It has been a year since
Hurricane Sandy hit Hoboken and this area.
It makes me think back to how it was with no electricity and limited
access to technology. For a couple of days,
I did not have access to a computer and my phone died. It was nerve-racking not being able to check
on my family and friends who were also affected by the Hurricane. This was life without technology for just a
few days. No lights, hot water, phones, tv and many more luxuries. Our society
takes everything for granted and doesn't realize what we have until it’s taken
away.
Another thing that I took away
from the hurricane was how much it united the community, even if it was just
for a short time. My friend's Jessie and Becky told me about a street near their apartment that had power. Some of the people on that street ran
extension cords out to their stoops so people could charge up their
electronics. I also heard about families
with children who opened up their homes to other families to have movie time
and play time with other children. It
was awesome to see the community come together like that and interact. Typically in the city life here, people do
not even say hi to their neighbors when they see them passing by.
I also notice how much our
society relies on technology when I am with my soccer team. When we have team dinners or meetings, we
have to have a rule that we are not allowed to have our cell phones. There are so many girls who sneak their phone
in and text. It’s an hour and we can’t go without using our phones. We are constantly connected with others and
can’t seem to go unconnected for even short periods of time.
We are constantly entertained
with technology. If we have to wait for
the elevator we look at phones where we have access to the internet, Facebook,
pinterest, anything we want. It’s right
at our fingertips all the time. It’s not
only in older age groups either. The
kids I babysit for are constantly using Ipads or elcronic gadgets to pass the
time. I babysit kids ages 2-10 and they
all use these gadgets. Sometimes I
wonder if they could go without them for a day.
When I was a kid I would much rather be outside playing than playing a
game on an Ipod.
Some elementary schools and high
schools now are implementing the use of Ipads in the classroom as a teaching
aid. When I heard about this, the first
question that came to my mind was how are the teachers going to keep students
focused on topic and off the internet? With an Ipad, the students have access
to so much , I would just see it as a distraction. Also, the learning style would be
compromised. I would assume if the
teachers were using Ipad in their classes, then worksheets and notes would be
sent out to the students for viewing on the Ipads. The students wouldn’t have to take as many
notes on paper or writing on the Ipad as students used to have to. It has always been said that it takes three
different ways to memorize or learn something. In school for me it was always
reading it hearing it and writing it in my notes. If students don’t need to write anything
anymore, what other style is going to take over for that learning.
Fully agree. I even did a blog post on a similar subject (Think of the internet, Children!). At what point is technology too much of a hindrance of life instead of an assistive and advancing tool? I know at least one person who will say it never will be a hindrance, but then again he also has and actively uses Google Glass.
ReplyDeleteWhen Sandy hit, I tried to keep my laptop battery going as best I could but it eventually died. My phone I kept for keeping up to date with alerts and notifications but never actually contacted family until I knew it wouldn't drain my battery (if you remember, service wasn't good and even a simple text could knock a whole battery percent off some phones). It took at least 2 days before me and my roommates could leave our apartment and get food (we luckily had gas and a old stove, so we could light it manually. We also had a water heater that was gas and had a pilot light. I was otherwise preparing to take cold showers). When we got to EAS, which had power, I was finally able to contact family. They were ecstatic that I was in good shape.
When we heard about people without hot water, me and my roommate were fully prepared to offer them to take a hot shower. Most refused, seemingly trying to act polite even in the pressing times.
I, and probably many others, could go on for quite some time on the subject matter. But one commonality between all the stories was that if technology was involved it often started with "when we found power, we..." but most of the stories and experiences weren't about that. It was a very unique time that I don't think will ever escape our memories.