The Wonderful World of Technology

Choose one way in which technology has changed human society and explain the impact of that change, positive and/or negative.

Communicating is what the world revolves around, it is why we are seeing a globalization that is unlike any ever seen before. This is studied and theorized by many economists such as in the book The World Is Flat by Thomas L. Friedman. Advances in technology are connecting the world in ways that make it possible for us to communicate with someone half way across the world like they were sitting in the same room and innovation is improving the way we communication every day.

My main focus is the way that new cell phone technology has changed our society in many positive ways from families keeping in touch, response time in emergency situations, medical care accuracy, and improved business communication.

Ironically, today my oldest son just got his first cell phone. Some might not agree that a 10 year old boy should have a cell phone, but this is for my own peace of mind. He is over at other peoples houses either playing with friends or doing chores for income and as I do not have a home line many other people don’t either. I feel like now I can keep in contact with my son while he is away. Especially because my son’s father and I are no longer together I don’t always know who my son is with or where he is at while he is under the care of his father. And if he needs to get a hold of me in case of an emergency or just to say he loves me, he can just pick up his phone.

Cellular phones have reduced the amount of time that it takes for an emergency to be reported. We no longer have to find the closest land line to call 911 and relay an emergency message. It takes seconds in most cases to pull out a cell phone and dial. Just think about driving long distances and there being a car accident or brush fire and the closest phone is 30 or more miles away (except for the interstates in California that have emergency lines available along the roadways) by the time you get to a phone a situation could go from minor to severe. I do have to say that there are also problems created by the use of cell phones apposed to land lines, a land line location will come up in the data base of the emergency responders where cell phones are not as accurate. There are tracking devices for emergency situations but according to The Relationships Between Fire Service Response Time and Fire Outcomes (Neil Challands. Fire Technology. Norwell: Jul 2010. Vol. 46, Iss. 3; pg. 665) finding the location of a call made from cellular device is proving to be difficult and reduces the response time in some situtions. People just must not know were they are at anymore, we are walking around lost!www.springerlink.com/index/l504425760780402

On the other hand, hospital use of cellular phones helps to reduce the error rate in medical care, according to a study conducted by researchers at the Yale School of Medicine in the US. http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-141451172.html . Medical staff is more able communicate with other staff members and other medical professionals that care for a patient. However another study showed that the hygiene associated with personal cellular phones has become an issue. “Only 3% reported washing their hands after use and 53% reported never cleaning their phone. In total, 101 mobile phones were cultured for micro-organisms; 45% were culture-positive and 15% grew Gram-negative pathogens.” Journal of Hospital Infection
Volume 70, Issue 2, October 2008, Pages 160-165. In other words personal cellular phones are transporting infections from one room to another, gross!

From a business aspect cellular phones have made business more mobile. We no longer have to sit in an office and answer a phone. My husband and I own a masonry company and it just doesn’t make sense to be tied down to a land line. I can answer a phone while I am delivering rock or my husband can answer while he is at a job site. Once again there is a negative to all positives; I shouldn’t be taking on the phone while driving is obvious. Another situation we run into it the dependence of our employees. In situations that they could have probably figured out a problem by using “critical thinking” they are on the phone calling us all day instead of figuring it out for themselves. This can prove to be positive as well, they might not figure out the best solution and it could cost us a lot of money in the end.

Over all the advances in cellular phone technology has improved our society by leaps and bounds. With innovation we will continue improve and evolve with more efficient means of communication.

First Blog: Why am I here

I am taking Introduction to Popular Culture to fulfill the requirements for the Agricultural Management Degree. It was very interesting when I took the BBC Thinking Style Quiz for this course it actually recommended a field of work related to the Agriculture industry.

I hope to learn about my own thought process as well as being able to understand the thought process of other people. Not only will the life skills that will be taught in this course help in a work environment but also personal relationships such as with family members and friends. I am looking forward to learning what this class has to offer both from the instructor and other students.

Hawaii