Cell Phones... Technology.... Conclusion

As slow as the progression of cell phones was in the beginning, their rapid growth once they made their way into society with affordability and convenience, proved there was clearly no way of stopping their continuous progression. I believe that everyone would agree that with the cell phone came a love hate relationship. We are dependent on them; we love the convenience they provide for us. However, at the same time, we hate them for binding us to a continuous connection that at times we would prefer not to have and an interruption of our face to face lives that will forever be changed due to the little component that we are tire sly bound to. Do they interfere with our lives? Yes, they do. However, would we give them up, to re-gain that one on one connection of face to face time that is constantly interrupted by them? No. Cell phones are an essential component of communication that we, as a society have come to enjoy and depend on and that in itself is enough for me to conclude that they are here to stay and grow and develop; to make our lives even easier and to connect us in ways we have yet to imagine!

From text messaging to life saving; from keep in contact with the kids to conducting business on the run; the cell phone has come a long way since Dr. Martin Cooper made that first call on a phone that none of us would own today!

Living with Technology... What is next for cell phones

Cell phones have been progressing for years. From the first one to the more modern cell phone that began to make its way into the common public nearly 20 years ago. With such a constant progression over time, we have seen cell phones that could make a phone call, to phones that are capable of doing just about everything for us. However, as technology progresses, cell phones that we today find to be amazing will also become out dated and therefore new ideas are already in the making.

One new idea that was recently presented is a mobile dress, where the user lifts her hand and activates the cell phone. An all in once dress/phone where when a women or man is out, they are able to leave their phone behind because it is built into their outfit.

While the dress is currently in the test stage of design, when it hits the market, the price is expected to be about the same as if the customer was purchasing a dress and a phone. While some might find this to be expensive, the reality is that convenience of it is likely to entice the consumer into giving it a try. As technology continues to progress, these types of items are going to continue to pop up as well as other items that continue to make life convenient for society as we move along.

I have attached the link to the news article if you are interested in gaining an even greater understanding of where cell phones are heading within our society, as technology continues to grow.

Cell Phones and Nerds

Since we have been looking at the development of technology and nerds I thought it was only appropriate to find some information regarding cell phones, their development and nerds along the way. In doing this research I found that cell phones first were discovered in 1973, by an employee of Motorla by the name of Dr. Martin Cooper, a rather nerdy guy who earned a degree in electrical engineering at the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Dr. Cooper was hired by Motorola to develop portable products and along came the cell phone. Not readily available to the masses, in fact they did not even go public until 1977. The first phone was what we would consider today a dinosaur, as displayed below, with it's features:

Name: Motorola Dyna-Tac


Size: 9 x 5 x 1.75 inches

Weight: 2.5 pounds

Display: None

                    Number of Circuit Boards: 30

                    Talk time: 35 minutes

                    Recharge Time: 10 hours

                    Features: Talk, listen, dial
 
These phones were expensive and did not allow for the common day person to own one. It took 37 years for the cell phone to become a common ficture in the life of the consumer. In fact, the cell phone industry 25 years ago was a 3 million dollar a year business. Today, it has grown into a 30 billion dollar a year success!
 
Looking at this picture it would be impossible not to look at the other nerds who influenced the success of the cell phone business. With this in mind it was impossible not to fast foward and look at the development of the I-Phone. First released in 2007, the I Phone instantly became a success because people loved what Apple had done with this phone. It was not without a nerd at the forefront, however: Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, both self proclaimed nerds, once again changed the way technology was used with the release of this phone:
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The technology of the cell phone and the progression of it alike has all been at the hands of nerds. Often picked on and often disregarded, it is the nerds who have allowed the masses to enjoy the technology of today. What a concept! I have attached some news articles for you to read if you are interested in learning more about how this great technology came into our lives!
 
http://cellular.co.za/cellphone_inventor.htm
 
http://cellphones.org/cell-phone-history.html
 
 
 

Cell Phones as Organized Communication

With all the discussions about organization, I looked for ways in which cell phones and communication could be viewed in a manner where some sort of organized method of communicating could enhance the communication between parents and children. In doing this, I noticed that not only did cell phones increase the level of communication while children were away from their parents, but it also gave them specific times in which they were to check in with their parent and also a specific time where parents would be contacting thier children. Therefore, an organized mode of communication was developed between parent/child.

There is also a website, time to talk. org that gives parent's tips on communicating with their children via text messages. What a great idea. With all of the negative concerns a parent may have in regards to the abundance of technology out there and what their kids are being exposed to, this site has organized a way for parents to utilize it in their advantage, while also educating their children on what is appropriate. Sometimes using the methods of communication most comfortable for kids today is the best way in getting a message accross to them, even if it is not the way in which we would have thought to be most effective.

Organized methods of communication, specifically using cell phones, is in my opinion a positive outlet for parents and one that with websites, such as this can assist parents in making sense of the madness of raising a teenager!

I have attached the link to the website below:

http://timetotalk.org/

Technology and Interpersonal Relationships

A recent panel conducted research on the affects of technology on interpersonal relationships. One panel member was later interviewed regarding the panels findings. What I find to be most interesting is that the panel member, Jen Davis, feels strongly that technology is a positive addition to interpersonal relationships, but also feels that people need to find a balance. Jen's findings were that cell phones and other devises allow people to get to know one another without the face to face communication, allowing them to have a solid foundation that would otherwise not be as accessible.

While I agree with Jen on many of her points, I also feel that technology has been around long enough for people to have a better balance, if that was what they were actually looking for. Rather, I think technology has allowed people to remove an element of personal communication and technology is replacing personal communication. Therefore, when we are together, we often look to our counterparts of technology to communicate with others, rather than conversing and spending quality time with each other.

I have attached the link to the interview for you to hear. What are you thoughts?

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xd0d8l_technologyys-effect-on-interpersona_webcam?start=65#from=embed

Cell Phones - Love Hate Relationship

A recent study by the University of Michigan, revealed that 80 percent of cell phone users believe this technology has made their lives easier. However, while 80 percent seems like a true percentage that would prove that this technology is positive, the study also revealed that 60 percent of cell phone users find the public use of cell phones to be irritating to them and they cause disruptions to their social lives.


Furthermore, the study suggested that 42 percent of those involved in the study would like cell phones to be banned in public places. An interesting point to this study is that it involved 752 Americans who were at least 18 years of age. Most interesting was that more than 80 percent felt that this technology is hazardous to others, especially when used while driving.

Eleven percent of those surveyed felt overwhelmed by this technology and 36 percent said they believed cell phones have actually made less free time available to their users, which is what I have proposed as a question in my project of if cell phones have actually made our lives richer in the sense of communication or if they have in reality, made us less connected because we are so focused on our devises, rather than people.

A point that I found most interesting in this study was that while those surveyed all had their own thoughts and reactions to different aspects of cell phone usage, the majority agreed that the most important reason for having a cell phone was in the event of an emergency. While I agree, this is a valid point. In reality, it is the least used ability of the devise. In this, I correlated this reaction as an excuse for having the devise, rather than a legitimate reason, as relayed by the respondents.

To read full article go to: http://www.ur.umich.edu/0405/Mar21_05/06.shtml