Addiction to technology

[lechat]

social media is shit technology is awesome.
you might be confused to think i am one of a million fucktards sitting in the lunch room facebooking people i barely know and checking every 5 seconds to see how many people liked my last tweet but instead i choose to study what interest me instead of listening to what football player decided to drink his own piss or how awful my company is because they wanted someone to do some work in between their 5 hour's worth of breaks.

 

[TheSYLOH]

In all seriousness, nobody is "addicted to technology", except maybe the crazy people who write articles for sci/tech magazines.

Actually everyone you probably know is addicted to technology. That food on your plate? Technology! specifially agricultural technology. The water you drink? Technology! Filtration, plumbing, possibly desalination.

Really I hate those idiots who think they sound deep by "rejecting" technology.

This XKCD comic really sumarizes it.
http://xkcd.com/1227/

In 1871 people were complaing "OHH This efficient postal service is RUINING our individual connection and quality of life BLAH DI BLAH BLAH!"

It goes further back, Socrates was known to rail against writing (ironically only know because someone wrote about it). I'm sure if they could articulate it, there were people against speech and oral tradition.

As for smartphones, half the time when I'm looking down, I'm reading something, most recently Issac Asimov's Foundation series. I used to carry around a paper back novel for that reason. I still converse if there are people I know around. But I never chatted with random strangers on public transport even before cell phones were common, I never wanted to and I suspect neither did the rest of the people I was riding with.

Really that video is just the latest edition of something that was trite in the 1800s, the total valuable content in that video is nil.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

1) Bait-title.

Technology addiction doesn't exist. Technology is not a substance that alters your neurochemistry to the point where your brain takes it in the same way glucose is taken in.

OP might want to consider that.

2) Nothing new here about "oh people are becoming more anti-social cause Facebook"

Literally, nothing insightful is said. I live in London, and no-one wants to speak on the Tube to each other because you might appear strange(but that is more to do with subjective pre-conceptions of acceptability, I could give a rat's ass about that; if I want to speak someone I will), or you will be asking for money, or you will be trying to mug someone, or you might be wasting their time. This has less to do with social networking and more to do with the fact that public transport is a means of transport. You don't take it to f**k about, you take it to get to a specific point at urgency.

3) "Think of the children!"

Technology is not bad. Technology can become a harmful influence on children when parents treat devices like electronic baby-sitters. Instead of ranting at tech, it would be(and it is) more useful to tell off lazy parenting. The same sort that 'demands' the government to enact web filters across the country, or tries to ban 'violent' video games. But God Knows that if you shift the responsibility towards the parents then you might be doing something 'wrong' in making people accept responsibility(!)

4) Everyone is antisocial everywhere(!)

I'm sorry, but I live in Wood Green. Yes, that one, close to Tottenham. It's summertime, and I always see kids or teenagers etc. either relaxing or doing something in the park. Nary a day goes by when the local basketball court is not full of people.

Also, no-one acts that anti-social on a date. It's a f**king date! It's a moment where two parties have agreed to spend time intimately with one another. I cannot fathom of what kind of jackasses the video creator has spent his time with that they would procrastinate online in the middle of a romantic meal.

5) Asking people for directions is bulls**t.

Complain all you want about social media, but how is Google Maps to blame? Sure, it may be inefficient at times, but it is an incredibly useful tool for navigation. How is asking a random person on the street for directions any better than consulting an application which compiles data from its database to provide you with (in theory) the most expedient route to your destination.

6) What is this, 1960?

"Put down the invention, and get on your way to starting a family!"

.-. Wat.

Because of course that universal ambition in life that all human beings share is starting a family(!)

[sub][sub][sub]And it totally isn't just an ingrained preservation drive which is becoming badly out-dated in modern times: family being more of a choice rather than a final ambition, but that's just me.[/sub][/sub][/sub]

7) Social media doesn't 'rob' you of anything.

I can speak from experience that this site has provided me a wealth of support. It has helped me in times of crises, and there are people who I know here that I can call true friends. My life isn't 'ruined' because I use social media. If anything, it has been improved in so many ways. I can use this site whilst still having many friends and acquaintances in school. I can use it and still maintain a social life even though I live in a supposedly dangerous area. I can use it, and study for my A levels so that I can get into the University I always wanted to go to, to take a degree in a field that has fascinated me, to become an expert and use that expertise to contribute something to society in a manner that I would love performing it.

