America's Dependence On Technology

Words: 725
Pages: 3

Click! Click! Slowly, my patience starts to leave me as I continue to click and guide my computer mouse across the screen. Still trying to process my previous command, the computer remains frozen. How will I finish writing my essay without a functioning computer, spellcheck, and online websites? In today’s culture, many Americans, including myself, overuse or depend too much on technology. As technology advances it becomes more accessible and routine in everyday life. Much of the time I spend on technology involves important matters, such as school; however, from time to time I catch myself depending on technology to comfortably complete a minor task. Although technology has the ability to benefit people in many ways, it becomes something …show more content…
According to the Pew Research Center, “nearly two-thirds of Americans own smartphones”. These numbers will naturally climb, as the smart phone becomes more normal to everyday life, and affordable to the common person. Smartphones prove themselves beneficial, but like all electronics have the potential to malfunction. When driving on a foreign road to an unfamiliar destination, my family uses an online map to guide the way. What if the map malfunctions or analyzes the data incorrectly? What will happen if the smart phone’s battery dies? Unfortunately, this happened to my sister just before leaving a crowded city. Because of her dependence on cellphone maps, the traffic worsened as she sat in the parking garage waiting for her cellphone to fully recharge. Now, my family’s car no longer contains an “old-fashioned” paper map, leaving us, like my sister, in serious trouble if the online map fails. Placing all trust in an electronic map seems dangerous, especially since small cellphones do not possess the same knowledge and common sense as a human. As a result of new, readily available technology, Americans count on their smartphones and other devices to perform straightforward