I found this video very interesting. In the beginning of his interview, he mentioned that when he went through this park, mostly everyone was using some sort of gadget. This is so true today. Everyone is always using their different kinds of gadgets.. or multiple gadgets at a time. You can be on your iPod listening to music while you're texting your friend about your weekend. Then he goes on to say how paper has been around for over 2,000 years, and paper is still becoming more valuable and that he thinks paper is eternal, it won't ever go away. That was very interesting to me. I do think that paper is very valuable to our society but I think we are seeing less and less of it today. In my English class my senior year of high school, we were submitting all our papers online; it was a paperless class. This is the same with the class we are in now, we turn everything in via email.
The author was inspired by Thoreau, Emerson, and James and he relates it to his novel in the way those authors have discussed the challenges we face when we are adapting to new technology. He goes on to say how this is what we are facing today. This relates with our past artifact when we look at the fact that the younger generations are adjusting to the technologies better then the older ones. We have to keep up with everything new that is happening and at sometimes it is overwhelming. It was interesting when he talked about the important new gadget people used in the time of Shakespear. These gadgets were called 'Tables' and they were used the way we use notebooks. He says how people were very dependent on their tables, just how we are all dependent on your cell phones, iPods, laptops, etc.
He later talks about the last part of his book and how you need balance in your life between all the new technologies and just a normal lifestyle. I believe that a lot of families are suffering like his family was because of how everyone has become so attached to screens. I know this is true with my family, mainly just between my brothers and me. If I'm at home my dad will yell at me if I'm texting in front of him and say things like "try to be in one place at a time", and of course it is a big No-No in my house if someone is texting while we are eating dinner. When I do come home, I get mad when my brothers are spending more time playing X-Box Live then watching T.V or hanging out with the rest of the family. Like everyone else, they are addicted to their screens as I am to my phone. I do agree with the author and think that these things do put a damper to family time and relationships, which I try very hard to improve when I'm at home.
After watching the video, I realized how dependent I am of my computer and cell phone. It has definitely made my life easier because I am able to find information or communicate with people I know. It would be hard to stop using technology because that is what I grew up with, but I think that limiting the time on the internet could help thing, like family time. When I also go home, either someone is on the computer or watching television. I do not watch television but when I come home, I am hooked on the screen. Family time is very important to me so I try to spend less time in my room on the computer and more time with my parents and siblings. I do think it is important to turn off the computer and cell phone for a few hours a day and be technology free. My time away from technology is at eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I do not use my phone because I do not want to be distracted with my next message. I could not turn off my technological devices over the weekend but the time I spend away from technology helps me to distress and stay relaxed.
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