Life in a Global Village

Thanks to the Internet the world has become somewhat of a global village; people from all across the world are able to instantly and easily converse with each other in cyberspace. The communication device of choice for many is email because they are a fast, free and convenient way to send messages or letters and possibly replacing the traditional mail.

Naturally this ease of communication has had and likely will have profound effects. For instance, in the business world deals can be made easily through emails, messaging and even video conferencing something that was of course not available during the industrial age. Even mobile phone technology has made it possible for people to check for messages and send messages on the go, thus allowing everyone to be connected 24/7.

The Internet has even changed the way people socialize. With the revolutionary ease of communication people can start socializing without even meeting face to face yet and each person only has the information that the other person is willing to give. This may cause both parties to have unrealistic expectations of each other.

Technological advantages are not the only results; there can also be negative implications. Some feel that the personal messages that used to be delivered face to face are now implemented through the cold impersonal means of email. This has effectively reduced socialization within the office, thus contributing to the weakening of bonds within the workplace. There have been attempts to personalize the technical approach to conversation, such as the invention of smileys or emoticons, cute personal graphics that can be used to reinforce tones and emotions in communications. In addition, emails and video conferences, in spite of their conveniences, just cannot entirely replace the warmth of a person’s handshake or physical presence.

While deals may be initially negotiated through emails many businessmen would still like to view people face to face in order to get a better feel of things before committing to a deal.

Technology has made a tremendous impact on society as well as on the quantity and manner in which we communicate with each other. So, while the ease of communication has been improved our lives may have become more impersonal as a result. Sort of ironic that we are ever-increasingly connected in todays globalized world but are further isolated from friends and family as a result of the new technologies of the information age.