What is Communication?
Communication is essentially the transfer of ideas from one
person to another through an exchange in words, images, or interactions.
Communication is the way you pass on and receive information in your everyday
life. Nowadays, we do this in a variety of different ways. We have phones, computers,
TVs, and countless other modes of communication that link our world together.
Need to talk to someone half way across the world? This is something you can do
instantly in today’s world of technology.
However, communication hasn't always been this simple. Over the course of our history, communication has undergone many changes.
For instance, Caveman Communication did not have the same resources we have today, and in turn, communicated very differently. They communicated in much simpler and basic ways. Their communication was virtually 100% face-to-face. This was the same for most every culture throughout history up until Johannes Gutenburg invented the printing press. The concept of a world filled with only face-to-face interaction seems almost impossible to grasp in today's society.
Today's technology, such as the invention of the cell phone, has opened up millions of possibilities in communication and changed the way our generation, and generations to come, will transfer ideas and knowledge from person to person.
The Evolution of Cell Phones
For a long time, our society interacted in
person. Face-to-face interactions were a part of our culture, it was the norm so to speak. You would never
see a child calling their neighbor friends to go play. They would physically
get up, walk over, knock on the door, and ask. At that time it seemed absurd to even consider calling someone for things that could be handled in person. In this day and age, the norms
have changed. Cell phones have socialized people into interacting via
electronic communication. People have gracefully accepted these means of
communication in efforts to make life more simple and relaxed, but has it?
Effects on Society
“Always put an on and off button
on your phone, the phone is supposed to be your slave, you are not supposed to
be the slave of your phone” – Martin Cooper “Father of the Cell Phone”
Take a look around you as you walk to
class. How many people do you see on their cell phones? Probably a majority of
the people you see are using their phone to make calls, send texts, check
email, or even play games. They may even be using them as way a way to save face, the social identification we try to put forward. People use their phones to look or act busy in order to avoid awkward conversations with strangers or even people they simply don't wish to talk to.
Mobile Phone Usage Report 2011
Take for instance communication. Think
about how you communicate with your peers. Do you mainly interact on a
face-to-face level or is it usually through the usage of a cell phone? Yes,
face-to-face interaction still exists today, but the appeal of these
interactions is dwindling as it has become easier to avoid these personal
interactions due to the advancements of cellular technology. Getting in touch
with someone is as simple as hitting a few buttons. Smartphones, or so we call
them, have the ability to do more than simply make a phone call. People can now
use their phones to email, deposit checks, make on-line purchases, and book
reservations for travel. All of these applications and functions of the cell
phone have reduced the necessity of face-to-face interactions; for smartphones
can do almost anything nowadays. Just check out the lastest iphone Applications and everything you ever wanted will be there to make your life easier.
Even voice conversations have become
unnecessary through the use of text messaging.
Cell phones have created a “digital
nation,” they have hindered people’s communication skills and have dumbed down
the world, so to speak. Citizens of today’s society seek instant gratification,
they depend on their smartphones for answers, rather than thinking critically
or analyzing the situations at hand. People who refuse to use a smartphone in
today’s culture are seen as deviant and may even be frowned upon in society for
their lack of social integration in the culture.
In the realm of communication people
are becoming increasingly incompetent; they are unable to hold modest
conversation with one another. Cell phone usage is taking over public places
and private conversations are seen to take place on the bus or in the store.
People have become dependent on their cell phones to become integrated in
society, or so they think. While people may believe their cell phones are
connecting them with their peers they are missing out on an even bigger
problem, social isolation.
These comics show the ironic side of
cell phone usage for communication. Although cell phones are great for
connecting people to their family and friends separated by distance, they are
ultimately isolating people from the immediate world around them. As more
people begin to use their phones for communication, face-to-face interactions
are losing their appeal and becoming more awkward in the process.
Effects of the Cell Phone: Personal Stories
Future Mobility
We can see that the cellphones of the future will
continue to change rapidly and accommodate to our different daily tasks
awaiting us in the future, and soon a cellphone may possess the same features and functions as a computer. It won’t just be a phone anymore, but a tool required for everyday use. Future cell phones may be be used as house keys, health monitors, identification tools, or event passports.
The phone may even be considered “the remote-control of life,” since our dependency on cell phones continues to grow and as more new
features are added. Already we see a decrease in face-to-face interactions between individuals and an increase in text messaging or email.
As mentioned in the video above, Nokia
has the next big innovation for cellphones, a feature that allows you to “Point &
Find.” With this feature you will be able to point the camera to a location or picture and the phone surfs the internet for you, informing you about all there is to know about this specific object or place. With this invention the world may become a huge wireless grid. As cell phones gain more and more functions present interactions
with people will continue to dramatically decrease.
After seeing the evolution of the
phone and how it has changed society, we know for a fact that it will keep
evolving and that users will constantly be connected. The cellphone of
the future will most likely put other devices ‘out of business’, such as the
camera, music players, and other gadgets. As the cell phone becomes more versatile the shape of the phone may also change and might not even resemble the phone we know today. However, as cell phones become more of a necessity in
life, instead of a luxury, there could be dangerous consequences if cellphones
were to vanish today. People will feel that they are disconnected from their
world or that their life has no meaning. Having a cellphone that can perform many functions and hold so much information is not only beneficial, but it holds dire consequences. It is changing the norms found within our culture. It is possible that in the future our society will have move away from the once normal and necessary face-to-face interactions and ultimately depend a small gadget that knows more about us than we know
about ourselves. Talk about finding the strange in the familiar.
Resources:
Conley,
Dalton. You May Ask Yourself: An Introduction to Thinking like a Sociologist.
New
York:
W.W. Norton &, 2011. Print.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2012/mar/11/cave-painting-symbols-language-evolution
http://ufuk.posterous.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aUQLIPdtg8
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