Murphy 1

Kyle Murphy
Mrs. Boyd
English 111
18 November 2014
The Benefits of Technology
Depending on how technology is defined, it can be said that it has been around for all of
history and has been steadily making advances over the years. However, during the midnineteenth century, technology started to advance at a much more rapid pace. New ideas were
exploding out the minds of geniuses and new factories were able to create the inventions on an
enormous scale. Steam trains started rolling out, cars were being invented, and the streets of New
York City were just being lit, all during the nineteenth century. During the second half of the
twentieth century, technology started improving exponentially, leading to amazing
improvements in many different fields including vehicle efficiency, and the internet. Now in the
twenty-first century, it has become clear just how beneficial technology is, as it aids in the
development of hospital equipment, offers excellent forms of entertainment, and provides
everyone with easy access to knowledge.
To begin with, technology offers an astonishing amount of fun, from movies to video
games, computers to cellphones, its entertainment value is limitless. With the constant
improvements in this field of technology, games are becoming more lifelike than ever. The next
generation of gaming consoles came out about a year ago and they are capable of running video
games in high definition. This means that the video games have sharp textures and dazzling
graphics to create a virtual world that actually looks real.

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This type of technology has also be at large in the film industry. Updates of computer
programs such as Photoshop have allowed for special effects to achieve amazing levels of
realism. Now the film industry can create artificial explosions with astonishing accuracy that can
sometimes trick the viewer into believing that it actually happened. The development in these
two industries help each other according to an article, which when talking about film said many
of its largest advances were only made possible thanks to the tech behind [video] games, 3D
graphics (The Entertainment Game 1). Games have always presented more of a challenge
than movies because they are interactive. Without technology, movies and video games would
not be available so it is clear how vital technology is to entertainment. Cellphones and computers
are also devices that can entertain as they provide a sort of gateway to the internet.
Alexander graham bell invented the telephone in the second half of the nineteenth
century and about one hundred years later, Motorola released the handheld mobile phone. The
phone has continually progressed and now it can do far more than just call. Phones now have the
ability to access the internet, this means that they can display movies and surf webpages, offer
video games and other services, all on a device that fits in a pant pocket. This level of technology
was unimaginable fifty years ago and with advances happening every day, it is difficult to
imagine what will be on the market even ten years from now.
Technology has long played a role in health. Sadly, until the mid-twentieth century,
medical equipment did not have much to offer and as a result, a lot of people lost their lives to
diseases and injuries that nowadays are treatable. This is largely due to the fact that technology
was not advanced enough to allow for better medical equipment in the late nineteenth and early
twentieth centuries. For example, during the American Civil War, more soldiers died from
surgery than died on the battle field. Doctors in this time did not have the proper equipment and

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their knowledge was very limited. They often did not sanitize the tools before using them.
However, the Civil War was an excellent time for doctors to some practice in. There were a lot
of advances made in the medical field during the war because the doctors were able to try out
new ideas and see if they worked. Anesthesia is a great example of this because The American
Civil War (18611865) helped cement the place of anesthesia in American medical practice and
offered new insights into the specialty (Metcalfe). Though it was not just anesthesia that got
better during the war, surgery was on the up and up as well. As technology itself continued to
advance over the next hundred years, it became pretty safe to assume that a visit to the hospital
would only be a visit and not result in death. This was great news for everyone. Technology has
also made it possible for people to have easier access to knowledge in the palm of their hands.
Cellphones. They are small, beautiful works of art that fit in a pocket and can do
everything from making phone calls to watching movies to buying gifts online. They have truly
come a long way since the mobile phones that would only fit in the trunk of a car and had just
one purpose. Nowadays, it is possible to be sitting in a waiting room while watching a movie or
perhaps doing some Christmas shopping. With access to the internet, cellphones are practically
limitless in what they can do. Most importantly, they provide a gateway to knowledge. Again,
they can access the internet, which is a treasure trove of information. Just about everything
imaginable is on the internet and cellphones are making it easy to access that. Gone are the days
when someone could say what year was George Washington born? because now it can be
googled and the answer given near instantaneously. Technology has dramatically changed how
people learn. The internet has become the go-to when someone wants to know something, few
people are still researching information in books. Oddly, technology is still seldom used in
schools. More are adapting to it now but cellphones are not used to their advantages and

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computers and tablets are not being used for virtual textbooks. However, this appears to be
changing.
Technology does have a few drawbacks. Most prominently, it is argued that the excessive
amount of time spent on a computer or watching television results in higher obesity. While this is
true, computers are not only to blame for such rises, people may spend more time sitting down
now than they used too but computers are not forcing them to stay. It is entirely up to said person
if they want to get up and exercise. That being said, it is undeniable that over the past two
decades, the prevalence of media and technology has increased at an exponential rate.
Computers, video games, the Internet, television, and social media are now an integral (and
virtually unavoidable) aspect of today's culture (Castaldy). All of this added computer time does
mean less exercise and to a child who does not know better than to be active, this will lead to
obesity. Technology can also oversimplify everyday tasks. Take knowledge for example, yes the
internet gives immediate access to virtually anything but by doing so, people have less of a need
to devote such information to memory. In a sense, this means technology is actually making all
people less intelligent.
Americans have come a long way in technological advances since the mid-eighteenth
century and the progress has not slowed yet. From Benjamin Franklin, who invented the the
Franklin stove, which furnished greater heat with a reduced consumption of fuel (Franklin,
Benjamin) to NASA getting to the moon. Technology is undeniably beneficial to society and
everyday it continues to aid in medical equipment. Each month, new forms of entertainment are
emerging thanks to technological advances in the video game world and education is making a
change, adapting more technologies to assist teachers in teaching a class and helping the students
to get a better grasp of the subject. Technology is amazing, and it will continue grow.

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Works Cited
Castaldy, Daniel, and Linda Rice Collins. "Counterpoint: Overexposure To Media And
Technology Deprives Children Of Healthy Outdoor Recreation." Points Of View: Outdoor
Recreation (2014): 1. Points of View Reference Center. Web
"Franklin, Benjamin." Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia (2014): 1p. 1. Funk &
Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia. Web.
Metcalfe, N. H. "Military Influence Upon The Development Of Anaesthesia From The
American Civil War (18611865) To The Outbreak Of The First World War." Anaesthesia 60.12
(2005): 1213-1217. Consumer Health Complete - EBSCOhost. Web.
"The Entertainment Game." Apc 406 (2014): 42. MasterFILE Complete. Web.