There comes a time in every person's life, when our brain cells become old and crusty, the synapse fires considerably slower and ideas and concepts that seem used to be easy to understand and wield become foreign and devilishly inscrutable. With old age we become wise and experienced but with that the trade off is flexibility and aptitude to learn. Not to say that we all invariably become obstinate walls of hard held beliefs, more to say that we are not the metaphorical information sponges which we used to be. It becomes more difficult to learn, but despite that the world keeps turning.
Everyday, and now faster than ever, new technologies around the world are being developed for the betterment of humanity, these inventions by and large do succeed in bringing about a better, or at least more advanced civilization. However, the rate in which they come out coupled with a human being's increasing learning deficiency results in some people, or even entire generations, being left behind. This is not a new thing, generation gaps have existed before and by golly they will exist in the future. However still, the generation gap that is occurring now with the advent of the internet, smart phones, and the damnable invention known as Windows 10, is special. Known today as the "digital generation gap" or for those admirers of alliteration simply "digital divide", is the supposed gap between the younger and older generations as a result of the former's ability to more easily adapt and faster and more successfully to technology than the latter. As our world advances in this technological direction, the risks of being left behind are becoming more and more severe and the need to be technologically literate becomes more and more necessary in order to be a functioning contributor to society. Being unable to handle a computer is a very dangerous social position to be in, one can be surpassed, outdone, and even taken advantage of by those why understand the system better. Ray Bradbury's The Veldt is story that explores the most hyperbolic consequence of this such situation.
In this story a father, George, has invested in and moved his family into what is known as a "happy life home" in which every aspect of the house and even life (to an extent) is automated the the miracle of modern technology. This sounds rather nice in theory but the actual living experience for him and his wife, Lydia, proves to leave something wanting, they become more and more uncomfortable in this house to the point where they want to turn the whole thing off. Contrast this to their kids, Peter and Wendy, who seem to be thriving in this marvelous tech-house. Especially fixated on a certain room known as "the nursery" the purpose of which is to create a virtual reality space in which to manifest whatever the users fantasies may be. The kids demonstrate a mastery of control over this space, creating worlds of Aladin and Alice in Wonderland with ease, meanwhile George can't seem to make it manifest anything other than an African veldt populated with bloodthirsty lions. Ultimately, this image of the veldt isn't of George's doing at all and is in actuality a volition of the children, which in the end is used by the children as a tool to kill(?) George and Lydia.
This story, hyperbolic as it may be, is a cautionary tale albeit about raising proper children, but also about the dangers of living in a system you have no grasp of and worse still living in that same system with a person who knows it all too well. Ignorance will always be a source of vulnerability, but if one is completely oblivious to the workings of a unit in which they literally live in - then one is certain to have a bad time. This is not too different from life in our current culture. We are, for better or worse, totally dependent on technology. In the same way George is hamstrung by his children in his own home is the same way folks can get hamstrung in life by children who understand the digital landscape better. It's like being a part of a hunter gatherer society, he who shoots best gets the most food, and if you don't even know what a bow is then you're at a considerable disadvantage.
It's not all gloom and doom - well a situation like that would certainly be pretty bad - but there's nothing really indicating that we're anywhere even close to a society where the older generation is completely run over by the younger by any means. A study published in 1998 showed that a high majority (97%) of faculty at a given institution had access to and was proficient in handling the internet and all of it's useful tools. 97% is a fine number, and in 1998 using such tools was not near the requirement that it is today. As a society we seem to be doing fine in regards to computer literacy.
Except Windows 10 truly is incomprehensible.
Sources:
Kelty, Nina. “Educational Technology Research and Development.” Computer Proficiency: The Digital Generation Gap, pp. 46–61., doi:10.1007/11423.1556-6501
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I agree with you because it’s funny how time flies when it comes to technology. I was one of the early 2000 kids, and I haven’t forgotten that we didn’t have touchscreen phones. All we have is a flip-phone, a phone with a sliding keyboard, and I remember when I was in kindergarten, we had those colorful computers that shaped like an ice cube. Nowadays we are starting to have significant computers or big laptops with a touchscreen. When I read that story called, The Velt, I was pretty shocked when Peter and Wendy murdered their parents by locking them up inside the nursery and letting the lions eat them alive which is scary. They don’t want their parents to shut off the technology house. I can relate to that because these kids nowadays are smart enough to use technologies on their own. I don’t know why, and I don’t know how. Take this example, back in those old times when kids play their regular toys for entertainment, now these days kids can use their big touchscreen pad full of game apps for entertainment.
ReplyDelete-Kendra ZeMenye
I sort of disagree with your statement that as a society, we are doing fine in regards to computer literacy. Sure, if you're between the ages of 8 and 25, you are most likely a computer wiz, but from my experiences with people 25+, their does seem to be a lack of understanding or at least efficiency when it comes to completing simple tasks on computers. Not to say every "older" person is terrible at computers, because those who have worked with computers throughout their careers are probably on par or better than today's youth. This gap of computer literacy can and does cause issues between people whether it be working with technology together even a relationship between two generations of people (as seen in The Veldt).
ReplyDeleteJared Islas
The youth of today are able to use and iPhone with ease, I cannot say the same thing about my dad. The gap made by technology can be felt on all levels because there are new technologies being made every day, the youth have an advantage because they don't remember a time when none of this was here, so adapting new technology is second nature to them. For older generations, learning about technology is about as strange as a caveman trying to figure out why a match ignites, and it can be very exciting to them just like the caveman and fire.
ReplyDeleteCarter Messner
I've worked with individuals who had to leave Hallmark due to the demand in computer literacy. Most of their employees are older and they are struggling to complete their daily tasks. Younger, new hires, are getting the job done in less than half of the time with little to absolutely no help. This simply shows to prove how younger generations will have more advantages when it comes to technology because they have grown up with it their entire life. Elders have to adjust and accommodate technology into to their work places and personal lives.
ReplyDelete-Sam U
In this day and age, I feel as though we forget how to be human. We see higher instances of social anxiety and cyber bullying due to this electronic revolution. Instead of being able to have a face to face conversation with people, or actually spending time with another person, we would rather sit in front of our phones. This is a controversial issue that is more of a double edge sword. I.E. we develop fascinating instruments and develop techniques that can extend the life of a human being, but we forget how to do the simple things, like BEING humans.
ReplyDeleteNice post,
-Kyle Gardner