Wheel was among the first human inventions to cut down the human labour. Since then, men’s curiosity and meticulous efforts have helped him for new inventions and discoveries in every field. In today’s modern age of technology, new gadgets or gizmos are being introduced almost each day to make our lives simple. But in this rage of making life simpler, gone are the days when the built and strength of a human body was comparable or in some way more than that of the strongest animals. Modern gadgets are indeed making the human kind lazy and more disease prone.
A gadget is a device or appliance having a unique purpose and function. Right from the time we open our eyes in the morning, till the time we sleep, we use endless number of gadgets. Such is the way these have entered in our lives that nowadays, human beings cannot do a simple work without taking help of a gadget. No one wants to go back to the days when there was no television, no washing machines and certainly, no mobile phones. True, modern gizmos have made our lives better, but it can also ruin our lives if we allow them to.
Instead of running or jogging in fresh air, today people prefer to run on a treadmill. The joy of getting soiled in playground during football session has been taken over by joysticks of playstations. Walking a short distance to meet a friend or to buy things from grocery stores have been replaced by use of big sedan cars. Most of the field research has been taken over by a click of a button. Libraries are losing their identity.
Nutrient-rich diet has been replaced by tinned, canned or preserved food. All these things have one thing in common: mellowing down the labour done by man. Besides physical laziness, modern gadgets have also led to mental laziness.
Today’s so called ‘smart generation’ seems to be oblivious of the disability rendered by these gadgets. Even for simple calculations, one cannot do without using a calculator. Instead of engaging in physical activities, one would prefer to spend long hours sitting comfortably on the couch watching television. Social media has made communication so easy that one doesn’t feel the need to actually speak to a person.
The shortcuts of communicating through networking sites like Facebook and Twitter have done away with our traditional social obligations. All the household chores are now done by gizmos or machines be it washing clothes or utensils. Infact the day is not far when all the household work will be done by robots or machines and people will have more time to do nothing and become more lazy.
In the past, children and young people utilised their free time by reading books, socialising, or engaging in active or creative play. A fixation on gadgets reduces participation in all of these, especially the aspect of creativity. Digital worlds can be vast, but they are always structured, not requiring the imagination and inventiveness of unstructured play. Some children become less creative and less able to entertain themselves. Their minds become numbed by the constant onslaught of varied and useless information.
Also most of the people are unaware of the fact that almost all the modern gadgets powered by electric, electronic or battery sources produce electromagnetic field or EMF. According to the scientists, radiations from the EMFs can be disruptive to the human body. Like X-rays these waves are not blocked or weakened by objects in their way. These radiations are emitted from most of the things like laptops, computers, mobile phones, electronic or battery employing toys causing headaches, tiredness or even immune system disorders. Additionally a recent study by a Finnish scientist found a 40% increase in the risks of brain tumour for those who use mobile phones extensively for more than 10 years.
Evidently human being are becoming addictive to these modern gizmos. All the adults as well as toddlers need therapy to kick the habit and get their lives back. To sum up, although, the countless advantages of modern technology can’t be denied, we should exercise moderation to avoid countless disadvantages of our cherished gadgets.
