With or Without It – Technologies in Daily Life
With or Without It – Technologies in Daily Life
Technology in a broad sense is any knowledge or tool that somehow makes our lives easier. For some societies, technology is more often related to electronic equipments, such as the “smart-phones”, little portable computers that have everything in one device, it accesses the internet, has GPS, compass, games, video camera, photo, music and, if one needs it, can even make phone calls. On the other hand, in many other societies the wheel is still their most advanced technology. That is the notion I tried keeping in mind while figuring out what technology I would give up for this exercise. I want to find what is more essential, what I really rely on. I could not imagine my live in the U.S. without a car; everything seems to be so far away here. My cell phone, one of those old models that just makes calls and text, is my point of connection with the world. My computer, not just my main tool of work and study, but also the mean in which I communicate with family and friends back in my home country. My beloved mp3 player, my very best friend, always with me; a week without it would be unbearable. However, I’m from a developing country where those things are not so widely available. Until a couple of years ago, I had never even heard about an iPod. Although I have a car, phone, and Internet, the high cost to maintain them limits their use. I still have a fresh memory of using public transportation or walking to school to save on gas, have Internet only as a weekend entertainment when the rates were lower, and the use cell phone limited to talk the necessary and not to chat about the weather. So I decided to try going a little further, taking out something that I had as granted, something that seems to have always been there: the refrigerator. And to make things even more interesting, I decided not to use any other kitchen appliance: no dishwasher, toaster, rice cooker or microwave, leaving me just
Technology in a broad sense is any knowledge or tool that somehow makes our lives easier. For some societies, technology is more often related to electronic equipments, such as the “smart-phones”, little portable computers that have everything in one device, it accesses the internet, has GPS, compass, games, video camera, photo, music and, if one needs it, can even make phone calls. On the other hand, in many other societies the wheel is still their most advanced technology. That is the notion I tried keeping in mind while figuring out what technology I would give up for this exercise. I want to find what is more essential, what I really rely on. I could not imagine my live in the U.S. without a car; everything seems to be so far away here. My cell phone, one of those old models that just makes calls and text, is my point of connection with the world. My computer, not just my main tool of work and study, but also the mean in which I communicate with family and friends back in my home country. My beloved mp3 player, my very best friend, always with me; a week without it would be unbearable. However, I’m from a developing country where those things are not so widely available. Until a couple of years ago, I had never even heard about an iPod. Although I have a car, phone, and Internet, the high cost to maintain them limits their use. I still have a fresh memory of using public transportation or walking to school to save on gas, have Internet only as a weekend entertainment when the rates were lower, and the use cell phone limited to talk the necessary and not to chat about the weather. So I decided to try going a little further, taking out something that I had as granted, something that seems to have always been there: the refrigerator. And to make things even more interesting, I decided not to use any other kitchen appliance: no dishwasher, toaster, rice cooker or microwave, leaving me just