Technikapped

Technicapped

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We as human beings have evolved from mere apes, to pre-historic men to what we are now. And right through this evolution, we came up with various tools and aides to assist us; some of them made us 'supreme' as compared to our counterparts in the animal world.

Times passed and the tools grew tenfold.

Then came a time when man gave his simple aide an alias - "Technology". Everything new that we came across, or even built was termed a 'new technology'.

Pretty soon, there came a time when we just could not survive without the so called 'cutting edge technology' stuffs. Be it a laptop or something as simple as electricity. I tried to myself, but I just could not.

Take a simple example, a cellular phone. One day I dropped my cell phone in water and it went for a toss. I removed the sim and placed it in some other cell but it simply did not work. I handed both the handset and the sim to a mobile repair store and they said I would not get it for another day. I thought, ok, that’s fine. One day is not a big deal. Yeah, right.

Call it paranoia or addiction, every 10 minutes I would stick my hands in my pocket and reach out for my cell phone. Although I knew there was nothing there, I would still keep doing this act of idiocy.

Pretty soon I felt handicapped without it. I had to look around to spot a landline every time I had to call someone when I was out. As ridiculous as it may sound, I then realized, I did not have a clue as to where the PCOs in my area were.

A few days back there were severe power cuts in our city. Power cuts for as long as 8 hours a day. I was at home on one such fateful day. Usually the power would be cut early in the morning or late evening but that day it went for the entire day.

I woke up and realized there was no power. A few hours I spent lazing and running some errands. Before I knew it, there was absolutely nothing that I could think of. I read the newspaper read a book and managed to kill a few hours but pretty soon I was again bored. It was raining so I could not go out. I went to my computer, but no power, thought of watching some TV, but no power. I felt helpless.

I realized how handicapped -or should I say technicapped - we are due to technology.

We are so used to the microwave that when we cannot do so, and have to switch to the gas stove, we end up either burning our hands or the food. Isn't it easier to just open the microwave door, place the food inside, turn it on and voila! It’s done.

We tend to forget the days when these things were not available to human beings and life still went on fine, didn't it?

At the slightest of opportunity we have to get addicted to a new techno-gizmo, we tend to seize it.

Another instance, a radio. Ever since the Ipod genre has evolved, we have stopped looking at the radio. Infact, some of us have also stopped thinking of a CD player.

The poor old radio is just a piece of junk at home, gathering dust.

Going back to the cell phone saga, I would agree, yes, we do need the cell phone these days. We cannot survive without it.

Having said that, we look for the swankiest of phones. Phones with the best of cameras, music, hec even satellite navigators or GPS!!!

What happened to the days where we could just ask someone..? ”where is xyz place"!!

The latest phones make a digital camera and an mp3 player obsolete. But these are gizmos launched just a few years ago and now they are slowly loosing their value. Where I am going with all this is, this cycle will go on and pretty soon the gadgets that we use today will become a thing of the past. It’s a viscious cycle...

Unfortunately, we all are getting sucked into this cycle.

Just to drive my point, I own an Ipod nano. It’s pretty good and if you ask me, it is a new technology but now when I look around, people own the Ipod video or Ipod touch and my nano seems obsolete.

Pretty soon there will be a time when there will be something launched today, and by the time you collect some money to buy it, it will be out of the market.

We need to wake up. Today man is using machine, we should not let the day come when it becomes the other way round...

I am planning to spend a day at least without my cell phone, my ipod, my laptop.

If I make it through the day without losing my mind and turning into a paranoid schizophrenic, I will surely tell everyone how I felt.