Living in the age of technology, it is very easy to keep our eyes glued on the future and what it has in store for us as a species but it also means that we seldom look back and appreciate how far we’ve come already.
When was the last time you discussed among friends and family about how much the world has changed in recent times in contrast to discussing where we are headed and how our lives would be in the future? I certainly do it a lot less than I would like to.
Technology really has a habit of constantly changing our lives. A person, within his lifetime, experiences such ‘different worlds’ from his childhood to his old age, that it almost feels like we have started experiencing 500 years worth of progress within a lifetime of a person. Such is the pace of technology.
Technology - The Changer of the World
Like most parents, my parents like to share stories about their childhood, which I just love to hear. It really paints a picture in my head as to how life was, back in the 70s and 80s.
Some of the things that they have told me really made me realise how easy our lives have become over the course of just a few decades and has made me appreciate my life even more.
They have seen and lived through days when they had no telephone, no TV, no internet and of course none of the modern day devices that have become a part and parcel of our daily lives and that we can’t live without.
This is the power of technology. It is constantly changing the world for the better and making life just that much easier to live. Convenience has surely been one of the biggest gifts of technology.
We Lead Comfortable Lives, But Are We Peaceful?
There is no doubt that the current generation of people live the most comfortable lives in the history of humanity. Just think about all the facilities that are available to us at any given time thanks to the internet, smartphone and other fruits of technology.
Despite all this, what we can all observe in the world today, is that we are not really peaceful. No, I am not talking about war and stuff. I am talking about contentment, happiness, joy and peace in day to day life.
We all know how fast paced today’s world is. In a way, the world has become a large factory, and we, robots working on the production line. I can’t help but feel how human life has become monotonous, stressful, suffocating and tiring.
Compare that to the lives our parents and grandparents lived, and the stark difference becomes even clearer. Granted they had a lot less facilities or convenience, but they sure were peaceful and life certainly didn’t feel more like a chore.
I think this is one of those side effects of technology where in trying to make lives better, easier, healthier, more fun, it ends up incorporating all the opposites anyways. Ironical really, how that worked out.
Will We Ever Know Peace?
The thing is, the pace of technology keeps on getting faster and faster. That means even more rapid change. Sure it will bring a lot of good with it but I wonder if it will make life more stressful or less.
Right now, one of the biggest side-effects of developing technology is the loss of jobs due to increasing automation. This will get severe in the future and that will be another source of stress for humanity.
But as they say, every cloud has a silver lining and this might just end up as an opportunity to rethink our economic structure where we wouldn’t need to spend most of our life working for a living.
Programmes like Universal Basic Income or blockchain technologies like Bitcoin and Steemit can help immensely in that regard. Maybe technology will help solve its own side effects one day and humanity will finally know peace.
For now, if the elderly people tell you how easy you have it today, tell them how peaceful they had it in their days!!
All images are taken from the public domain.
wow, thank you so much for making this audio comment. This is so thoughtful!! I really love it.
Also, I agree with you. Still remaining yourself in this world of technology is a must. Losing yourself is losing your peace of mind.
No but if you consider that the population has increased several billions of people and that technology has spread everywhere. There is less physical connection with others and it not so simple to connect with others. I think if we can use the old values listen to others and learn to relax. Thanks for the post and have a nice day.
Yeah, we definitely need to inculcate some of the old values in our lives. We can't keep doing away with them just for the sake of moving forward.
What about the pace of virtual reality,from what i saw from the google i/o event a few months ago on the social vr side.. it seems we'll have a more connected populace, and projects like onewebs global gigabit network. Elon Musk also is planning on launching a global satellite gigabit network... not forgetting about google's and facebooks plans as well. Most people i know hate their jobs anyway. With the current breakneck growth in the pace of blockchain technology, UBI seems more and more attainable. Hopefully, the transition period isnt too much stress..
You really hit a nerve here sauravrungta! This is a major demur of our advanced society.
I often times hear the elderly say that life was better in the old days. I wonder if we will be saying the same thing..
It seems like pace and progress like profit, development and expansion are the most sacred values of modern day society. It is as though progress is being worshiped like a new age god by a lot of companies and career minded people.
I wonder what the costs have been? What did we have in the old days which we no longer possess.
