Technology's Negative Impact on Society

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Most people say that as time advances so does technology. These advances in technology come at a cost. While technology has been developing, types of technology have been slowly eroding many aspects of our society and how people conduct themselves in social situations. Technology has also led to a decline in education and how people, in particular, students, gain knowledge. On a broad scale technology has both assisted law enforcement and, at the same time, led to the creation of new types of crimes and how old crimes are committed. Finally, technology has had a negative impact on the physical build of people, particularly in the United States. Though technology has assisted society in many good ways, most advances come at a cost which is slowly rising. These costs have a negative impact on many aspects of everyday life.

When we think of technology we think of computers, cellular phones, video games, the internet, and objects similar to these. In today’s society, the average American, under the age of 60 sees at least one of these objects each day. From the day these objects were introduced into modern society, they have made a major impact. What people disagree on is whether the impact is good or bad. “The majority of people without computers under age 60, like people with computers (% without computers,% with computers), tend to say that computers (76%, 89%) and the Internet (56%, 76%) are making life better for Americans” (NPR/Kaiser/Kennedy School). While most people believe that technology impacts society in a good way, in reality, technology has a bad impact on society. Technology has been causing problems with the evolution of how people talk and interact with each other.

Through the internet, people have found new ways of doing old activities such as shopping. “Americans jumped on deals and promotions offered online on Cyber-Monday, spending $1 billion and making it the busiest online shopping day ever, according to new data…It [Cyber-Monday] never really was the busiest online shopping day of the year, but it has gained significance as sellers have trained shoppers to expect deals that day. Nearly 90 percent of U.S. retailers offered some kind of Cyber-Monday promotion this year [2010], compared to 72 percent in 2007” (MSN Today). Cyber-Monday is the prime example of how, when retailers take advantage of technological advances, they begin all new trends; trends like buying gifts online. When they begin these all new trends, they assist the downward spiral technology causes and assists in our dependence on technology. This years Cyber-Monday sales increases show that people rely on the internet for buying Christmas gifts.

Through technologies like texting and social networks, people have found new ways to interact. These ways have taken away the face-to-face interaction and have essentially taken away the ability for people to interact socially. “It is so convenient that people lack the drive to actually interact face to face” (Lecky-Thompson). People no longer feel the need to talk face to face with people, they either text or message each other online. Although FaceBook and Myspace are the latest in the long line of social networks, they have been slowly evolving and improving since the 1970’s. E-Mail is one of the longest lasting forms of interaction on the World Wide Web. Though e-mail is not a social network, it was the spark which launched the ideas for social networks and instant messaging. It could take a long time for a person to send an e-mail and for the recipient to receive it. Texting became the biggest form of communication when it was introduced sometime in the late-1990s. It is now one of, if not, the top form of communication between teenagers. “According to a 2008 article on CNET, four out of five teenagers in the U.S. have cell phones, and many said they text-message more than they speak” (Walker). In modern times texting is the major cause of the decline in face to face interaction. In all...
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