The most important thing I use my phone for is keeping in contact with my girlfriend and my parents. Since I currently have shingles, my parents have either called me or texted me everyday, sometimes more than once, to see how I'm doing. This is extremely helpful because me being an 18 year old who doesn't know much about being sick needs to ask his mother about every little thing. Similarly, I need my phone to keep in contact with my girlfriend who is at college 10 hours away. With my phone, I am able to text and call her throughout the day. My phone is always in my hand or pocket and without it I would be lost.
I love and hate cell phones at the same time. I love how great they are for connecting me with everyone everywhere. However, I hate how dependent I am of it. There are times when I'll stop everything because I don't know where my phone is. Like a small girl with a beloved doll, I do not like being separated from my beloved phone. However, are we (myself included) losing sight of what reality is? We become so attached to technology that we forget what is real. A conversation over text message isn't the same as a conversation face to face. I need to actually go out and see them for it to be real. Cell phones and smart phones are great inventions that connect people in ways we never could imagine. However, we must not forget that they are only a way to retain a relationship until you are face-to-face again.
We must be careful not to let the hallucination of reality via cell phones take over the real, physical world. In Gibson's "Neuromancer," the characters are always relying on the matrix and cyberspace. Eventually, artificial intelligence has complete control over humans. We must use our technology appropriately without becoming dependent. This is a difficult concept to put forth, but if we don't we will lose sight of what is real and what is not.
Hi Bruno - It's a little frightening how reliant we can be on our cell phones. In fact, tonight I lost my phone in d-hall and I panicked (!) If we were cell phone-less for a month, would we have withdrawal? Maybe. I definitely agree that a conversation over text message is not the same as face-to-face. Even if Gibson's "consensual hallucination" develops in the future, you're right that we can't lose sight of reality. We need to remember the importance of real live human contact. Great post!
ReplyDeleteHope you are feeling better every day! I have critiqued students who feel compelled to phone the parents multiple times a day, but I can imagine the comfort of hearing the sound of parents' voices when one gets ill far from home.
ReplyDeleteIn the days of very expensive AT&T-only long distance, I got such a bad eye infection (an allergic reaction to contact solution) that I had to be led by friends to class. I could only wait until after 6pm, when rates per minute dropped, to give my folks what amounted to a "status update" on me.
The trick with any virtual form of communication is to make it serve you. When it does not, as educator, entertainer, or communicator, I'd questioning it.