Our persistent desire to make life easy has led to an unprecedented technological boom. This has been made possible only through scientific researches and the evolution of new techniques. Today, we live in a world, so technologically advanced that it takes only minutes to do a job, which otherwise would have taken weeks or even months. Today, it’s possible to travel across continents within hours, a feat that would have otherwise taken years to accomplish. This ‘How technology has changed our lives essay’ is covering all the aspects of technology i.e. how technology has changed our lives for better or even negatively; how technology has changed the world; impacts of technology on our lives, etc. This write-up would also be useful in writing an essay on how technology has changed the world, or pros and cons of technology, etc.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Technology has become an intrinsic part of our lives. It has become so vital in our everyday life that hardly a day passes without its use. Technology helps us in many ways, making our life easy and safer, yet it also has a dark side as well. Overindulgence with technology has some negative impacts on individuals and also society as a whole. This essay discusses some vital facts related to technology and its impacts on my and your lives.
How technology has changed our lives for the better?
There is no doubt that technology has improved our lives in many ways. It has made living easy, convenient, and safer than what it was centuries before. Thanks to technology, a board meeting could be held virtually, with the board members safely locked in the confines of their respective houses. In this section, we will discuss some of the very basic good impacts of technology on our lives.
1) Saves time
Image Source – Google I Image by Snappygoat.com
How long would it have taken to prepare for an important meeting, without your laptop, phone, printer, scanner, or any other gadget, most commonly used in offices? I would have pretty freaked out in this situation and it would have taken probably a week to get everything ready. There could be thousands of such examples to prove that technology saves time.
2) Easy access to information
Image Source – Google I Image by seobility
Today, in whichever part of the world you are, significant news from another corner reaches you within seconds. You just have to switch on the television set, that too without really touching it! How easy is that? The information has become available at your fingertips as well. You can just Google your query on your phone and within milliseconds the search engine overwhelms you with millions of answers/options.
3) Better mobility
Image Source – Google I Image by Wikimedia Commons
Technology has improved mobility for the better. As you are reading this, there are thousands of planes flying in the sky, ferrying, millions of passengers, to different destinations. They all are flying across woodlands, oceans, rivers, mountains, and whatnot, comfortably bolted to their seats and enjoy their favorite movie. Could we think of a better mobility option?
4) Better communication
Image Source – Google I Image by pixnio.com
You just have to pick your phone and call your friend or a relative whom you are missing. You also have the option to choose between an audio call and a video call. Communication has not only become easier but also convenient, thanks to technology.
5) Improved safety
Image Source – Google I Image by Wikimedia Commons
Technology has also made our lives safer as well. There are so many things around us, whether at home or at workplaces, that make our life safer. Today, you just need to drag the Emergency SOS slider on your iPhone to call Emergency services. You can also see real-time CCTV footage of the visitor before letting him in the house.
7) Better healthcare and larger life expectancy
Image Source – Google I Image by Wikipedia.org
Technology has drastically improved the state of healthcare in the world. Thanks to technology, treatment today are accessible to the masses at the grass-root level. With access to better types of equipment and medicines, doctors are able to provide better treatment than ever.
How technology has changed our lives negatively for the worst?
The negative effects of technology range from psychological to physical. These negative impacts are brought by either over-dependence or overindulgence with technology. We shall discuss –
Psychological effects of technology
1) Seclusion
Image Source – Google I Image by Embedded Player
How many times have you decided to spend time with your mobile phone rather than spending it with your family and friends? This is by so far the most silent yet potent negative effects of technology – it just segregates you from society and slowly pushes you to isolation. Today even in joint families, people spend more time with their devices than they do with each other.
2) Anxiety and depression
Image Source – Google I Image by PxHere
Overindulgence with your gadgets and seclusion from your social life leads to anxiety and even depression in some cases. Most vulnerable are the children. There are documented cases when a child started behaving confused, with occasional bouts of depression, due to spending more time on the phone, TV, etc. Positive social interactions have a anti-depressant kind of effect on you, unfortunately, your device has no such good impact.
3) Decreased mental ability
The more time you spend with your gadgets the more damage you do to your natural creativity and other abilities of the brain. Today, many of us would start looking for a calculator even for small calculations. We just don’t like to bother our brain, something that we shouldn’t be doing. The more you use your brain, the sharper it becomes.
Physical effects of technology
1) Sleeplessness
Sleep disorder is the most common effect of technology overindulgence. We are regularly damaging our sleep and pushing our bodies to stress, by choosing to stare at the mobile phone, when we should rather be fast asleep.
2) Lowered physical stamina
Glued to our devices we have done unprecedented damage to our physical strength and abilities. It’s obviously healthy to walk, but today, we choose to hire a taxi even for short distances. We have used technology to make our life convenient and easy, by reducing physical effort at various levels; something that has drastically reduced our physical stamina than our predecessors.
Conclusion
Technology and its advancements are impossible to avoid. It is good in many ways and makes our lives convenient, easy, and safer. Yet we need to draw a clear line between the use of technology and its overuse. We might use technology wherever and whenever necessary, but also remember that its overindulgence, might be harmful in many ways.