There's a boy here in town, says he'll love me forever.
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
10:54 PM
Yay I think that today and yesterday have been pretty
productive because I read like 3 Time magazines (the one the school forces us
to buy because GP) (and I never read any until now) which totals up to 6
issues!!! Yes so now my brain is filled with random information like coral
reefs and 30 million Snapchat users daily or something. But oh well needa
improve on GP so.
Errkay anyways this is awkward because uh people I know tell
me that people they know who are people I don’t know read my blog (LOL
confusing much) (hint: why does my blog stats show that 31% of viewers use Macs -> and which school has students with Macs LOL) but yeeeah uh okay time to start blogging like I’m actually
addressing an audience ._. anddd I thought this is a rather busy time of the
year like J2s having A levels, J1s having PW OP and Sec4s having O levels so uh
don’t waste time reading my rants LOL. But I kinda said/hinted that before
right so oh well since y’all are supportive I guess (?) I shall uh try to not
waste your time reading by actually blogging about useful things. Yes I know I
said that before too but oh well.
SO YEAH this isn’t such a good timing since O level English
is over but I’m just gonna type out my CTs GP essay here because:
1. Like I said, I hope y’all will benefit HAHA I mean for those who are JC
students/intend to go JC and take GP.2. I need to refresh my memory and learn from my mistakes sigh.
DISCLAIMER: Please do not reproduce without permission. And
yes I got an E for GP overall which is kinda really sad because I really tried
:c and for promos I actually passed compre for the first time lol but also
failed essay for the first time sigh which makes me really sad so that’s reason
#2 on how to improve my essay skills because I think it’s a good piece. I
THINK. And yes for this essay I got 30/50 (content 17/30, language 13/20) and
anything 30 and above is considered good soo yeah. Though I’ve written essays
which got me 32 before like last year but meh it sucks for a JC standard essay
so I’m typing this one out instead. Yes written under timed conditions, under
exam conditions.
“The world is becoming too reliant on technology. Do you
agree?”
Mankind has always been intrigued and fascinated by technology,
from the days of the invention of the telephone by Alexander Bell to the
historic moment when Man first landed on the moon. Over the years, technology
has progressed so rapidly that what was once considered the ‘latest technology’
at one point in time, is quickly replaced by another in a matter of years or
even months. This constant pursuit of technological advancement is strongly
indicative of mankind’s increasing reliance on technology. The effects of this
may be good or bad, depending on the various types of technology now available,
namely, environmental, health and safety technology, social and communicative
technology, as well as educational technology.
Supporters of technology often argue that technology is
mankind’s greatest discovery, and as the creators of technology, we have the
ability to control it, and not the other way round. The use of technology in
industries such as the nursing industry has proven to be effective, as compared
to conventional practices involving doctors’ and nurses’ round the clock care,
often resulting in tired and overworked doctors and nurses, thus reducing the
productivity and quality of care provided. Technology in this case is a
lifesaver, no pun intended, and has been utilized in the best manner in
hospitals and other health institutes. Medical practitioners recognise that the
human touch is necessary in diagnosing and treating patients, and only limit
the use of technology to basic computing of patients’ health records and
personal particulars.
However, in other areas concerning the use of technology in
the environment, health and safety sector, mankind is developing or has already
developed an over-reliance in technology. The use of special machines and medical
apparatus in hospitals has paved the way for automated procedures to be used on
patients. Doctors do not have to physically operate on patients, but rather,
can do so behind the glass. These procedures do not reinforce physical and
safety awareness, as doctors and nurses assume that the machines would be doing
their job accurately, often resulting in accidents and near misses, which
again, exemplifies the point that mankind is too reliant on technology. Green
technology, or technology specially created in order to undo mankind’s carbon
footprint and toxic emissions, among other environmental concerns, prove to be
more of a hindrance than a help. Take for example the ongoing research on smart
windows, which are windows that can electronically change from clear to tinted,
thereby reducing energy consumption. Researchers around the world are trying to
improve its lifespan and lower the production costs of these smart windows,
however, these experiments involve the use of toxic materials such as zinc and
nickel oxides, and high powered machines such as vacuum chambers. Improper
discharge of these chemical substances and excessive energy use would lead to
even more environmental challenges. The development of such technology is also
indicative of Man’s over-reliance on technology, where instead of cutting down
on unnecessary electrical appliances such as air-conditioning, Man chooses to
invest more time and resources in technology to create new solutions, which
undoubtedly come with new sets of problems.