Maybe:
Time?
Peace of mind?
Close family ties?
Ties to a community?
Basically it is as though we have neglected a lot of those things we valued the most before everything was judged by a progress standard.
At the same time the importance of the elderly is decreasing in our modern society. Back in the days old people were regarded as wise. Today in our fast paced society their opinions are rarely wanted.
Maybe we should in fact listen more to the wise of our world, those who lived in a time a little less stressful than today
Take care
ronni
I think the ties to a community are a big one. At least in the millennial generation, people are so caught up on social media and video games that they never get to know those in their community.
School friends and families? Yes. But other than that...not much.
It's unfortunate. I remember coming home when the street lights turned on around dinner time.
I hardly ever see kids out and about playing in my neighborhood anymore. I do, however, see them all on their phones nearly all the time.
Agreed 100% with what you have to say. We should listen more to the elderly because they have seen the old world and the new and we can definitely learn A LOT from them if we only 'listened'. Looks like nobody wants to do that today.
Investing in crypto as well as in other business ventures have made my life more enjoyable because I have more time to do the things I enjoy. I no longer have to work all day for Income. You could use technology to your benefit. A hammer could either make a house or break it down. Just depends on your needs. Technology should be used in a very similar matter, only for your benefit. I always loved the idea of getting a tattoo of a robot holding a plant in his hand. Gives the idea or thought that nature and tech could become one. Living a life surrounded by nature and tech is a balanced life in my point of view. Great article! It was vastly enjoyed!
Thank you for such a wonderful comment. I completely agree. Technology could be used either ways. What we are witnessing today that is leading to a lack of peace of mind is due to the misuse of tech.
Very Interesting
Thank you! :)
I have to admit that before the mass technology craze, I was more peaceful with life in general. It was easy to enjoy simple everyday life. We had less choices to make and greatly enjoyed what was available to us.
Having those experiences these days feels more like an escape and oftentimes that escape brings with it a level of uncomfortness for being so detached from what we've become accustomed to.
I do miss the good old days but equally enjoy the adventure of how far we can reach.
Perfectly said. It does feel like an escape when we are not amidst technology and it is really refreshing. But we are also addicts and start feeling the discomfort.
i like it.
good work.
Thank you :)
We can't be "the most comfortable" generation because we don't know what will be tomorrow. Maybe people will be living in a virtual universe very soon? Or maybe Mars will be much more comfortable?
The questions that you are considering arise in the minds of people for a very long time. Comfort and happiness look different in the eyes of different people (and different generations).
By "most comfortable" I mean all the facilities and comforts of life we have thanks to tech.
Once again a wonderful post from you. I can say we are a comfortable generation but we are surely not the peaceful one. Upvoted.
Thank you so much :)
No ???
I think Every generation thinks that way !!!
They are the most ..........
In a way, that is correct. Each generation is more influenced by tech than its predecessors. So, when I say our is the most comfortable but not peaceful, it still holds true!
meep
Great post 'For now, if the elderly people tell you how easy you have it today, tell them how peaceful they had it in their days' . i'm an optimist and i believe everyone would know peace irrespective of the side effects of technology.
That's nice :)
Doesn't everything move so fast? I was the first of my peer group to have a cell phone back in 1996. 16 years old playing on an ice hockey team and nobody else had one. In fact, they were making fun of me a little bit for having one.
Now, I have a love-hate relationship with tech, especially standard social media. I think it's remarkable that we can communicate and share stories with millions of people instantaneously as we do, but when I use standard social media, I quickly feel overwhelmed, it's too restrictive. For some reason, I don't feel that way with Steemit. I enjoy contributing my thoughts to this open-minded community.
I love to listen to the likes of Michio Kaku and Ray Kurzweil speak about the future and every time I do they are making some heinous predictions. I remember in 2011 listening to a youtube clip where Kaku said one day we would be able to Livestream our life and anyone in the world would be able to watch it. Check that one off :)!!
