Technology and Us

In our generation, technology has become an almost essential part of our lives; from our work to our play, it seems to be used quite widely in everyday life. Such an example would be YouTube and the ads; the ads rarely effect my decisions, in fact, I can only recall one ad that made me pay attention to a product and made me want to buy i(Ballroom jeans), because it was a product that I was found to be functional; I still haven't bought any, however, if I do, they may very well be Ballroom jeans. They are made to have more room for men. In specific areas. Because of the way they are made. ....anyway other than that, I'm not very effected by the ads at all. What is really effective however, is the smartphone; really, it is almost an extension of the body, mostly the mouth or other parts of the body for communication. All one need do is carry a smartphone on one's person and he will be ready to send calls and texts to others, as well as receive information. It is an extension of oneself. Something that the smartphone, as well as other media devices do, is connect people globally; for example I've had friends in Egypt, Panama, Germany, India, Kenya and other places, yet I can talk to them all, and engage with each one of them, and they me, as well as each other, through one medium, such as facebook or YouTube. Just a few years ago, this wasn't nearly as easy; sure there was e-mail, and chatrooms, but now it's at the touch of a phone, and now many more people are able to do it. What question that faces us however is, does technology shape us, or do we shape technology based on our needs; technological determinism vs. structuralism; I myself tend to lean more towards structuralism, one reason being that we invent new and better technology based on what we need or want, such as electric lights for better lighting or cars for better transportation, however, there is also a balance; sometimes technology does take hold and shape us, however, that can also be a cultural affect. People feel the need to constantly text as a result of having phones capable of doing so, so the technology has shaped a generation where that is normal, however, people have felt a need to communicate as often as they could via letter or telegram before that, so it is only a medium. Technology does in many places shape people, but it is ultimately people who shape technology based upon their own needs; as soon as a technology becomes inconvenient, it is eventually worked on to be improved or replaced, which is the need of technology causing people to change it, and sometimes those changes change the people.