Technology has become an important aspect of our day-to-day lives. It has integrated itself into just about every part of every day. Nearly every person in our generation owns a smart phone and has some type of social media account which we use to keep in touch with our friends and family. It seems that we have become accustomed to having a phone in our hand with the entirety of the internet and human knowledge in just a few taps of our screens. Some of our elders mock us for this. They joke that we cannot go anywhere without our phones, they control our lives, and we have no social interaction anymore because of our commitment to our technology. They look down on technology as something that millennials abuse and allow to consume our lives. They say we are learning and interacting less, but I would argue that we are doing just the opposite.
At any time, we can unlock our phone with our thumbprint and talk to nearly anyone in the world. We can contact a friend through a text that takes seconds to send. We can video chat with loved ones from across the country face-to-face. A phone call across the world is easily made, and our friends are always within reach. We can log onto social media and keep up with the ones we love. By scrolling through Facebook, we are updated on the lives of our friends and relatives. Snapchat allows us to send funny faces and updates about our day-to-day lives. Instagram lets us experience everything our friends experience through photos. In our free time, we can scroll through and see what our friends are up to. It lets us meet new people and make connections that many could never do in the early 00s. Social media allows us to support and uplift each other in the highest and lowest of our lives. We can share important moments in our lives, hardships we are going through, or even funny jokes to brighten each other’s days. It has never been easier to communicate with each other.
We are also learning more than ever. Any question we could possibly have is answerable with a couple of touches on a screen. We have access to scholarly magazines, encyclopedias, databases, and everything else Google has to offer. We can ask questions and discover things on our own. Sharing ideas across the planet is simple. Working on the go and collaboration around the world is easily made possible on your smart phone. Learning can now take place anywhere and at any time. You have everything the world has to offer in the palm of your hand.
Technology can control lives. Just as anything, when used in abundance, it is very dangerous. However, when used correctly, technology changes our lives for the better. It allows us to stay in touch with loved ones and learn easier and faster. We are interacting with others and learning more than any generation before us. Nothing is out of our reach. So, keep being the generation that can access an abundance of information at any moment. Be the generation that loves and communicates and shares ideas. Be that generation that has the world at their fingertips. Be the generation that changes the world with technology.