must learn how
Despite the negativity, technology has produced benefits to society as well. With new
opportunities that technology brings, it also brings fresh perspectives and ideas from those
In Source B, Kevin J. Delaney attributes the problem to the users of technology rather
than the technology itself. In Delaney’s excerpt, he quotes Tim Wilson’s view on the problem:
“how do we communicate with students today who have grown up with technology from the
beginning?”(Source B). Which points to us as a society to look inwards on ourselves as the users
who harness technology’s raw potential. While technology on our youth has shown to be
problematic, the problem is actually the way technology has been used and harnessed rather than
In Source A, Empire High School has taken an initiative to try to benefit from the
opportunities technology brings to learning. The high school has taken a risk by replacing
student issued books with Apple iBooks to every student attending. “[The high school] was
designed specifically to have a textbook-free environment”(Source A). While this might not be
the solution to solve it all, it is a step in the right direction. With the changing world of
technology comes new problems, and with new problems comes new solutions. It seems silly to
try to solve a new problem with a solution to a problem from a different era. The same goes with
technology, Empire High has taken a risk in order to help solve the problem of technology. They
are trying CHANGE, they are changing the norm in order to find new solutions to new problems.
Technology has raised our students and our educators potential for success. In Source C
Esther Dyson points out that technology has made every minute not used productively an
opportunity lost. Later on in the excerpt Dyson further enhances this point “we can measure
more, over smaller chunks of time. From airline miles to calories (and carbs and fat grams), from
friends on Friendster to steps on a pedometer, from real-time stock prices to millions of burgers
consumed, we count things by the minute and the second”(Source C). Technology has given us
the ability to accomplish so much more than before. It is irresponsible for us to not take this
opportunity to boost our youth years ahead of what they could otherwise. It is a matter of how
we use this technology. “It’s a social problem, but I think it may also herald a mental
one”(Source C), today’s society is indeed information rich, which should in turn encourage us to
ensure the information is being harnessed correctly. Esther even goes to the extent to compare
technology misuse to “a sort of mental diabetes”(Source C). Similar to how the misuse of sugar
and fat filled foods are misused by people, so can technology. A healthy supplement of sugary
and/or fatty foods can help your body tremendously by supplying energy. Conversely, those
same fatty foods, if misused, can result in diabetes or other major health issues.
It is imperative that with new changes we invent new solutions. Both Esther Dyson and
David Gelernter gave excellent arguments as to why technology has hindered social interaction
and mental abilities. In contrast, Empire High School and those who embrace technology have
shown how we can create new ways to harness technology and its benefits. Neither side
technology for the shortcomings of its users. You don’t blame the oven when you leave food
cooking for too long. Yet, it is also ignorant to be complacent by technology's great capabilities,
while oblivious to its unintended byproducts. We need to take the advantages that technology
brings to the table and learn how to implement it efficiently and safely into our life - without the
unwanted handicap it can impede on our psyche. We CAN use technology as a tool to progress