Technology has also made waves in the social and
communicative industry. According to the Internet World Stats, the percentage
of the world population with Internet access was at 4% in 1999. This percentage
increased tenfold, fifteen years later. This means that almost every other
person has access to the internet, which can be used for several purposes, both
good and bad, but ultimately shows that mankind is becoming too reliant on
technology. Take for example the fleet industry, which makes use of
communicative technology to keep track of its assets, customers and suppliers.
In the past, this information was typewritten and manually keyed into
spreadsheets, which were then stored by the company itself. Today, such
information is collated and stored in hard drives – another technological
advancement – by the suppliers of the fleet company. The over-reliance of
technology in this case results in these companies having to invest more money
in order to secure the information from viruses and online threats. Had it not
been for this over-reliance, these companies could have invested in providing
better service for commuters or giving bonuses to employees instead. The use of
both intranet and internet has also led to problems such as miscommunication,
and addiction, for the latter. Electronic mails sent out may be received by
somebody else due to unknown circumstances, or the message in the e-mail may not
have been as clear as that when verbally communicated. The rise of social media
platforms such as Facebook and Twitter have also led to problems such as
cyber-bullying and addiction, which are most prevalent among teens. Thus, it is
apparent that such excessive usage of technology is indeed present in society
today, and it bring about a lot of problems for its users.
The use of technology has extended to the education sector,
where more and more schools are introducing electronic learning, or e-learning
in short, in order to improve students’ information technology (IT) skills.
Projects and assignments are also being administered through word processing
documents instead of the conventional pen and paper tests. The rationale behind
doing so is so as to help student be better prepared for the working world,
which makes use of technology, especially the personal computer, extensively.
While this may seem like a noble cause, especially to those who come from less
well to do families and do not have such benefits readily available at home,
there is a dark side to it. One of Britain’s famous authors, Sir Terry Pratchett,
is condescending towards the idea of electronic learning, as it hinders natural
learning, especially that of handwriting and spelling. Students become so
accustomed to word processing documents which are equipped with legible and
neat fonts, as well as spell-check and autocorrect, that they do not realise
the importance of such basic skills. The rise of the search engine giants such
as Google and Yahoo! has also made students and adults alike to become lazy.
The pursuits of knowledge no longer become interesting or fulfilling for the
human mind, and image searchers such as Google Imager, Tumblr and Instagram
have further worsened the current situation. By deliberately removing words and
captions as far as possible, this creates an effect of the human brain thinking
even less, thus resulting in the famous act of aimlessly scrolling one’s
Instagram feed, or toiling entertainment websites such as 9gag for hours,
instead of socialising in real life. This over-reliance on technology can be
further proven by a simple observation or test, where people go about their daily
activities such as commuting and eating, while hanging on to their smartphones,
laptops, or other devices, and would get angry when these technological items
are taken away from them, for example, when parents or teachers confiscate
students’ mobile devices.
In conclusion, technology is apparent in every single corner
of our lives and there is no escaping it, for most, if not all people. However,
this over-reliance on technology can be reduced if all stakeholders, the
society, government and businesses, play a part in recognising and reducing
unnecessary activities which make use of technology. Failure to do so would
result in an even worse situation where mankind would go beyond being too
reliant on technology.
Word count: 1212 words. Uh I guess the trick is to include
lotsa examples and link it back to your argument? *crams all the examples used
here the night before* *oh and the thing about smart windows is from my H3
research LOL I practically shot down my own project but yeah research is cool
and increases general knowledge (Y)*