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Felicia Soth
Nathan Cole
5/07/2014
Position Paper
Final paper
Technology Runs Our Lives
Our world runs on technology. John Heggestuen, A Research Analyst at Business Insider,
writes that at the end of 2013, 6% of the global population owned a tablet, 20% owned PCs,
and 22% owned smart phones (Heggestuen). We are too busy looking at our devices and not
enjoying the things around us. What if there was a power outage and everything in the world
turned off?
Screen Time is very important. Staring at a screen for large periods of time will cause
some discomfort with the eyes. Dr. Blakeney states that people that stare at a screen to long
will start having side effects such as: vision is blurred, eyes become itchy, perception changes,
eyes begin to burn, headaches, watering of the eyes, and focusing becomes hard. Live science
believes that this is because as someone stares at a screen they tend not to blink as much as
they should causing strain on the eyes (Dezulovich). Having a set time limit looking at an
electronic device will better a persons health.
Television (TV) has had an effect on the world for quite a while. Manali Oak, once a
software engineer and now an author, explains that people that watch a lot of TV are not using
their time wisely. They could be hanging out with family and friends or maybe even go out and
do something active. Watching has a big effect on children. Researchers claim that attention
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deficit disorders in children are a result of watching television for long every day. They say that
watching television leads to developmental disorders, affecting that faculty of the brain which
is responsible for language skills. Oak says (Oak). Parents should try and keep track of what
their children are watching and put a time limit on watching TV.
Computers and Tablets are devices people use to look something up on the internet,
create presentations or papers, and to even play some games. These are good devices to keep
organized. Many companies use these devices to run their businesses. Chanie Kirschner, a
journalized known for her advice columns, says that when their power goes out at her work,
her work day is pretty much over. People use email these days and not normal physical mail.
People dont back up their information by printing it out or having a USB drive (Kirschner).
Smart phones play a big part in the world of technology. If someone is lost and needs
directions they can just Google it on their phone and their phone gets them to the place they
need to go. If a person wants to know where the nearest gas station is they just ask their smart
phones. Smart phones are very handy when a person is in a bad scenario. The Mobile
Technology Fact Sheet states that in January 2014 over 58% of Americans had smart phones.
Out of the 58% of Americans 67% check their phones to make sure they didnt miss anything
even when their phone does not make a sound or vibrate. 44% sleep next to their phone for
easier access when they wake up because they are afraid they had missed something while
they were sleeping and 29% say that their phone is Something they cant imagine living
without (Mobile Technology Fact Sheet). Sometimes smart phones arent reliable. Maybe
there is no service where that person is at or maybe their phone died and they dont have a
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charger. What would they do then? I am a victim of this. If my smart phone were to die while
giving me directions I would be lost. I could not find my way without it telling me to go left or
right. We rely too much on our phones. We treat them as if they were something we can live
without, such as oxygen.
Smart phones, computers, and tablets can be a distraction. We try to take pictures of
everything so we can post things online so others can see them, instead of just enjoying the
thing we are trying to take a picture of. Instagram is a social networking site where people can
post their pictures for others to see. On an Instagram blog it states that over 100 million people
use Instagram a month (Systrom). We are too busy worrying about who is seeing our pictures
instead of hanging out with friends or getting the things
done that we needed to get done that day.
The worst part of anything is spending money. We
like to have the newest and best things. Every time a new
Apple iPhone comes out it seems like the next day
everyone has it. Having the newest technology is a trend.
In Figure 1 it shows how much America spends on average
in just a month. What amazes me the most is the people
that are spending the most money on electronics are not
parents of children or business men? It is people 50- 65
years old. People start to retire around this time. They
spend almost 52 dollars a month on electronics. It is no
Figure 1 (Silverman, Matt)
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surprise though that married couples with children are spending about 57 dollars a month
(Silverman). Children always want what their friends have or what they saw on TV. It is hard for
a parent to promote going and playing outside when their child is so persistent on getting the
new game on the tablet. Parents need to take some time out of their day and push their
children into playing outside or maybe even help cooking dinner.
We need to learn how to control how much time we use our devices. We need to put
down these devices and live life. We should stop and smell the flowers once in awhile. We need
to learn how to be more independent. Smart phones, tablets, laptops, and TVs should not
define who we are as a person. We need to focus on our health and not on a screen. If we must
use our devices we need to have backups for when they fail on us. Seize every moment and
enjoy every second of it.








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Works Cited
Dezulovich, Amanda Lynn. "Does Technology Damage Your Eyes?" - SiOWfa13: Science in
Our World: Certainty and Controversy. N.p., 2 Oct. 2013. Web. 09 Apr. 2014.
Heggestuen, John. "One In Every 5 People In The World Own A Smartphone, One In Every 17
Own A Tablet [CHART]." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 15 Dec. 2013. Web. 25
Mar. 2014.
Kirschner, Chanie. "7 Signs We Are Too Dependent on Technology." MNN. N.p., 30 Sept. 2013.
Web. 26 Mar. 2014.
"Mobile Technology Fact Sheet." Pew Research Centers Internet American Life Project RSS. N.p.,
Jan. 2014. Web. 24 Mar. 2014.
Oak, Manali. "Negative Effects of Television." Buzzle.com. Buzzle.com, 25 Aug. 2008. Web. 08
Apr. 2014.
Silverman, Matt. "How Much Do Americans Spend on Electronics?" Mashable. N.p., 1 Dec.
2011. Web. 10 Apr. 2014.
Systrom, Kevin. "Instagram." Blog. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2014.