Sunday, October 14, 2007

Technology






















I thought our generation had it tough having to make the transition to metric measurement and decimal coinage. But we were also the generation that has witnessed the technological explosion. I would guess that none of us used a computer until we were in our late 30's and now we have all had to become masters of the Internet, email and cell phones almost overnight. In addition,for me, returning to work after 20 years, my steepest learning curve has been technology as computers are now an essential part of my dailylife, for better or worse! I remember my Dad purchasing our first colour T.V set and holding out a year or two until the price came down. My parents never owned and still do not own today, a dishwasher, microwave, computer or cell phone. They just never felt the need and I think my Dad began to see his resistance as a matter of principle! My mother, under pressure from her children reluctantly took possession of a deep freeze in the 70's but never really adopted the mindset for it-as far as I can remember it usually only contained 2 loaves of bread, 6 strawberry yogurts and a packet of frozen peas...for 5 years!
My own children were brought up with technology and like all their generation see it as a essential part of their lives. They text and call their friends constantly and are all members of Facebook. They meet up with their friends and mix socially but the constant communication via the airwaves is amazing. When I got home from school I don't remember contacting my friends by phone all that much. We only had one phone which was in the hall and if you wanted any privacy the only option was to stand in the cupboard under the stairs in the dark!
Once boyfriends came on the scene I used to walk to the nearest public phonebooth, 15 minutes away!
Despite the convenience and practicality of cell phones, it seems to me that they are a plague of today's generation. I hate hearing other people's conversations and to talk on the phone while someone is running up your groceries strikes me as the height of bad manners. Maybe I'm just old-fashioned. We seem to be faced with the anomaly that there is an unquenchable desire to communicate with others but this communication is impersonal and at a distance. As a society, are we losing confidence or interest in talking face to face?

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