Although I don't agree with Kurzweil's position on bitcoin, he has made some incredibly accurate predictions but has admitted he isn't right on everything. Check out this essay he wrote on the status of his predictions over the past quarter of a century ending 2009.
http://www.kurzweilai.net/predictions/download.php
Out of 147 predictions made in the 80's and 90's ending 2009
78% entirely correct
8% essentially correct
12% partially correct
2% wrong
Kurzweil believes that we are in the joint of an elbow curve of exponential advancement. My point is I think we need to embrace it, focus on promoting and strengthening the positives of technology. Because we're going to see things that we now can't even comprehend that will seem completely normal at the moment.
The truth is we will always find challenge in everything we do because it's human nature. We're on this Hedonic Treadmill, we get used to positive things very quickly, and will always find something that ails us, pushing for further growth and development. Things may have been easier back in the day from our perspective, but to me, that doesn't make sense because if people that lived back then didn't feel a sense of struggle or adversity, we wouldn't be where we are today. Thank you for your inspiration. Wishing you well.
P.S. I can't wait for a universal basic income, free my time up to work on more creative outlets and things I want to do. Some countries (i.e. Sweden) already provide a basic income; they just don't call it that. A friend of mine just took a new job, but before that, she was going to be going back to school, and the government was going to pay her $1000 per month to cover basic needs while she improved herself and her ability to contribute to society.
You and I have basically the same mind it seems :D
I listen to Kurzweil too from time to time and though some predictions may sound "too out there", I believe that they will still come true. Who could have thought that self driving cars will be here already!!! I had thought it would take them like 20 years or so.
UBI will be an interesting watch. I done correctly, it has the potential to free up the masses to pursue their dream career and it will unlock SO MUCH of human potential that we cannot even imagine right now. Just think about what that will do to the world!
Yes, I agree. My friends and my wife haha can get a bit impatient with my wonder of the future. But I love it. I could talk about it all day long. We are going to see some amazing shit very soon here, but will it just feel normal when it happens?
Ha brother shi hai bilkul.
sbse shi life jirhe h .
@sauravrungta
Thank you for reading :)
Technology is also killing us.
We are just dependent on gadgets and all stuff. This is worst part about technology. @sauravungta
Yeah, tech is really being misused today or over-used to be precise.
Nice artical brother..
Thank you! :)
U r welcome..keep it up ur good work
Not the most peaceful, animals are more peaceful than us human.
Yeah, sometimes I think so too.
very true even animals are more peaceful than human
Very honest fact my friend
What I like about my generation is that we are no longer at war. I pray every day that it will never happen again and that all wars will cease in the world.
We've been at war for as long as I can remember
Sure we do not have world wars but look at the middle east. Humanity has constantly been at war with itself.
We have some easy life.
With this new age of technology it makes our lives way easier as we no longer have to navigate with a map or struggle to communicate with our friends
Technology has brought a huge portion of the world to the point they don't know how to properly communicate anymore.
Glued to our phones...as I type this on my Samsung
Sad really
Yeah. The problem is we are misusing and overusing this technology and it has resulted in us losing our peace of mind.
Good post! I'll definitely tell the grandparents that line the next time I hear them talking about how millennials have it too easy, lol.
haha, you should ;)
People are always looking for ( how can i have much money, how can i have more love, how can i have a bigger car house ...) we have a better life but we dont want to be happy with what we already have. So we are always looking for much much much of everything.
It's ok to look for growth in life but we should also learn to appreciate life itself otherwise there will be no meaning to it. Tech is really not helping in that matter.
We are the most agressive generation .
I have felt this on many occasions too, unfortunately.
We have conveniences and comforts yes. Those comforts have encouraged us to become more self-centered or self -absorbed. In a former day we had to work harder for what we had...whether that was dinner or washing or even typing. Working harder encouraged patience and gratitude. Because we do not have that environment our comforts have led to selfishness which has led to doing whatever it takes to have what we want....manipulation, misrepresentation, anger, and even war. Yes our lack of peace...our inability to get along is a direct result of conveniences and self centeredness. The focus is on us and not others. You will also see that we are not as happy as we once were. Again we once were concern about others. Taking the focus off ourselves to others or our higher power produces joy. WE SEE THE PROBLEM WHY WILL WE NOT DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT??????? We are too selfish and lazy. Necessity is the mother of invention. We have not had to do anything because there is no necessity to do something. No emergency no big event to trigger the need to change. Thanks for the article LOVE IT. - Troy
Wow, beautifully said. Yes, tech has unfortunately given rise to these problems and I am not sure what could solve this. I just hope we are in a better world tomorrow than today. At the end of the day that is all that matters.
