Are Modern Inventions Making Us Lazy or Dumb?

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity."
―Albert Einstein

Gone are the days when we used to wake up hearing a cock crow. Now, we wake up when our smartphone tells us to, and moreover, we can ask it to shut up too. If you want to know today's stock exchange rates, simply use the Internet. You need to buy something? Simply select the product with a click, and you will get it at your doorstep. Obviously, such awesome inventions have saved us a lot of time in our daily lives.

However, the above quote by Albert Einstein is enough to tell the tale. Even scientists and inventors of modern technology knew that man is eventually going to misuse technology to such an extent, that we will forget being human first. When the telephone came into our lives, it was a moment of ecstasy, since communication was no longer dependent on telegrams and postcards. When mobile phones arrived, it became even easier to communicate. And then, these mobile phones became smarter.

Technology is becoming smarter day by day, and our dependence on it is making us dumber day by day. The million dollar question here is, are modern inventions actually making us lazy and/or dumb? Let's find out.

Video Games

Video games inspire us to spend our time in front of computer screens, and keep us engrossed doing 'productive work' combating enemies and teaching us war tactics that are so 'pivotal' in everyday life. Right?

The Idiot Box

Truly, the idiot box has entertained us so much, and made us 'idiots'. When we have nothing to do, we browse through the channels and spend hours just trying to pick the right channel to watch.

Computers

Okay, computers are next to God, one would argue! We are heavily dependent on computers these days, and want everything ready-made. Businesses need them to produce MIS reports, give calculations ready-made, and the like. But when was the last time we did mental calculations? When was the last time we did not rely on presentations and charts to make a business deal? When was the last time you did the math on your own, without any calculator or computer? When was the last time we chose to ditch the computer and instead go for a real game outside?

Microwave/Modern Kitchen Appliances

These are must-have equipment in everyone's kitchen. Yes, food processing has become much easier these days, but it has also given birth to the fast food culture. Nevertheless, we need to ask this question to ourselves: where are we headed? Fast food has brought in many diseases, and is also one of the reasons for the increasing rates of obesity around the world.

Automobiles

This has made us the most laziest, and devoid of all physical activity. We're not willing to walk even a few steps when we have a vehicle. Yes, it has made transportation much easier, yet, made us super-lazy in the bargain.

Social Networking Sites

Kids, these days, are not willing to engage themselves in outdoor activities. Gone are those days of childhood when we used to enjoy nature, build tree-houses, and wander around everywhere. Today, kids will spend time updating their social networking profiles instead of playing or engaging in real sports and other activities.

Goodbye to the 'Good Old Library'

The dust on old books, the smell of pages; I'm sure we all miss this. Yet, we want to spend more time browsing our mobile apps. Sadly, even our libraries are replacing books with e-books, CDs, and DVDs, thanks to technology.

Smartphones

Smartphones have indeed made life easy, and made us dumb, literally. We want all our gadgets to think for us, make decisions for us, give us the output immediately at our behest.
Yet, sometimes, when I wonder that these gadgets were supposed to save our time, why is it that we still don't find time for ourselves? We use that 'saved' time to simply browse through our phones, and spend our time chatting. Moreover, instead of connecting with a person who is physically present close by, we want to 'connect' with the entire world, virtually. We don't know about our neighbors, but have friends thousands of miles away on social networking sites.

However, does technology cause laziness, or do lazy people create technology? Well, both are equal. Someone must be lazy enough not to accept the manual, monotonous work system. Even the development of technology requires intelligence. Nevertheless, it is a few intelligent minds that do the thinking for all of mankind.

Well, obviously, you cannot say that technology is bad. It is its mismanagement by man which is incorrect. It is technology that has helped man reach the moon, explore planets, help the disabled with prosthetic parts, made everyday life easy, and added comfort all around. It is up to us how much to depend on it, at the cost of our health and lifestyle.

(Buzzle)