Obsession or Dependence?
by David Paulino
We are always synchronized with it, it tells us where we are supposed to be, and we report to it by telling it what we are doing, what we are eating, and who we are with. It has taken a considerable control on our lives up to a point where we cannot even imagine where would we be if it wasn’t for modern technology. Technology has been an integral part of our lives ever since it allowed us to create an easier way to survive. One of the earliest technologies came by tools meant to grant us the ability to scrape the meat off our prey or animals that we can scavenge from, knives with edges running across the blades and spears meant to fish as well.
Technology became inextricably linked with our survival and our evolution as a species. It is no different back then to how it is now, technology will always be at the forefront regarding human evolution. Now does technology reflect our innate desire of control? Technology allowed us to control our efficiency as a species, we were able to collect food and even create our food. Fast forward to 2017 and now it seems that we are not able to let go of it, to be without it represents a life where you do not control because you cannot check what were you supposed to do today or check whether the restaurant you are going to check in to has great food and quality of service.
It is rather peculiar on how much we depend on technology because it has made life so much easier. We have become so obsessed with an easy life that we have given technology full control over it. A question that begets is, to what end? Will there ever be a sense of complacency? And is the reason why we are so obsessed is because that we are the ones creating it. Is it also a slight towards nature and to show it that we are greater, that we have assumed control of our own evolution through technology. Is that what drives us to create automated cars, AI, and devices with which we can speak to. Is it merely a way to solidify our existence so that we can say, “this is what we have created, our world is much more peaceful and beautiful than the natural world.
My name is David Alfredo Paulino. I graduated from SUNY Cortland with a international studies major with a concentration in Global Political Systems and my minors are Anthropology, Latin American Studies, and Asia and the Middle East. I was born in Manhattan, NYC, but I currently live in the Bronx with my Mother, little sister, and Stepfather. Although I was born here, most of my fondest memories come from my frequent visits to the Dominican Republic, and always being there. I even stayed there for a year. Due to my constant going back and forth, I grew to love the atmosphere there and sometimes I yearn for it more than the actual city.
