What Are the Negative and Positive Effects of Technology?

How does technology affect our lives?

The Digital World is a very mysterious place, yet we let it be a major influence on our lives. Although it can be beneficial it can also have some negative effects on our lives. Some beneficial effects of technology are Education and medicinal reasons. But there are also negative effects of technology which include obesity, diabetes, heart attacks, cancer and much more. As you can see technology is a big deal whether you look at the good side or the bad side.

There are many beneficial effects of technology. For instance, Education it cuts down the use of paper and reduces the time it takes to search for something you need for your assignment. There are online textbooks, study guides, and many other resources that are available electronically. Medicine also utilizes technology very often. An example would be nanotechnology which helps our immune systems by repairing the tissue. There are also online doctors and medical websites that have simple diagnosis with some home remedies.

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Also, technology helps with connection. Sometimes people want to try contact their close loved ones due to the reason they don"t get to see them often. Lastly, with sensors, such as metal detectors, can help detect problems or threats a lot quicker than normal. These I found to be a few good beneficial examples of technology.

There are also many negative effects of technology. Did you know that sitting down for too long can be bad for you? Yeah well it can it can cause such things as obesity, diabetes, heart attacks, and even cancer things you do not want to have.

Also, it can cause hearing loss. If you use earbuds this could cause tinnitus (ringing in the ears). Vision problems could also happen including eye strain, blurred vision, and dry eyes. Social skills: some kids once introduced to the media start to have a harder time talking to their less media driven friends due to the confidence that comes from being behind a screen. Lastly, neck strain: if you for instance look down to look at your phone then your head is no longer supported by your spine and then strains your neck muscles. This strain will also cause tension headaches.

Sometimes our technology gets hacked or gets a virus. If you have a Facebook, Instagram, or Snapchat account you could be one of the unlucky ones that could be hacked. In the last year alone 110 million Americans got hacked. That"s almost half of the adult population in the US. There is a lot of vital or confidential information that may be stolen when technology is hacked

Also, electronics could get a virus and then the whole system would have to reboot itself, or the hard drive could have to be replaced or erased to go back to normal.

Technology has advanced a lot since it was first made. For instance, time and money is saved with some technological advancements. Also, instead of using insulin or other medications, Nanocomposite contact lenses are being used for treating diabetes. Neuroprosthetic chips are being used to prevent seizures and help the mind control artificial limbs. Artificial wombs are used to grow an embryo outside of the woman"s body. Lastly, we can find prostate cancer through the multimodality imaging technology instead of a colonoscopy.

We need to find ways to make using technology a little bit healthier. For instance, take breaks every now and then large and small. Walk around the room for a few minutes or have a day where you don"t use technology at all. Also, don"t always post on the social media. Turn off all your screens an hour or two before you go to sleep as to rest your eyes and staying off electronics at night for healthier sleep. As well as taking a 20-20-20 break it is advised that you should stare at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds every 20 minutes (According to Liz Soltan).

If you want to be a responsible user of technology, there are some rules you should follow. For instance, respect the fact that there are other people besides you on social media. Don"t give other people your personal information. Also, always follow the law never go against it. Remember your rights and responsibilities. Don"t let your health slip from your mind because you will regret it in the future.

Sometimes we feel like our privacy has been invaded well sometimes that happens. Some people say that instead of posting things about right or things like that it is more effective to organize a protest.

So much computer use can affect our brains in many ways. For instance, our brains are malleable and using too much technology can cause it to change and cause to be less human. Nowadays people for about 12 hours a day consume media but, in 1960 it was only 5 hours a day and for developing minds this isn"t a good thing. Our attention spans are getting shorter but not on their own our brains are getting damaged and we"re not as able to process information. We are un-teaching ourselves how to read because of how long we"ve been online. When we go online, we learn lots of stuff, but this is a bad thing when we take in this new information the old things we knew leaves our memory. Sometimes when we"re trying to sleep the light from our phone"s makes our brains think it"s daytime so then we end up with sleep deprivation. We end up becoming forgetful because we try and force our brains to hold more information than it can handle.

While I was researching this topic, I realized that even though technology gives us something to enjoy in life there are also some side effects for using too much. Also, I learned that serious problems could occur because of technology for instance heart attacks and cancer. Finally, technology is helpful in many ways some of which we have not figured out yet.

Works cited

"How Does Technology Affect Our Brains?" Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, mdhs.unimelb.edu.au/news-and-events/news-archive/how-does-technology-affect-our-brains.

"Technological Advancements and Their Effects on Humanity." Use of Technology, 1 July 2015, www.useoftechnology.com/technological-advancements-effects-humanity/.

"SiOWfa15: Science in Our World: Certainty and Controversy." SiOWfa15 Science in Our World Certainty and Controversy, sites.psu.edu/siowfa15/2015/09/16/does-technology-affect-our-memory/.

"10 Big Ways That Technology Affects Your Brain." OnlineDegreeProgramscom, www.onlinedegreeprograms.com/blog/2010/10-big-ways-that-technology-affects-your-brain/.

Puhl, Michael J. "Michael J Puhl." Comm 411 Blog, 13 Apr. 2015, sites.psu.edu/comm411spring2015/2015/04/13/869/.

"How Do Smartphones Affect the Brain?" Verywell Mind, Verywell Mind, 10 May 2019, www.verywellmind.com/how-do-smartphones-affect-the-brain-2794892.