Help me solve connection problems.

Entering DePauls Lincoln Park John T. Richardson library every person ! notice on the "irst "loor is looking at a screen# a laptop computer or smart phone. ! get o"" o" the elevator on the "ourth "loor and "ind an empty table by a $indo$ near an outlet o" course. %s a "reshman student at DePaul ! have relied heavily on my laptop "or getting $ork done. &nce ! plug my laptop in ! open 'oogle (hrome $hich gives me the message )*nable to connect to the !nternet.+ ,y net$ork settings open and o""er me a link $hich reads )Help me solve connection problems.+ &ur "irst year $riting course -RD ./0 has recently engaged in discussions on the impacts o" technology on the classroom and personal e1perience. This prompted my $ondering do connection problems really only apply to my $ireless net$ork settings2 3itting here in the library ! $onder $hy it $as so important to me that ! "ind a table to mysel". -hats more $hy $as ! annoyed that among all the empty tables a pro"essor decided to 4oin me at mine2 %"ter all $e are sitting at a table $ith "our chairs. ! think our )connection issues+ go "ar beyond spotty -i5i and its the heavy attachment $e have to technology $hich people o"ten blame "or our $eakened personal connections.

!n my o$n contemplation o" )solving connection problems+ $ith observations o" personal interactions "ading possibly caused by technology !m reminded o" a debate $hich $as discussed in class. !n a debate on (66 ,ark 7auerlein author o" The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes our Future very candidly critici8es my o$n generation. He states )young people are dro$ning in digital diversions $hich purvey teen stu"" and the adult realities o" history and civics cant break through.+ His "ello$ arguer Emory college graduate David 5eldman "eels )my generation $e have this incredible ability to "ilter this in"ormation and to kno$ $hat is important.+ &n one hand it seems possible that $e my generation are missing out on a $ealth o" in"ormation due to our tendency to get caught up in social net$orks. Ho$ever as 5eldman points out times our changing and our "luency $ith technology has allo$ed us to develop skills $hich can give us a leg up $hen $e 4oin the $ork"orce. 3imilar to 7auerleins vie$s are those o" 6icholas (arr. (arrs essay )!s 'oogle ,aking *s 3toopid2+ $as assigned in class along $ith many other readings $hich e1plore digital thought. He points out that although the internet makes coming across in"ormation very easy as $ell as entertaining it is shaping the thought process o" humans by allo$ing less thought concentration and contemplation to go into learning. Thus less learning is actually occurring. ! agree $ith him that the ease $ith $hich $e can no$ obtain in"ormation on the internet has made our brains la8y and the "re9uency in $hich $e have come to use the internet is $earing on our concentration. Ho$ever ! "eel that (arr places all o" the blame on the internet alone and $eakens his argument by avoiding mentioning any other possible contributors to$ards this issue. The stances o" (arr and 7auerlein provoked my speculation o" the opinions o" my mothers boy"riend -ill. -ill is the president o" his sel":run marketing company $hom ! have to come kno$ very $ell. He is an avid reader $ho thoroughly en4oys international history languages and politics.

!n speaking echnology $ith -ill ! learned probably that makes he 9uite me strongly take five disagrees times $ith as long 7auerlein and (arr.to -ill get elo9uently my homework replied to finished. 7auerleins !ometimes position by I actually saying. give myI phone dadthat or "hris and ask them to hide while I dontto think the younger generation isit social misfits. do In my homework then ask them for it back Ive other words,and I feel that your generation is when more socially gotten a good portion of done. it helps a you lot. If Im on a adept and because this#nd social media, are actually computer I canmore $ust be on one website a able to usually understand of focused the social life whereas I at think time but if I have my on generation me, Ill be a lotnews more and our generation didphone not. Our got distracted. Its te%ting, witter, Instagram that shared things with people at and such a slow rate. Our rate of distract me. digestion of what it means to be human is slower and not Rachels re"erence as complete. to the I think very distracting the younger nature generation o" social media is quite andthe opinion that opposite it isnt necessarily of introverted taking due over to our technology. lives connects to the opinions o" 3teven Pinker. Pinkers essay ),ind over ,ass ,edia+ $as 7ecause -ill is very involved and kno$ledgeable in history civics cultures one o" the only articles discussed in class $hich $holeheartedly etc. ! think his stance $ould take 7auerlein o"" guard. ! do agree $ith -ills supports technology. -hile addressing the counterargument o" the $ay many opinions on the topic o" digital thought. -e agree in the idea that e1perience changes the brain Pinker rebuttals by e1plaining )the technology is e1traordinarily bene"ical to education and that i" research proves e1istence o" neural plasticity does not mean the brain is a blob o" clay it to be a detriment to the human brain $e $ill adapt and evolve to "ind ne$ pounded into shape by e1perience.+ He "eels that the impacts o" $ays to e1ercise our minds. %"ter speaking $ith -ill ! became curious ho$ my electronic media are not nearly as signi"icant as critics imply noting .;:year old sister $ould "eel about the sub4ect. that distraction is not a ne$ occurrence and cannot be blamed on ,ytechnology sister Rachel is a 4unior in high school might the years o" alone. He believes the bestand solution tolack be implementing e1perience andto abundance o" kno$ledge $hich has accrued ho$ever sel":control resist the temptations $ith our-ill o$n $ill. ! like this point many o" heritvie$points matched his.blame being placed on because strays "rom the typical advertisements social media and digital devices "or our lack o" attention span. !nstead he places the responsibility in our o$n hands. Did anyone "orce us to create a 5acebook account or buy a smart phone2 3ure it is more convenient to keep up $ith modern trends but it is not necessary "or survival. ! appreciate the $ay in $hich he gives us the po$er to e1ercise our minds $ithout allo$ing us to simply blame the internet "or its deteriorating. 5rom my o$n e1perience generational di""erences do impact our e1periences $ith technology but not necessarily our vie$points. The agreements bet$een -ill and Rachel and the universal acceptance o" technology !ve $itnessed in my e1perience at DePaul are indicative o" the modern necessity to $holly embrace technology. The older $oman $ho 4oined me in the library $as also utili8ing technology "or the entirety o" her $ork. Ho$ever ! "eel that she may have been more com"ortable 4oining me because she came "rom a generation $ith much more personal interactions. Thus ! "eel that although my generation bene"its $idely "rom technology $e could take a note on maintaining more personal and social relations $ith one another "rom the older generations. Perhaps ne1t time ! get on the L !ll strike up a conversation $ith the stranger to my side. -hen ! asked Rachel about her vie$s on technology she told me that technology has great capacity to improve our education but absolutely hinders our ability to "ocus. ! asked her $hat the biggest problems $ith technology $ere in her li"e.