Technologically Human
Technologically Human Today the world of technology and the world of humanity have adhered almost seamlessly. As a species, we have been so reliant on technology that if forced to live without technology, we as people would not be able to survive. That fact is almost proof that we as humans could be considered “cyborgs” in this day and age. In reality, our view of what it means to be a cyborg is widely influenced by the media. Our culture today has tried to expand on what it means to be a cyborg and how we as species have come to be so susceptible to technology. In the world that we live in it’s difficult to imagine what it might be like to be a cyborg. Thanks to media we would probably imagine we would be metal and have gadgets and weapons. Like what Hari Kunzru says in the opening paragraph of “You Are Cyborg” when cyborg’s come to mind we think of things such as Frankenstein’s Monster or The Terminator (things that we see in movies or on television). What it means to be a cyborg isn’t fully defined by physical things but partly by mental abilities. What that means is that, in this era we have found ourselves in the midst of scientific revelation, medical progression, and technological exploration. Today in the medical world there are people amongst us who have prosthetics and orthotics that give them the ability to live and survive a “normal” life. Such things as implants and transplants have become available to us more easily than they might have been years ago. For instance The New York Times published an article by Pagan Kennedy called “The Cyborg in Us All”, talks about some men named Gerwin Schalk, Anthony Ritaccio, Justin Williams, Dean Pomerleau, and Matt Mukerjee. All these men had one thing in common. They all had an interest in the world of working with computers and technology without doing anything physical like clicking a mouse, typing on a keyboard, or touching a screen. Matt Mukerjee found a way of doing so without having to drill a hole in
Cited: 1. "Importance of Technology." S RSS. Importance of Technology, 2014. Web. 01 Feb. 2014.< http://importanceofmoderntechnology.com/technology-affect-communication/> 2. Kennedy, Pagan. "The Cyborg in Us All." 18 Sept. 2011: MM24+. Web. 28 Jan. 2014. < http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/18/magazine/the-cyborg-in-us-all.html?_r=3&pagewanted=all&> 3. Kunzru, Hari. "You Are Cyborg." Wired.com. Conde Nast Digital, Feb. 1997. Web. 03 Feb.2014. 4. Thiebaud, Jane R. Effects of Technology on People: Living F2F Conversation and Social Interaction. Vol. 11. N.p.: Proceedings of the Media Ecology Association, 2010. Proceedings of the Media Ecology Association,. Web. 28 Jan. 2014. .