Internet: Blessing or Curse? The Debate Rages On - Essay Sample

Introduction

The internet is a double-edged sword, and it is a give-and-take situation; or should it be said nothing good comes along without the bad side? Switch off the internet today, and countless activities will come to a standstill, literary there will be a socioeconomic collapse. The Internet has come along with fundamental benefits that cannot be ignored. Technological proliferation has impacted a huge change in the life of modern man. Since the inception of the internet, life has been made easier, especially in information and communication. In the 21st century, the internet has been enhanced and can now be easily connected to devices wirelessly through the internet, whereby they can be controlled and monitored from a central point remotely. On the contrary, there are notable negative impacts of the internet on individuals. The Internet has led to people becoming lethargic, allowing the internet to think for them and literary do everything for them. The technological advancements that have been aided by the internet have made people lazy physically and mentally. Individuals have been focusing on the good side of the internet without considering the upsetting and injurious effects it has brought to society. Although the internet has been beneficial to human beings by simplifying their lives, there is a great concern about the adverse effects that continue to colonize people's minds.

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Through internet invention, communication has significantly been simplified, meaning the world has been reduced to a global village when communication can be done in real-time regardless of distance. Real-time capabilities have been enabling by the internet in terms of communication and information gathering completely changing people's lives (Wollschlaeger 18). Time has passed when people had to send letters for official purposes and to the loved ones; or perhaps queue in telephone booths to make telephone calls which are now considered outdated. Technology is advancing fast, whereby people can now communicate in real-time both in audio and video calls. Social media platforms like Facebook have facilitated communication and marketing through numerous adverts that are carried out on this platform among other social networks. Social networks have become the most reliable technique of passing information since nearly every individual has access to a smartphone, tablet, or a computer with browser engines to connect to the internet. Therefore, communication has been considerably enhanced connecting people, sharing ideas, and fundamentally contributing to economic growth through improved marketing and other business transactions that are done online to reach many people across the globe.

People can acquire vital information and knowledge from wherever they are through the internet. The Internet has become a universal consultant where people can turn to seek the information they require to perform various tasks or to know something. People no longer rely so much on books that might have obsolete information but have rather turned to the internet, which is highly resourceful with real-time information and latest updates on various developments. Rarely will anyone complete research or survey without consulting online articles that are easily retrievable with all the data required to complete multiple tasks. Distance learning has been a fundamental step in the education sector whereby students do not have to be in schools physically but can connect to the school via the internet where they can access online programs and do online exams and receive their certificates via the internet. Today students do not have to travel overseas for some educational or training programs since these activities can be carried out online from the comfort of one's home or office.The internet's capability of holding voluminous information has immensely contributed to people acquiring useful information in all industries leading to advanced socioeconomic growth and sociocultural diversification. In modern-day, the internet has become a need where all sorts of information are acquired (Tan and Nadee, 1). People have become more skillful and competent in various fields, thus enhancing their efficiency as a result of ample information that is easily accessible on the internet. Therefore, IT has been offered a vital platform by the internet, where people can source all the information they require for various needs.

The latest development is the Internet of objects (IoT), whereby numerous devices have been connected to the cyberspace where acquiring information and sharing it has considerably been abridged. This heterogeneous seamless connectivity of objects and devices has continually simplified human effort while substantially boosting efficacy in all industries. IoT has improved effectiveness, reliability, accuracy, and noteworthy reduction in the cost of goods and services. Information and knowledge acquisition have been pivotal in organizations where innovative ideas can be acquired and shared, leading to proper decision-making hence enhanced efficiency. IoT has crucially improved communication between objects or entities with digital functions through internet provision (Wang et al. 239). IoT has particularly been vital in the healthcare industry where the storage of vital data is simplified, the costs of healthcare services have been remarkably reduced, and the accuracy in diagnostics appreciably enhanced. By the patients and healthcare workers being connected by IoT, services can be offered remotely without the patient necessarily going to the hospital. Therefore, internet has played a remarkable role to humanity and should be encouraged by minimizing adverse effects.