8) This is obviously biased as f**k.

Even with all that I have just said, I still couldn't care less about his advice. I identify myself as an introvert, and all the encouragement in the world won't make me more extroverted. I can and enjoy speaking to new people, with my friends and family, but at the end of the day, I still need to relax by par-taking in an activity by myself. I want to travel the world, and see things, but I wouldn't be torn up if I saw them by myself.

This video is quite obviously produced from a very biased source that comes from a specific point of view. I have presented my rebuttal(barely one as is, more of a rant), but it is quite meaningless as this is how the producer feels about the subject however misguided I perceive him to be.

He can continue with his expression, but as soon as it begins to impact me negatively in real life, I will begin actively denouncing him for all of the nonsense spewed in that video.

 

[Lightknight]

Being afraid of technology is a lot like being Amish.

Yes, humans are skilled at making and using tools. Apparently these technologies allow us to do things that we really want to do even in public and other people really dislike people not enjoying life the way they think they should. That's a mighty high horse for people to fall off of.

Might as well complain that we drive everywhere now instead of enjoying a walk or that we buy our food from a store instead of enjoying raising it up.

I remember a time before the internet. I remember what it really meant to be bored. Anyone else here remember what road trips were like before cell phones were common and you lost sight of the lead car?

http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/before_the_internet.png

In any event, I don't even have the internet enabled on my phone by default. If I'm using my phone it's a call or a text and I rarely do either. Facebook has become a tool for me to set up actual events for me and my friends to hang out together.

A person who only socializes remotely is missing out. But if that's what they want to do then who am I to say otherwise? All I can say is that they're using the tool in a less efficient way than it can be used for. But if they want to use the side of a hammer instead of the head to hammer in a nail then that's their prerogative and none of my business.

 

[Lieju]

No Im not saying everyone is like that but...when I sit at work in my breaks? Ill say, 4 out of 5 folks will be sitting staring at their phones, not talking to eachother, not speaking about their day, just staring at their phone typing away etc.

I'm Finnish, so we never spoke to each other in the first place.

I remember time before smartphones were a thing, or when everyone carried a cellphone with them.
No-one talked to each other any more than they do today.

Technology isn't good or bad, it's a thing, and rejecting it all is silly non-sense.
And I'm saying this as someone who almost never uses her cellphone.

 

[mistahzig1]

When telephones came out, ppl complained that it would screw "socializing" because ppl wouldn't interact with each oher face-to-face

When the internet came out, ppl who were kids that grew up with telephones complained that ppl wouldn't interct with ach oher face-to-face.

..and the wheel keeps on turning

Who cares about the neo-luddites' opinions anyway?

Ppl ignore each other in public while using their phones today. Before, people ignored each other in public by reading the newspapers.


Nowadays, with the internet available at the flick of a finger, people will socialize wih others that have the SAME INTERESTS. Wayyy more easier to find them oline than with a random stran, no?

And they complain it's a bad thing lol

 

[Catrixa]

I do think though there is a difference and such a difference needs to be ackowleged and we need to know how to deal with it (and I say this as a mostly anti-soical recluse)

face to face comunication happens and its utterly important to be able to navigate it with ease, because unlike online there ARE awkward silences, there ARE conversations that are comparible to fumbling around hopelessly in the dark, and thats ok, we learn how to deal with them, learn how to comfortably comunicate with people we don't really want to (I'll admit though in retrospect when a guy from the same company in the lift commented on how rainy it was and my reply was staring even harder at the floor and making sound that might have been a "yes" I do need to work on that)

Ive got an online freind on the ohter side of the globe who I regularly chat to on steam every day and it feels as natural and normal as any freindship, I have an IRL freind whom I mostly only speak with via email and it feels just as genuine...so I get that

but face to face interaction should not be dismissed, we all need it now and again

Well, the point I was attempting to make was more along the line of: I don't really know of anyone who completely eschews real life interactions in favor internet-only access to the outside world. LAN parties really aren't that fun if you're not physically yelling at the person you just revenge-killed (and really, why would you want to drag your computer somewhere if you're just going to chat over the network?).

