I truly believe with every fiber of my being that in terms of one on one communication, technology is more of a curse than a blessing in today’s society. Technological advances made in medicine and science are extraordinarily beneficial, but I’m specifically talking about human interaction––and nothing else.
I would be lying if I said that books weren’t underappreciated and the true value of life and experience comes naturally in your mind. We must search and travel; we must navigate life as a leader and a learner. We must be inquisitive and be hungry for knowledge. We are American Scholars. We are thinkers, readers, askers, doers, and leaders.
First of all, let’s carefully define today’s “American Scholar” and his or her life purpose just a bit further. The American Scholar is a student––and more importantly a teacher––who gifts others with his or her intellectual thought. As the prominent American philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson puts it, “The office of the scholar is to cheer, to raise, and to guide men by showing them facts amidst appearances.” In other words, the purpose of the American Scholar is to grapple the vast unknown and investigate his or her truths and values. It is the Scholar who makes scrupulous observations and rare discoveries about the world from experience and shares knowledge to enlighten others with these truths. These findings and creations could be anything from a cure to an autoimmune disease or the discovery of a new galaxy to soulful poetry and witty memoirs about one’s childhood. This victorious knowledge is what makes the American Scholar an inspiration to others. Emerson agrees when he writes, “Flamsteed and Herschel, in their glazed observatories, may catalogue the stars with the praise of all men, and, the results being splendid and useful, honor is sure.” In making this comment, Emerson urges us to look to those who have paved the way for scientific breakthroughs in history. We must also look to those who have written timeless pieces of literature, such as Shakespeare and Mark Twain. Emerson sees the American Scholar as a shrewd, magnificent individual who is capable of infinite achievements through the journey of his of her life––some of which can and will create a timeless impact on the world. There are dozens of Flamsteeds and Herschels among us Scholars today.
Indeed, we have surpassed the 18th century and its simple, natural ways of living. Today in 2018, we have excelled in automation and continue research on genetic engineering. With just the simple push of a button, we can do just about anything without lifting a finger, and we can genetically modify plants, animals, and people. Technological advances have inadvertently transformed our world.
More importantly, the expeditious development of technology during the past two decades has ruptured and replaced the traditional forms of communication. Instead of sending letters we send texts, and instead of meeting face-to-face we FaceTime or make phone calls. Actually, I’ve noticed that talking on the phone is quickly becoming a thing of the past because texting has become our number one form of communication. What’s even more sad is the discord between us when sitting on a park bench or standing in an elevator. When we’re near people we don’t know, we routinely look down at our phones scrolling through our Instagram feed and insignificant posts on Twitter to buffer the awkward silence and fear of conversation. God forbid a stranger says, “Hello!” or strikes up a conversation with us while we’re waiting for the next train. We live in a world encompassed by technology––we’re quite literally suffocated by it––and half of us can’t keep up. We might as well gorilla glue our thumbs to our iPhones, right?
By contrast, Emerson’s wise words push us to share and spread knowledge, and to use this knowledge to guide our peers. Yet, we’re inhibiting ourselves and this drastically limits our abilities to be the American Scholar we have the potential for. We might have something to say to the person next to us but our cell-phones are deterring us from speaking up. We cannot be the inquisitive and eager American Scholar if we are muted by our phones, and we can’t befriend fellow Scholars with a mute sense of communication. How can we inspire and raise new ideas with others if we are muted? We should be talking to one another and making simple friendly conversation. We should be sharing thoughts and ideas with whomever we cross paths with. Philosophers and writers didn’t share their ideas by being silent about their beliefs, why should we?
Furthermore, this ongoing war between technology and human interaction is becoming more relevant by the day. James M. Lang, professor and author of “Distracted Classroom” published in The Chronicle of Higher Education, has something very important to say about this matter. He has fumed about his puzzling experiences dealing with students distracted by their cell-phones in class. His findings are based on a book titled, “The Distracted Mind: Ancient Brains in a High-Tech World” written by neuroscientist Adam Gazzaley and psychologist Larry D. Rosen. In reference to Gazzaley and Rosen’s work, Lang writes, “But The Distracted Mind provides a broader context: Distraction occurs, the authors argue, when we are pursuing a goal that really matters and something blocks our efforts to achieve it.” In this sense, Lang is sharing with us that our brain interprets a distraction as a threat. In his case, the goal is learning in class and the cell-phone is the distraction. Since our brain is actually incapable of multitasking, we switch back and forth between the lecture in class and the conversation we are having through text (or Snapchat, Twitter, Facebook, etc). However, these distractions hinder our abilities to hold conversations and communicate with others, thus, contributing to the muteness between us Scholars. In particular, being distracted by your cell-phone makes it nearly impossible to converse with those around us, and cell-phones are often the reason valuable conversations are interrupted and discontinued. When we are walking to class, having dinner with our families after school, or even on a date, we cannot resist taking out our cell-phones, even in the very middle of conversation. For example, if you were to get on the subway, what’s the first thing you would do once you sit down? If your answer is somewhere along the lines of, “Check my phone,” then you might see what it is that I’m trying to convey. In return, others are less likely to approach you if your eyes are glued to your phone screen. This all adds to our mute conversation, something of which we shouldn’t ignore.