Very well said. Nowadays it is very difficult to talk to own friends properly as everyone is so busy with cell phone , Snapchat, Whatsapp, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. I was talking to one of my friend about homework and suddenly he took out his phone and started checking stories of snapchat. And he is said to me "bro carry on I am listening" but actually he is not.
We have lot the patience and respect for other people dude to technology.
I did one thing to get away from it is log out all social media from cellphone. As now I don't receive notification again and again and I don't check my cell phone.
Nice post sir :)
Online social media is definitely a big part of what is wrong with the current generation. We are busy checking notifications all the time craving for that little attention that we get. Everything is about instant gratification now and therefore no peace of mind!!
Interesting article, it's reminds me what Bruce Benamran, said in one video ( the one of the 1st april ) that at the time where we live, the truth is not goal, people now want to be in adequacy with them. This is a resulting of the perpetual questioning of the human being and of the increase of new technologies. There are more and more subjects on which to question.
yeah, no rest for the weary it seems.
I am addicted to technology. I literally go crazy if I don't have electricity or signal. I can't live without my phone and laptop. I even take my tablet to the beach....believe me I keep up as best as I can lol!
And that is the source of our lack of peace. We are "too connected". We need to plug out and appreciate life in all its glory.
That ....will kill me...no only joking. I agree with you. I live a very peaceful life close to the beach so I get a lot of peace and quiet. I am in fact very sound sensitive so I prefer quiet. But I also put my phone on silent when I sit there and I take the most beautiful photos just because of technology...LOL
hehe they are unavoidable. But it's nice that you are living a lot more peaceful life than most people will ever experience.
I do actually...I love going to the beach and just sit there and listen to the waves...water calms me. I work from home and I am actually very happy and content. I truly am lucky to be where I am.
The sea calms me too. Especially at the night when the waves are constantly hitting those rocks. The sound it makes is pure nature. You are so lucky :D
We're the most selfish, but not the most peaceful by any means
people in our generation think things should be handed to them because this is the lesson that they have learned from people and things around them
ive seen young people at protests breaking peoples noses and throwing rocks at police, that is as far as possible from being peaceful
Yup. It's almost as if the younger generation has lost its way. I know that's over-generalising stuff but we see it happening more and more.
I certainly don't see the peace as the world has gone from macro to micro, soon we might be nano haha! So many things going on that I don't think is bringing peace. For example, the drops hours ago!?!?!? But on the more serious note, wall street is old school trading today. Now there's a 24-7 trading market for the globe. Like WHUT? Opportunities increasing, peace not so much though. Cheers!
#follow4follow
You definitely nailed it. The macro to micro is a big problem. Nobody likes to see the bigger picture today.
But we pay better attention to small detail. Pros and cons all around. So happens one of those cons is the disruption of peace.
Completely agree. Technology has solved many problems for our society, but in the place of old struggles, we "fabricate" new ones. And I put that in quotes because sometimes they're founded. Many times, though, it's like the child who is given everything they ever ask for, yet isn't satisfied. It's easy to focus on that one little negative thing when there isn't a big one to take your focus.
Loved your article. Following and excited to see more from you in the future.
Yeah, we keep creating more and try to solve them but create even more! A vicious cycle.
Thanks for the follow. Followed you too :)
Striving for contentedness is the best way to go!
Nice chair.
I wish it were mine lol
Nice post! Only the technology based on humanity may be helpful to get both comfortable and peaceful. Thanks for giving a chance to think about life again~:D
haha technology might end up finding a solution to this as well. Just hope it doesn't end up creating more problems lol
Hope so~!! :D
This is really important stuff.
Yup, it is :)
Interesting Post! I am part of the older generation, and I don't necessarily think that there is more stress today than in earlier years. I totally agree with what you say about technology being a disrupter, but quite frankly technology has been a disrupter since we began harnessing electricity.
I think that the only people that are stressed by the rapid changes in technology are the people that resist it. Either get on board, or get passed by. We need to learn to embrace the change and explore the new opportunities that are created through the adoption.
