Do you believe that Technology simplifies and sometimes complicates human life?
Does technology simplify or complicate our lives? Does all the time we save and everything we can do easier with modern technology mean we live a simpler life? Or, does the deluge of technology we face on a daily basis just serve to complicate our lives?
There are certain types of technology that have definitely simplified my life. For example, most labor saving devices have shortened the amount of time needed to complete menial yet necessary chores (like laundry).
For most people, being able to throw clothes into a machine and have them come out clean is a major simplification of the alternative. Freeing up the time I would have had to take to hand wash my clothes allows me to use it doing something I care about– almost anything other than laundry. Another, more recent technology, that has served to simplify my life is the computer/Internet duo. Research can now be done at speeds and levels of detail that would only have been science fiction fifty years ago. If I want to learn about something, it is now relatively quick and painless to hop on the Internet and research it. Additionally, the ease of collaboration and dissemination of information that the Internet allows is almost mind boggling. To think I can write something and have it be read by thousands (or even millions of people) nearly instantaneously is astounding. In the past, that level of dissipation would require untold amounts of labor and time.
The Essay on Down: Personal Life and Time
In college it is easy to stray away from the main purpose, which is having a higher education. College years are supposed to include fun but not too much fun. There are many ideals to consider when trying achieving success in school. They way students manage their time and consume energy has an effect on the outcome of their success. Relaxation also plays a significant role in the turn out of ...
On the other hand, there are technologies that definitely complicate my life. For example, that computer/Internet duo that I was just extolling the virtues of is probably the number one thing that adds complexity as well. The amount of time I can waste doing nothing of any consequence on the Internet is sickening. I could have used much of that time to partake in activities that more closely aligned with my values. I could have been becoming a better writer. Or a better runner. Or reading many more books than I have up to this point.
Another technology that many people credit as complicating their lives is the cell phone. Being constantly “on-call” for whoever has your cell number can certainly add a level of complexity to your life that is neither needed nor wanted. Email has a similar effect on our psyche as our attention is constantly drawn away from things that matter in order to monitor our ever-increasing inboxes.
At this point, I hope you have realized that I’ve managed to over-simplify (yes, there is such a thing) a very complex issue. Cell phones may complicate your life at times, but they are also an amazing simplifier. Think about getting into a car accident– what is simpler than being able to call for help almost immediately? Microwaves are a labor-saving device that make it much quicker to cook many foods, yet many people do not view it as an appliance that simplifies their life. Cooking a meal from scratch with whole ingredients can be much more complex than throwing a TV dinner in the microwave, but yet I’d much rather cook an actual meal.
In the end, technology itself is almost irrelevant to the discussion. The tools that technology provide us are nothing more than that, tools. A tool is nothing without somebody to use it. The choices we make in the ways to use these tools are what simplifies or complicates our lives. If some piece of technology allows you to finish a task quicker and you then use that saved time to do something that aligns with your values, then you have simplified your life. If technology distracts you from living a life that aligns with your values, then it is doing nothing but complicating.
It is up to you to decide whether you will use the tools of technology– or whether you allow yourself to be used.