But what has research in science concluded about distraction? As Lang explains, Gazzaley and Rosen’s arguments is that, “distraction actually arises from a conflict between two fundamental features of our brain: our ability to create and plan high-level goals versus our ability to control our minds and our environment as we take steps to complete those goals.” The essence of Gazzaley and Rosen’s argument is that our goal setting abilities are well in place, but our cognitive control abilities are limited. In other words, we have the mental capacity to think about completing these goals but we are limited in our ability to follow the steps to actually reach these goals. Hence, the painstaking distractions in our brain. Ah, finally, a scientific explanation that illustrates the true phenomenon of distraction in the human brain. For reference, I might go meet my friend for lunch and plan to pay attention to our conversation, but as soon as my phone goes off, I’m instantly distracted and struggle to provide my undivided attention to my friend. My determination to have an intellectual conversation demonstrates my goal setting ability while struggling to actually pay attention to my friend due to my cell-phone demonstrates my poor cognitive control. My brain starts delegating more energy and attention to my phone than to my fellow Scholar. All it takes is one text or Snapchat and we can’t control ourselves.
As a result of this war against technology and our inabilities to block out distractions––that most commonly stem from cell phone use––our abilities to be successful American Scholars is dwindling before our eyes. We aren’t gaining the vital information through discussion or sharing our thoughts if we’re continually distracted by our cell phones. In return, we cannot share this information with others as Emerson suggests. To that end, we, American Scholars, are at a disadvantage.
But, are we, the American Scholars to blame for this neuropsychological phenomenon? Can we hold ourselves accountable for being so attached to our phones?
As a matter of fact, we can. This never-ending conflict between our cognitive control abilities and our goal setting abilities doesn’t have to persist at the dinner table and most certainly not during times of deep, intellectual discussion. We must assimilate what we are taught and value what we read when it rings true to us in order to discover the bigger and broader side of our truths, and the wise Ralph Waldo Emerson will not make a home in our brains if we aren’t allowing ourselves to absorb them. We must acquire knowledge by immersing ourselves in timeless literature and the historical milestones in science and history, not senseless posts on Twitter or people’s rants on Facebook. We must share this knowledge amongst fellow Scholars, these “facts amidst appearances.” This also means that those awkward silences in elevators should be spent talking about the new pieces published in The Seattle Times, and the time spent waiting for the next train could be spent conversing about your first, freshly written novel. Our habit of scrolling through Instagram and sending Snapchats the very second we acquire the company of others will invite nothing but silence into the air and the muted conversation will become infinite. We need to fill these awkward silences and muteness with enlightening conversation. In order to do that, we need to put down the technology.
If that’s too much to ask, we should at least adjust our use of technology and give it a better purpose. For example, technology has been used to spread information and gain support for the #MeToo movement in the media industry and for women’s rights movements across the nation during the past year. I could also reference a dozen of social media platforms that are created to spread awareness about sexual violence. For instance, a good friend of mine made an Instagram account to spread awareness of the dangers of sexual violence as a project for a class. These are perfect examples that illustrate how technology can be used in a more positive manner which enhances communication instead of debilitating it. We could adjust the way we use technology as a stepping stone to becoming the American Scholar.
Simply put, it’s time that we stop hearing, start listening and sharing––and kill the muted communication––because we aren’t American Scholars if we don’t allow ourselves to grow intellectually and don’t contribute our ingenious thoughts.
Sources:
Emerson, Ralph W. “The American Scholar.” Omeka RSS, digitalemerson.wsulibs.wsu.edu/exhibits/show/text/the-american-scholar
Lang, James M. “The Distracted Classroom.” The Chronicle of Higher Education, The Chronicle of Higher Education, 13 Mar. 2017, www.chronicle.com/article/The-Distracted-Classroom/239446
Cover Image provided by: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/09/07/ecstasy-of-influence
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