technology

The distinction between reality and not reality has intrigued society for thousands of years. When I say society, though, I suppose I'm discussing only those individuals who actually want to discern the difference between the two, since it is readily apparent that a great deal of people rather enjoy the blur between the two worlds. In the past, "unreality" could be considered anything from a dream sequence to joining a secret cult to playing/cheering for your favorite sports team. However, with technology at the helm, we have another life available: one that is virtual.

A few glaring items came to mind as I finished reading Roszak's "The Cult of Information:"

What constitutes an American tradition? It probably depends on who you ask. When I think of traditions of this country, I think of baseball, apple pie, and freedom (not necessarily in that order ... ). Holiday traditions in the U.S. are a little easier to define, only because they are recognized by a large number of people who live here. Religious traditions can be seen in the same vain, although few religions were actually created in this country.

We are to the midpoint in Theodore Roszak's "The Cult of Information," and up until now, I have experienced mixed emotions based on what I have read. On one page, I found myself thinking, "Yes!

Question: Considering the work of Ellul complete the following:

Write about/describe an example of a technique in today's society. Tell its story and the need for the creation/adoption of this technique and the new techniques that resulted from it? Could we have controlled for this technique? Is there or was there an alternative?

If I were tasked with the chore of educating an alien race about earth's culture, it's pretty obvious how I would start. I would create an online slide show of the 2009 Super Bowl commercials. After all, what better way is there to show a foreign species how humankind has evolved into tech-hungry, commercialized beings?

I suspect anyone who is reading this already has a number of technology gadgets. I suppose this could be anything from a computer to a cell phone to an MyePet (quick survey ... does anyone really have a MyePet?). Anyone with a gadget knows that it doesn't always work right. However, according to a recent study by the Pew Internet & American Life Project, 15 percent of individuals never bothered repairing a piece of technology that broke within the past year.

Tonight, I had a little chat with God. Well, I should say it was iGod. Here's the transcript:

Google has created a lot of neat stuff lately. OK, the company has created a lot of neat stuff for the past few years, including, most recently, a new web browser. But please, download Chrome on your own time, because I want to talk about Google's bread and butter: the search.

Here's a new version of "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" story.