Relevant Technology Essay, Research Paper

We now live in a new era from our parents, the digital and technological era. Almost every house now has a television in it and a great number of homes now have computers. This new era has not come without some struggle and controversy. People see these new technology and devises very differently. Some see this as a threat to the status quo. Others see new tools and opportunities for industries, businesses, personal use. Within this new era we have found new ways to make our lives much simpler and more efficient. However this new era may have also given us problems of crime, an enormous amount of expense, and a tendency of laziness because of an easier life due to technology.

Opponents see the emergence of the new digital era as an enormous burden placed upon them. Some may argue that by creating a new industry, the computer industry, that there is a whole new arena for crime. Software piracy, data theft, and computer hacking are now new areas for criminals to exploit. Enormous amounts of money must be spent to police the new crimes that have come from these new crimes. However others would argue that these costs are negligible compared to the enormous benefits that these new technologies have given us and have yet to give us. Technology may have given criminals a new area to exploit, but also gives us the new tools for fighting it. It is a two way street, there are costs and benefits. To some the costs outweigh the benefits, to others it is the exact opposite. The basic question is whether we lead technology or does it lead us. Because of the ever growing problems that the world faces we tend to rely more and more upon these tools given to us by the new era of technology to combat it. Some would say that the cause of these problems are caused by our ever growing use of technology. We use magnetic strips in paper money to deter counterfeiting. What allows the counterfeit money to look so real? The answer is computers and sophisticated scanning and printing equipment that was not available twenty years ago. The realm of cops and robbers has moved into the field of high-tech.

People are now in a struggle on how to view these new technologies. While some view computers and machinery as new tools to allow companies and individuals to accomplish goals more efficiently, others see them as a threat. The argument has been made that people and jobs are now being replaced by this technology. This in itself is not the only threat towards society with new technology. There are many among us who have resisted the new digital era and the computer age, and are unwilling or unable to adapt, and these are the people that will fall by the wayside on the information superhighway. The loss of jobs to automated machinery is a serious threat to many workers. However for others, the benefits of having computers and digital technologies allows for the new discovery of even more knowledge. Truly the technology age has had a snowball effect. Within the past twenty years we have learned more than human society has learned in the previous 2000 years. Our information is abundant. Nobody knows what may lie ahead. The future of technology may hold fantastic discoveries and incredible devices. The quality of life keeps going up and up in the world because of this technology.

Nobody can argue that the new era of technology has had a deep impact on society, but what can be argued is whether or not these impacts have been helpful or harmful to us. Specific parallel s can be taken as an harmful effect. Within the past twenty years crime has risen, drug use has risen, and a lack of personality responsibility has decreased with most crimes. Many people view themselves as victims of society, a dull and bloated society that has been filled with more of a preoccupation of pleasure than of a solid work ethic. Have any of us worked a full day of hard work? Is that a good or a bad thing? People would argue that technology has led people to become lazy, and a diminished work ethic. However the argument that technology has helped the world is just as strong. Without computers and newer technology that society would not be running at such an efficient pace. Because these new tools are so complicated it has forced the level of education to rise world wide. Over the past twenty years the number of college degree holders has gone up enormously.

Because of the new digital and technological era that we have developed over the past twenty years we have dramatically changed the rules of the game of life. Life may have become easier, more and more technological devises are running parts of our lives for us, but at a cost? Are we continuing to loose something as people s lives become more and more intertwined with the digital and technological era?