Kyle Jenkinson
“Safe” Technology: The Flip Side
Throughout the past few decades more and more new technology is being released with the purpose of making people’s lives more safe. This advancement in technology is causing people to have a false sense of security because in reality, it is actually putting more lives at risk. “Hands-free” technology for driving vehicles was meant to make driving while communicating with a cell phone safer but it is actually still causing a lot of harm to not only the driver on the phone but also the other drivers doing nothing wrong. Also parents are getting their teenagers cell phones for the purpose of safety, not knowing the risk they are putting their child in with child predators.
First is the fact that society believes that all the new “hands-free” technology for driving, is safer than using your cellphone but in reality it is not helping at all and it could even be making the problem worse. The image “Sat Nav Apps” (right) displays a GPS which is recognized as a “hands-free” device, with a man driving a vehicle while watching it. The GPS is in the middle of the image to show that is the main point of the image. Also the GPS is clear while the road and the driver’s view is blurred out to prove the point that when using a GPS it is hard to keep your eyes on the road at the same time. The driver is having to look at the GPS for long periods of time and sometimes even tap buttons on it which is very distracting while driving a vehicle. Therefore the photograph proves that “Hands-Free” technology, contrary to what people believe, is actually distracting the driver as much as a cell phone or any other device. 
In the same way that a GPS is distracting while driving, so are the new bluetooth smartphones that connect with a car. The image "Hands-Free Texting Is No Safer To Use While Driving"(left), shows a cell phone that is supposed to represent a car. The car/phone got into a accident with another car. The phone representing the car displays the message that phones are a big reason for many accidents because drivers are using them and are distracted while driving. Bluetooth connection to a car sounds great but actually the screen on your car still comes up with prompts and questions that the driver must touch while driving the car. This is just the same as looking at your phone to answer a call or text. Also driving while talking to someone on the phone through bluetooth still causes the driver to have to think about the conversation they are having on the phone instead of what is happening on the road. Consequently probably causing an an accident because the driver was not paying full attention the road. Another huge problem is that this will result in drivers believing that this “hands-free” technology is safe so they start to use it while driving all the time. This will result in drivers always being distracted and causing major accidents because of being on the phone. Furthermore, bluetooth is not at all helping the problem of cell phone use while driving because it will always distract the driver from paying full attention to the road and the vehicles around him/her.
Next is how cellphones are being used by parents for safety to always have contact with their child but it is also a gateway for child predators to reach their child. The image “Just One Photo” (right) shows a teen girl texting someone on her phone who is saying “you can talk to me about anything”. This is causing the girl to feel that the person on the other end of the phone is a nice and trustworthy person but simultaneously the text message from the person is pulling up her skirt. This is meant to show that teens have no idea who is on the other end of the phone and they may seem to be nice and caring but as shown with the skirt being pulled up, just want to take advantage of young teens. Parents believe that a phone will be safe for their teens to contact them or the police in case of emergencies but as shown by this image, child predators are using the opportunity of almost every teen having a phone to exploit the teens. Therefore phones are causing a false sense of security for parents because in reality they are actually allowing child predators access to their teen’s phones.
In addition, the image “Innocence in Danger: Girl” (left) displays a teenage girl’s backside with half a cell phone sticking out of the back pocket and the other half in the pocket is a hand holding the girl. This further demonstrates how cellphones are allowing child predators easy access to tennagers lives. A lot of teenagers do not think anything of it because these people seem to be very nice and trusting but it ends up with them meeting them and then the teens getting abducted or
sexually assaulted. That is why the hand is holding the girl's backside because a lot of the time this leads to sexual assault. Also the phone being the part sticking out and the hand hidden in the pocket represents how teenagers are hiding things and are very secretive on their phones so most parents do not know what lives their teens are living on their phones. This consequently leads to teenagers getting in a lot of trouble, including talking to strangers on their phones, without their parents knowing what they are doing. Another problem is that the parents have the belief that their kids are safe now that they have a cell phone to reach them so they give them more freedom to be independent. As a result they are not checking their kids phones, to see if they are texting the wrong people. This further proves how although people think cellphones are a safety net for their kids, they are actually doing them a lot of harm.
All in all, it may seem at first that technology is a tool that is helping make lives more safe but it could actually be putting more lives at risk of getting hurt or killed because of new “hands-free” technology and child predators using teens cellphones to gain access to their lives.
Works Cited
"Hands-Free Texting Is No Safer To Use While Driving." Scientific American.
N.p., 1 Nov. 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 2015.
"Innocence in Danger:Girl." Ads of the World. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2015.
"Just One Photo." Children Of The Street Society. N.p., 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 2015.
"Sat Nav Apps." Sydney Morning Herald. N.p., 21 Sept. 2009. Web. 10 Dec. 2015.
Hey gaffer, good work
ReplyDeleteI like and appreciate how you talked about the negative side of technology instead of the positives, not saying that their is no positives to technology but it's time we heard about how it came negatively impacted our lives.
Overall a very compelling topic, your images very well support the overall statement of your blog and the current issue it addresses. It also discusses the enormity of the problem by stressing the severity of even the simplest complications with technology. Specifically within your last two images, you highlight one of the most drastic and harmful repercussions of technology which is it's affect on children. Although technology currently is viewed as a gateway for children to extend relationships with one another and family, have fun and rely as a source of security, it also pairs as a source for exploitation. In your last image you use the illustration of a mans hand extending from the girls phone within her back pocket to support the idea that as a result of the obliviousness teens have towards technology and social media, predators are easily able to gain access to these teens lives and exploit them mentally, sexually and physically. I think you could also use the image to support the fact that most teens carry their phones with them everywhere and a portion of their lives consist within their devices and social media accounts. The mans hand serves to enforce the idea that as a result of teens unbearable connection with their devices, they provide these predators access to more parts of their lives than they realize. This would furthermore re-enforce your thesis which argues the advancement in technology is providing people, and in this case children with a false senses of security.
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ReplyDeleteHey Kyle good job on this ISU, I liked the way you took a up and coming tread of technology, and focased on the negative affects this so call "safer" technology brings. The two pictures of the "hands free technology" we're both great examples because in each photo, it shows how even though there hands and so called "safer". They are still very distracting and can lead to very dangerous situation, which you nailed in the second picture were it completely showed the danger that this "hand free technology" brings with the distractions that comes with it. Another thing is you touched on how the danger of cellphones can bring to children by opening a window for child predators to enter. But I think with topic another thing you could have touched on some more dangers technology brings to youth or anyone such as a higher chance of websites that rip off credit cards or other financial information, spams and Cyber bullying towards children. With new technology getting better and clamming to be safer these factors can still happen due to this false sense of saftey technology's brings but overall great job on this ISU.
ReplyDeleteVery informative details about the impacts of technology. That fact that you presented the negative sides of using cell phones is really interesting, since what we hear now a days, is all about the positives of technology. Your third paragraph that contrasts the positives and negatives of cell phone use, by showing how it teenagers feel talking to strangers on their phones compared to the actual reality of the subject, is strongly worded and speaks your message really smoothly.
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