Reading/Viewing Response #4

Victor Volz
May 4, 2010
English 100 F: Introduction to Academic Writing


Part One) Frontline producer, Rachel Dretzin, and correspondent, Douglas Rushkoff, explore our burgeoning world of digital creations and try to forecast some of the potential repercussions that these new technologies have in store for us in the Frontline video, “Digital Nation.” The central theme of the film revolves around the idea of how our immersion into these novel digital technologies is impacting our lives. The film starts out with some people talking about how information technologies have changed their lives and how they would no longer be able to survive without it. They talk about how college students are now the most digitally connected people in the world as of now. One lady posited that these newfangled technologies necessitate invariable modification to fuel further stimulation. They talk about how the teaching has been transformed, in which many teachers believe that these technologies only hamper attention and serve mostly as a distraction. Multitasking may encroach upon learning, while some other students disagree.

Studies are being currently conducted about multi-tasker, and if it is even effectively possible. Experiments are given to see how distractions may impede focus; eventually this may cause people to lose their inherited long attention spans. Collective change should occur if these digital distractions are to be lowered in frequency and control. The research is still inconclusive however, and the technology is far outpacing the research. Internet addiction may be plausible notion. South Korea is shown as one of the most digitally advanced and addictive nations in the world. ”About 90% of Korean children use internet, and 10-15% of those people are at high-risk for addiction”. Because of this crisis, the South Korean government has even opened an Internet Rescue School. The film continues on with describing Douglas Rushkoff’s book known as “Cyberia” that was published backed in the 1980s I believe it was. He later went on to retract his optimistic perspective of computerized technologies when he realized that the net is being superfluously consumed by the mass populace.

They also discussed the possibility that newer generations are going to need to use these technologies because they’re going to be implemented in practically all career paths taken throughout their lives. Writing has since suffered, and is now much more brief and condensed as a result. One lady brought up a good point, basically, technology has its good and bad components, with it not necessarily being completely good or totally bad, and that there will always a price to pay for gain. They crew explored the World of Warcraft, which gives a vicarious life experience, and an element of fantasy that is incredibly powerful. They went to Blizzcon and saw the players who usually have compulsive gaming habits, but establish friendships and relationships online. Second Life™, a virtual online world was also shown which takes this relationship building to the extremes. There is usually a false or artificial sense of proximity in these virtual programs which enhances amicability, possibly. Some experimentation reveals a few surprising facts about virtual sensory functions, in that it may actually be able to substitute real sensory functions. However, virtual reality is at the moment still too distinct from consensus reality to be coalesced into a unified reality, but the line is rapidly blurring, and amalgamation is proceeding.

Part Two) I agree that digital technologies are functioning as a distraction because my experience with typing up this particular Reading Response confirms it. As instantly as I was in the middle of a splendid idea to continue onwards with my reading response I suddenly realized that, I needed to look at my email account to check if Ms. Someone had assigned an extra work online. Then abruptly, I remembered to check my other important account, from where everyone knows where, to see if I had what everyone knows what, to reply to what everyone knows who. Also, it was at that moment that I had the immediate forceful feeling of needing to check the news… So as you can see, I too have similar experiences to what many of the digital populace is familiar with, although I may not feel quite as obligated to halt or postpone an important task, it still affects what I am doing to certain degree.

I also concur that technology has a net impact that is neither negative nor positive, a point that needs emphasizing since so many people believe that technology is either solely for the expediency of moral and proper uses or that technology is utilized only for iniquitous and inappropriate uses. But, it seems that they tend to balance to the point where no one technology usually has more pros than cons when given a thorough and luciferous analyzation. However, that viewpoint may be imputed to whether or not a particular person has assumed an optimistic, normalized or pessimistic attitude towards technology, I think I am more of the former and middle. I would continue on about my ephemeral incidents of being able to fully concentrate on certain chores and enterprises which can override my other digital impulses, but I think I have to go do Google™ search right now for some other class project, so until then, well, whatever.