Growing Dependency

• Thesis: As technology develops, we become more dependent on each other and less self-sufficient, which ultimately benefits us by fostering a society of cooperation and collaboration.

• Claim: Our brains are changing to adapt to technology. Once we get used to technology, it changes us. Once our society adapts to technological change, it is not easy to just go back to the old ways. We get used to technology, hence we get used to our new inter-dependent lifestyle. If we get used to telling time from clocks, for example, that it how our brains will start to measure and anticipate time, and consequently we will have to rely on and collaborate with others to produce these new time-telling devices. (Backed by Carr)

• Claim: The world is being recreated. We are leaving our older methods behind in exchange for new technologies. These new technologies are connecting us and reshaping our society and culture. As we come to depend on these technologies, we also come to depend on those who help us produce them. Our society- and even our world- is becoming a “global village” where everyone is connected and everyone contributes to a greater goal. (Backed by McLuhan)

Hey guys! The citations and explanations for my two additional sources can be found in the “sources” page as sub-pages of the following:

• Second source: McLuhan
• Third source: Case

Click on the citation below the text you see on those pages.

I want to explore how advanced technology makes us more dependent on each other and less self-sufficient than we used to be, forcing our society to become more collaborative and inter-connected. I plan to describe how advanced technology and its complexity requires us to rely on one other and work together to produce it. I will use examples of older methods vs. modern day methods to show how new technology is more complex and specialized, and thus requires dependence on others and collaboration. Ultimately, I will argue that these individual and societal changes brought about by technological advancements are ultimately good because they enable- and even force- us to become a collective, collaborative society that is conducive to even further advancements. I think this is a good topic for this assignment because it explores the issue of the digital age and its affects on individuals and society. Also, my topic uses “The Shallows” as  jumping-off point; I plan on using Carr’s discussion of neuroplasticity to explain how technological changes affect us and become deeply-rooted into our behavior.

I imagine my thesis to be something along these lines: increased dependence on technology, which results in increased dependence others and less self-sufficiency, ultimately benefits us because it forces us to become a more inter-connected, collaborative, and cooperative society.

I imagine my paper to begin with my thesis and continue with a brief explanation of how technology becomes more complex as it progresses and how that affects our independence. I plan on using an example (possibly transportation) to compare and contrast how things used to be and how they are now, showing that now we are less independent. I imagine I will use Carr’s book to show how this increased dependency imprints itself on society and becomes part of our way of life (neuroplasticity, brain changes). I also plan on using Amber Case and McLuhan to support my claim that technology is connecting us as a society. Finally, I will present a counter-argument and conclude.

This is just the beginning, so I’m sure there will be some changes and adjustments along the way.

Toyota Website

This is a link to Toyota’s Children’s Web Site. This website is a cute, interactive website that shows children how cars are made. I know we’re not children, but I do think this website provides a very basic and illustrative insight into how specialized and complex the car-making process is. There are so many steps to making a car – stamping, wielding, painting, making the engine, assembling the car, inspecting the car, transporting the car, and selling the car- and there are so many different people and experts involved in each step of the way. It’s hard to say that one singular person knows how to or is able to produce a car on his own. This means that every person in need of a car, which includes most people, must rely on others and cooperate with others to produce and acquire a car; it was not this complex for a person to acquire a horse and wagon in the olden days. This website complements my curiosity of how we are becoming more inter-dependent and less self-sufficient as technology progresses and becomes more complex.