Technology Overload

To truly rid yourself of distractions in this age of technology, you have to turn off multiple gadgets. You have to turn off your cellphone, power down the laptop and put your tablet into sleep mode. Today, more than ever, we are so tied to our electronic devices that most kids today wouldn’t know where to find information at without the use of a computer. People in today’s world are so used to being able to “google” things and have instant answers and satisfaction that we have placed little emphasis nowadays in knowing information and put it all into who can type fastest in their search bar on their phone.

In his article “The Joy of Quiet,” author Pico Iyer details the conflict between stillness and technology. He delves into the idea of slowing down as a remedy to the technologically dependent society we now have. He explains that technology has made life faster, longer and healthier, but we also do not know the best way for the individual. Iyer brings up the need to be unplugged from the world and free from the distractions of technology. This article shows Iyer’s opinion on technology in relation to life and shows that he understands that technology is important, but does not believe it should rule our lives.

I am a supporter of what Iyer is trying to say in his article. I believe that society is hooked on texting, Facebook, Instagram and others just like it. I also believe that, since we have the internet in our pocket, society today does not retain data like it used to. If you asked someone today a question they did not know an answer to, they would simply pull out their phones and look it up. This would allow them to answer your question; however, they did not learn nor retain that information. I myself am guilty of thi...

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... watching TV and surfing the web, and also enjoy sitting in a tree stand at 4am in the middle of nowhere waiting for a deer to cross my path. Unlike society, I am not technologically dependent and, therefore, feel that I have good balance between the stillness in my life and my use if technology.

I believe that Pico Iyer was trying to say that we, as a society, need to balance our use of technology with the relaxing and decompressing of our minds. Sometimes we do need to power down our gadgets and allow our minds to wander. I also am a believer that technology, in controlled doses, is a good thing for society as well. I think that towards the end of his article, after the story about the reacquainting with the man he met long ago, Iyer was starting to believe that maybe society will be fine in the hands of the younger generation, and I hold this belief as well.