Over the weekend as I was trying to ward off the residual remnants of sleep and was making an attempt to salvage whatever was left of the weekend I heard the pleasing splatter of rain!
In the part of world where I stay the earth has been smouldering at 40 degree Celsius and any whiff of rain is a welcome relief. What I did next, sent me down the lane of self-assessment or discovery. What was I doing ? Now dont let your horses of imagination run wild. I was not doing indulging in anything spooky or something which might make the reader raise their eyebrows.
What is your first instinct when you hear the pit-pat of rain drops ? Yes right you run to window to check? That's the normal human reaction or reflex action . But what did I do - I was frantically trying to fish out my phone from the jumble of quilt and pillows?What for -to check the app for weather - if its raining in my city?
SWAP SWAP
Such dependence on Technology that too me - what happened to running to the window to catch glimpse of the downpour? I then went on a path of self discovery. I realized there was a time when I remembered all the important numbers by heart, that is now delegated to the List called "important contacts ", "family" , etc ,etc ( some lists have cheesy names)
At that point in time a famous line by "Billy Cox" - the motivational speaker, trainer, mentor ,etc. started haunting me. It goes as below
Come to think of it - technology is no doubt helping us but overuse / over-dependence is depleting our natural skills of memory and fast thinking -perhaps.
No I am not a Nay Sayer , I love technology and the wonders it does , but as advent of calculators has made us let go of our swift manual calculation acumen , I fear certain aspects of technology may lead to blunting of some of our skills. We should try and make an effort to reduce our over-dependence on technology such that our human thinking skills dont become rudimentary.
As a famous American historian has rightly said -
Technology is so much fun but we can drown in our Technology.
The fog of Information can drive out knowledge.
I am signing off today hoping that I and others too would use technology judiciously and not in way that it undermines our natural reflexes and mental prowess.
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2 comments:
Eating too much of your favorite pastry or ice-cream would leave an unsavory taste in your tongue. The classic difference between use and abuse. Looking at the pace of technology and dependence on it, it will always remain a matter of personal discernment and choice as to how much of use is not abuse. It ain't necessary what everybody else is doing is write. (From Stock Market viewpoint you know that the market will surprise everyone). Rather it is necessary to use one's own judgement and ask oneself the question "why" and "why not". Even then, I believe asking "how to use technology wisely" is more important rather than asking "why or why mustn't one use it". Very hard to differentiate between how to use it in a way that it aids you (multiplies your capabilities and powers) and not paralyzes you (intelligence, judgement, emotions and physical). Certain habits and preferences from pre-dot.com era will help I believe in breaking away wherever necessary (provided one is a millennial or older. For younger people, I guess learn some primitive practices). Also reading a lot on varieties of subjects other than just work related will also be useful. I guess not be negative about changes that are happening but rather being wise about it is what I believe is the way to go.
I fully agree with you Shekhar ! Very wise words!!
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