Commerce has been taken to a higher level by the internet, whereby people can transact online without necessarily having to go to business premises physically. Technological proliferation that has been enabled by the internet has led to a major development in the business world where people can buy and sell online with minimal physical movement. Online shopping and banking have facilitated eCommerce where fundamental developments like e-logistics have been incorporated in business. The Internet has completely changed business completely by creating a new environment of online activities like internet banking (Alwan and Abdelhalim 95). A client can simply place an order online, where the order is processed, packaged, transport arranged, and payments are made online without the client having to move out of his/her house or premises. Finally, people no longer have to visit banks to cash or make withdrawals since this can be done in the comfort of a smartphone through online banking, this is also happening to when buying of goods whereby all the arrangements can be made online making transport the only major physical activity involved. Conventionally money was and some extent is still sent by physical means either like letters or carried around in pockets posing risks of theft or robbery. Today there is no need of carrying money around since it can be carried digitally whereby one just need a phone that can access the internet to withdraw money in online bank accounts. This has substantially reduced thefts, pickpocketing, and robberies. Therefore, the merits of the internet are undeniable in facilitating eCommerce.

Despite the internet bringing positive changes on board; there are devastating impacts that have permanently changed individuals and societies. However, the internet has come with devastating effects that have become worrisome to society. The Internet has turned people into robots who can barely think on their own. Accurate reading and understanding books are considered an obsolete method of information and knowledge acquisition. Reading more pages in a book creates a rare discipline mentally where much awareness is enhanced (Carr). People turn to the internet to consult even the simplest things possible since human brains have been trained to use shortcuts to acquire information. People have become shallow minded, and without the internet, they are disabled. Carr states, "The Internet is an interruption system. It seizes our attention only to scramble it" (7). Internet has corrupted the minds of the stuedents affecting their memory retention rate of the acquired information (Syvertsen 88). Schools have embraced the internet in teaching and rarely refer students to library books; rather, they refer them to eBooks. Reading and understanding an entire book has become a nightmare for many people since their brains cannot concentrate for it has been trained to follow a short cut. Carr states that, "Now my concentration often starts to drift after two or three pages. I get fidgety, lose the thread, begin looking for something else to do" (355). Learners can find simplified work on the internet and therefore, what they can acquire is shallow knowledge. The vast information on the internet enables people to tap shallow information lacking proper knowledge (Carr 7). The human brain is plastic like and can take any shape according to the force acting on it; the internet has made the human brain to conform to shallow thinking and performing simple tasks without the internet is becoming a nightmare. Therefore, it is alarming the way individuals are no longer using their brains, but rather relying on the internet to think on their behalf. People should, therefore, make a point of utilizing their brains without necessarily having to consult everything from the internet.

The Internet has caused addiction: hardly a person will concentrate on something without entirely having to check something online and probably have some chats with friends. People have been addicted to phones socializing with friends yet do not even know their immediate neighbors. Easy access to smartphones that are installed with social network applications have contributed to internet addiction (Fidan 452). Smartphones have become so cheap in modern-day and therefore, affording one is easy. The issue of these internet connectable devices has facilitated internet addiction unlike close to two decades ago when most people could only access internet in cyber cafes. Having no internet connection makes one feel detached from the world and would do anything to get connected. Smith 423 states, "the Net's influence doesen't end at the edges of a computer screen, either. As people's minds become attuned to the crazy quilt of Internet media, traditional media have to adapt to the audience's new expectations." Many online social groups like on Facebook and WhatsApp among other social networks have been formed where individuals are in constant chatting to friends and family members making them forget their surroundings since their brains have been hijacked from the internet. Engaging in other constructive activities has been a problem since most of the free time people are online. Online or internet addiction has facilitated many relationship breakups since individuals rarely have time for their partners because all they think is catching up with what is happening on the internet. Significant time has been lost, especially in places of work where workers take most of the time online doing unprofitable things like chatting with friends. While the internet is useful in improving efficiency, it's badly used has detrimentally affected staff input slowing productivity as a result of time wastage doing unnecessary stuff online, thereby wasting employers resources. It is, therefore, time that people should use the internet appropriately without forgetting other fundamentals facets of life that require attention. Other essential activities can be undertaken outside the internet like sports, making friends, having a good time with loved ones, and engaging in various hobbies to avoid internet addiction.

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