Yes, there are a number of people who communicate solely on facebook/social media, sending messages to their 500 friends every day instead of talking to people. I just don't think those people are everyone who likes and uses technology. If I had to guess, I'd wager a lot of them are dealing with something neither facebook nor a poem delivered via youtube is equipped to help them with (crippling social anxiety is a thing, and social media just hides the problem).

These silly videos/articles/whatever in favor of giving up technology always seem to be saying, "if you use technology, you're addicted to it. The only way to be happy is to rid it from your life." As you've mentioned, Vault101, you have relationships that are communicated only through text, but these things aren't inherently meaningless to you because 1's and 0's were involved. I don't think the video games I've played with my friends (over the internet or in the same way-too-hot room with 50 jillion computers) or LAN parties where I've met new people were meaningless because an internet connection was required (screw you, Steam token) either.

Absolutes are for sith and bad (see: all) politicians.

 

[briankoontz]

My concern with technology is that people are putting their hope in it as a means of saving the world, and that's a very false hope. I've had talks with environmentalists who take it on faith that some future technology will save the planet.

As long as people view technology as a useful tool, and nothing more, I see no danger in it.

 

[Vault101]

Yes, there are a number of people who communicate solely on facebook/social media, sending messages to their 500 friends every day instead of talking to people. I just don't think those people are everyone who likes and uses technology. If I had to guess, I'd wager a lot of them are dealing with something neither facebook nor a poem delivered via youtube is equipped to help them with (crippling social anxiety is a thing, and social media just hides the problem).
.

I do think its easyer now days to avoid facing ones social anxiety, but yeah, faceboom doesn't make otherise social people anti-social

 

[Vicarious Reality]

I have not had a friend for more than half a decade
Now however there is a percent or so higher chance of finding one here in this new city
I wonder if my computer addiction will kill me before i am thirty

 

[Jandau]

Is this really a thing? I mean, for a few years now I've been seeing videos and clips poking fun at people who are supposedly glued to their smartphones, but I just assumed it was an exaggeration. The people I know, many of which are very much involved with technology in their daily lives and work, all seem to not be ignoring everyone in their lives. They get together, go on trips, etc. In fact, I can't think of anyone, even friends of friends of friends, who really do this. The stereotypical image of a bunch of friends sitting around a table at a bar, all picking at their phones endlessly, isn't something I've seen, not even in passing. Sure sometimes someone will take a call, reply to a text or look something up, but will usually apologize to everyone present and be quick about the whole matter.

While I'm a fairly introverted person by nature and rarely enjoy being around more than one or two people, even so I try to hang out with a friend for some drinks or a walk at least once or twice a week. In fact, I don't find online interaction fulfilling and only resort to it to any extent to compensate for the fact that various obligations, work and such don't allow me to see my friends to the extent I might like. So texting and chatting during work hours lets us keep in touch while minimally interfering with things we have to get done.

That being said, I have noticed that it's getting increasingly hard to make new friends, though I'd attribute that more to my age than any technological phenomenon. Namely, I'm entering my 30ies, and at this point a lot of people seem to be "booked", so to speak, when it comes to people in their lives. As life puts more demands on their time, marriages are starting to happen more and more, and in general everyone barely has time for all their old friends, much less to add new people to their lives.

 

[Mr.Cynic88]

I do really hate when I'm trying to talk to somebody and they're just on their phone, because what they're saying to you is "I'd rather be talking to somebody else."

I make it a point to keep my phone away when I'm socializing. I find such actions rude, and try to lead by example. Of course, the second somebody goes to the bathroom I immediately whip the sucker out.

In terms of being addicted to technology, yes we are, and have been for a long time. The civilization we were born into and continue to live in is fueled by technology. If it weren't for technology we'd be nomads searching for food and women to impregnate. Social networking and cell phones are the newest technology, but they're really just one thing in a long line of advancements.

Technology makes life easier, so it's quite addictive for everybody. I'm reminded of Western colonists first interacting with Native Americans in the New World. Westerners had metal pots and firearms, which were far superior to American Indian basketweaving and tomahawks.

Native Americans had a long tradition of basketweaving, but once they started trading for metal pots, within 3 generations they had completely forgotten this cultural tradition and had come to rely fully on trade for Western technology.

We're slaves to technology in one sense, because we rely on it for everything in daily life, but we're liberated by it at the same time. Technology allows us to have this kind of intelectual discussions, as opposed to fighting for control of the fire.