I see that you are looking at it from a different view point and that is completely fine. My view was more towards the lack of peace that comes from the overuse and misuse of technology that we see in the case of millennials.
I enjoyed this post, and totally agree about this generation being more comfortable and yet more restless/happy/peaceful. I never had much technology in my life till about 8-10 yrs ago, and I must say, it does have the ability to impact my contentment a lot!
There needs to be a balance and people NEED to maintain and create REAL relationships with REAL physical people more. We can't spend our lives on computers and social medias, etc. or, as many of the youngers seem to have already, forget how to communicate and care as humans ought.
OK, thats enough rambling! :D Maybe I should write a post about it too :P
Thanks again for the post.
You are right. It looks like we are shifting away from REAL and going VIRTUAL in so many different aspects of life.
Great article, you're right that we should talk more about evolving technology with our relatives, especially the older ones. Most of them are already "afraid" of some new technologies and not talking about it with them won't help them.
yup, it will help everyone. The elders will get more understanding about the benefits and the newer generation will understand how good they have it and also the importance of staying away from tech every once in a while.
One of the big difference in past generation and present is that now a days people have more information and more lust for the facilities and comfortness that they become more eager
yeah, desire for a better more comfortable life has definitely pushed this lifestyle further.
like Adam Conover said in this conference
Millennials and other generations don't exist. We are all just people
That's true that we are all people but the difference in generations cannot be ignored.
This comfort is a trap. Big time. Start preparing for massive unexpected hardship asap.
Great post,but I don't really agree in these times it's really easy to get money on live of it, there are less jobs but so many new ways to earn money, social media, surveys, online jobs, You have access to so much information that you can teach yourself a new job.
We have more ways to distress ourselves than ever again. Sure life was simpler before (you were born in a butcher family, you know already what you will do all your life ). But I think it's easier to be peacefull in this one.
As for the lack of jobs and the economics related to it, I believe we should change the economic system to the universal income.
I really think it has gotten more stressful these days. It's fine that you don't agree :)
Yes! It's super interesting. Being 27 years old and the main thing I am asking for lately is inner peace. But I believe in it. So many things I have been asking for in terms of world peace are coming true thanks to technology, no, actually thanks to all the people who are wishing the same thing and working on it and actually living it. I so much see it coming true, that in time of my life time whole world will live in harmony. Even though the question arises, what is next? After world peace and harmony? After peace and harmony in me? My mind cannot comprehend this yet. So, peace and harmony in me first and then will see.
Life today is not easy at all... It is soooo complicated.. It sooo hard... Nothing today is easy... Even when you are just a child. It is really depressing not to have an easy and intresting life.
haha I know right!! I hope we can all find a way!
i do agree we are most comfortable and in some ways that make many of us peacefully ignoring a lot of things around us but there are still so much violence that I don't we are most peaceful.
That's exactly what I was trying to say. Thanks for reading man :)
You're welcome
Enlightenment is the only answer.
Oh yes. But it is a difficult path.
It is so ironic. I was just thinking about this the other day, longing to get away and UNPLUG, because unplugging = peace. Great article-- you certainly made a follower out of me.
Thanks for those kind words :) Unplugging is the best way to achieve peace. Unfortunately we live in a world where we are sort of dependent on being plugged in. Thanks for the follow. Followed back :)
Deep post!! I agree with you.
Thank you for reading :)
Well, also priorities have changed alot in recent years.
The thresholds on which we build our happiness ans define oir success and failures have shifted away from real things like family, friends, community to the fickle things technology and globalization has served us as metrices for success and happiness
Great piece. Kudos
You are absolutely right. That's exactly what has happened.
Excellent thought provoking post. I'm in the technology space and I guard my peace at all cost. Technology changed our way of living, it keeps us distracted and being dragged away from what's worthwhile e.g. our health, our mental and spiritual well-being, families, friend or just people around us...human experience...
yeah, we are getting detached from the things that matter and that's the source of our unrest.
Always peaceful just help others
Yeah :)
The baby boomers fucked this world up so bad. Once they all die things will get better.
and their children too. They all need to go and you will see great change just watch. We just had to pass through some piss ant generations who were pieces of shit.
The world is advancing in science and technology, we all should advance with it.