Over Thanksgiving I was sitting on the couch and had my cell phone out. I noticed my Great Aunt kind of staring at it then she asked me a question that I was taken aback by “What kind of gadget is that?” Now I know she is old but to not know what a cellphone was really made me think is this could be my future. I just figured everyone knew what a cellphone was and the fact we were using touch screens really confused her. It got me thinking that in 50 years am I going to be looking at some new technology and be like what the heck is that? I honestly think that it could happen with the way technology is going. I told my girlfriend and she mentioned how her grandfather thought you had to buy Google and barely knows how to work email. I am not the most tech savvy person however I do know how to operate certain things like a cellphone and computer. But look at the way cellphones have changed since they have been out. Now people have their entire lives put into one small little device it is crazy to think, what is next? Are there going to be chips in people heads, or holograms that we talk to instead of making phone calls? Look at cars how the technology has changed they can parallel park by themselves. I just think that it is going to get to the point that if we do not keep up with technology we will be left behind wondering how to work them. I may be the person in the future who has too asked for help to open a simple email so my big question is just simply is technology getting too complicated?
That story about your grandma is funny, but not unbelievable. My own dad still has a hard time on the computer. Even though he uses one at work it's like he only knows how to do a couple of things on it and everything else, like the internet, is a huge mystery to him. Personally I love technology. It really makes me excited when new things come out and change the way we do things. To answer your question Tim I don't think technology is getting to complicated I just think that it's getting more personalized. When cell phones came out you had one model with just buttons. Now you have a huge amount of styles, colors, options, and providers to choose from. I just think all of thinks makes it so that each person can find the technology that works best for them and creates competition to make even better and newer models.
ReplyDeleteMy grandparents are relatively tech savvy and they are the oldest people that I really know so needless to say, I haven't had as much experience with funny questions like what your aunt had. However, I was talking with my dad over Thanksgiving about this exact same thing because we went to go buy a Wii game for my grandparents. We were talking about how technology may possibly be going too far. For example, the TV that lets you pause a movie in one room and then restart it in another... Do we really need that? When is technology going to go too far? By the way, those parallel parking cars really freak me out.
ReplyDeleteI can definitely relate, my grandparents just got a computer and barely know how to log into the internet. What I was thinking when I read your post was think about how much classroom technology has changed in the past ten to fifteen years. Technology is developing and improving every day and some teachers have this technology in their rooms and don't know how to use it. I think we are lucky enough to grow up and go to school where we are being taught about how to use technology in the classroom. My coordinating teacher for TE 401 has a smart board in her room and only knows how to do the basics. I hope that when I am a teacher I can keep up on the latest technology so I am teaching to the fullest potential.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny that most of us I would assume, assume that everyone knows the basics of technology like a cell phone. I actually just found my first cell phone again over break, not quite sure why I kept it but I did, anyway it's huge compared to our phones now. It has giant buttons with a green screen, compared to the tiny little buttons and lcd? types of screens we have now. I also wrote a little piece of paper with my families numbers on them and taped it to the back of the phone because there was no way to store the numbers in it. It's amazing to me to see how far we've come in terms of technology like cell phones.
ReplyDeleteI feel the same way as your aunt does. I feel as if I am so lost in this world of technology. I can't even plug in a dvd player. I think technology is great if you have it available to you, but if you aren't aware of these things, you are lost in this world!
ReplyDeleteI find this very interesting because it is so true that those from older generations think the amount of technology there is now is ridiculous and want nothing to do with it and if they do have cell phones or other forms of communication it is only because they feel they have to. One thing that shocks me is that now old phones such as those in the homes are going out of style. My parents got rid of the home phone and use only cell phones now. Although I think technology is a good thing, it is a little scary to think about what it may come to. For example my parents always get on me for texting too much and never calling. They say in my professional life I am going to have to be able to talk on the phone. I think that technology is great but we are losing personal skills with it and therefore it is scary to think about how technology will change even more.
ReplyDeleteI do think that at some point, technology may be going too far. I think that most people are lost in the world of technology until you need it. Technology changes so fast it is almost impossible to keep up with everything that is changing. When people find a use for a certain technology, they tend to learn how to use. I think that really important part for our generation is to know how to get the information. Technology will evolve so much over the next 50 years that it will probably not look anything like how it does now, but I feel like if I need a certain technology in 50 years, I will know who to ask or how to get the information. I don't think that it is necessarily a bad thing to ask what something is or how to use it. I feel like that is just part of the learning curve. As long as there is a way to learn how to use new technology, people will be able to access it despite their age.
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