David Crystal And Tiffany Shlain: An Analysis
When taking into account how technology has changed and progressed over time, it can easily be seen how technology has impacted society today. The progression of technology amongst society has some constructive effects but they come hand-in-hand with the adverse effects that are truly detrimental to the ways individuals continue to communicate. How much is society truly effected by technology today? How dependent on technology have people become? How long have people been effected by their dependence on technology? Are there any solutions to these problems? Two individuals that assess these everlasting effects are David Crystal and Tiffany Shlain. David Crystal addresses the various negative and the few positive impacts that are brought alongside
the changing technology in his essay “How the Electronic Medium Differs”. Tiffany Shlain brings a more neutral argument to the table with her documentary Connected: An Autoblography about Love, Death, and Technology. Comparing their arguments, there are noticeable topics they address that are similar, a number of telecommunication aspects they disagree on, and numerous telecommunication characteristics that they agree on. The similar problems that each individual conveys come with their own solutions that have not been developed thus far due to a lack of willing participants. The similarities between Shlain’s perspective and Crystal’s perspective are seen in the ways they describe how users are becoming linked into various types of communication and less in traditional communication. Although Crystal and Shlain’s perspectives on technology do not meet eye-to-eye, they have some views on the topic that are reasonably similar. They both notice that “the internet is an association of computer networks” (Crystal, 153). As more technology is being used, more people are becoming linked into other communicative norms. As Shlain put it, “the more connected we become, the more interdependent we become on said technology”
(Connected). Countless individuals have become increasingly dependent on their technology, that they are not confident in other social situations. The way each new generation is learning to communicate is by the means of technology and it is making them uncomfortable in face-to-face situations. Though technological communications have “increased efficiency and created more free time” (Connected), the meanings of the words someone may use can become lost in translation. When using computer-mediated communication “there is a lack of simultaneous feedback which is an essential part of a successful spoken conversation” (Crystal, 154). The continuous use of technological-mediated communication has led to recordings, emails, and instant messengers. These methods even effect communication in learning environments. Students may be “missing out on intangible educational experiences” (Grier, 116). Teachers and students are communicating in different ways within the means of a classrooms traditional standards that more responsibility has been placed on the use of their technology. “Using a computer and a modem, you can tear down classroom walls and fly through cyberspace” (Graves, 41). While using these methods has made communication less tedious, they take away the social cues to understanding what someone truly means or how they feel.
the changing technology in his essay “How the Electronic Medium Differs”. Tiffany Shlain brings a more neutral argument to the table with her documentary Connected: An Autoblography about Love, Death, and Technology. Comparing their arguments, there are noticeable topics they address that are similar, a number of telecommunication aspects they disagree on, and numerous telecommunication characteristics that they agree on. The similar problems that each individual conveys come with their own solutions that have not been developed thus far due to a lack of willing participants. The similarities between Shlain’s perspective and Crystal’s perspective are seen in the ways they describe how users are becoming linked into various types of communication and less in traditional communication. Although Crystal and Shlain’s perspectives on technology do not meet eye-to-eye, they have some views on the topic that are reasonably similar. They both notice that “the internet is an association of computer networks” (Crystal, 153). As more technology is being used, more people are becoming linked into other communicative norms. As Shlain put it, “the more connected we become, the more interdependent we become on said technology”
(Connected). Countless individuals have become increasingly dependent on their technology, that they are not confident in other social situations. The way each new generation is learning to communicate is by the means of technology and it is making them uncomfortable in face-to-face situations. Though technological communications have “increased efficiency and created more free time” (Connected), the meanings of the words someone may use can become lost in translation. When using computer-mediated communication “there is a lack of simultaneous feedback which is an essential part of a successful spoken conversation” (Crystal, 154). The continuous use of technological-mediated communication has led to recordings, emails, and instant messengers. These methods even effect communication in learning environments. Students may be “missing out on intangible educational experiences” (Grier, 116). Teachers and students are communicating in different ways within the means of a classrooms traditional standards that more responsibility has been placed on the use of their technology. “Using a computer and a modem, you can tear down classroom walls and fly through cyberspace” (Graves, 41). While using these methods has made communication less tedious, they take away the social cues to understanding what someone truly means or how they feel.