What is communication? Do whales communicate? Do birds? Do
atoms? Does DNA communicate? What would you suggest as the limits to
communication? When does a failure of human communication occur?
From neurons firing to electrical pulses to carrier pigeons and
beyond, the ability to communicate has always been a driving force of the
world. But what does communication mean in the growing technical powerhouse
that is today’s world? The basic concept of a message being conveyed and
received, has been morphed and shifted by the constant evolution of technology
that continues to leap forward every day. The introduction of mobile phones and
the internet, has seen our ability to connect become more accessible and
widespread than ever before, and as of 2013 more than 1.6 Billion people around
the globe have accounts on social media sites such as Facebook, Myspace,
Twitter and Instagram (Wang, 2014). Because of this, every thought can be
documented and shared with the world… but is that a good thing? This essay will examine how technology has evolved from
concepts found in nature, the way that modern social media sites have changed
how we communicate and what effect these changes have on the average person.
Many of our technological advances mimic concepts from nature and the
ways in which animals interact and network with each other including sonar
(bats and Dolphins), cable networks (Tree roots), and Wireless networks. While
many animals have evolved in such ways that allow them to connect using
chemical and olfactory signals, human society has taken these methods of
information sharing and redesigned them using electricity and radio waves to
operate on a worldwide scale. In the most basic form an information network
exists when a signal is intercepted by more than one receiver and multiple
signals reach a receiver at the same time (Sreedharan, 2006). Using this model
as a base, humans have developed the ability to share ideas around the world in
real-time, giving unprecedented accessibility to facts, figures and much more
through search engines like Google.
Now in the 21st century researchers are still finding inspiration
and fresh ways to refine or redesign technology based on observations of animal
behaviour and relationships. Researchers from the Polytechnic University of
Catalonia have devised an algorithm to streamline existing wireless networks
from the calls of the male Japanese Tree Frog (Telecommunications weekly, 2012).
This study comes from an area of Artificial Intelligence (AI) known as “Swarm
Intelligence” in which multiple agents are used to design intelligent systems,
based on the way animal societies such as Bee hives, Ant colonies and in this
instance, frogs cooperate (Telecommunications weekly, 2012). Although
technology is man-made and often times at odds with nature, many of the
technologies used by people every day are inspired by natural phenomenon.
Scientists have observed these patterns or abilities in nature, and in turn
have been inspired to design new innovative ways for individuals to stay
connected.
The internet has come to play an enormous role in the way people
communicate and spread material throughout the world. Social media and
platforms such as YouTube make up a huge part of the way the developed world
communicates, with 100 hours of video uploaded to YouTube every minute (Google
Inc, 2014). The introduction of handheld devices has had a particularly large
impact. Stories of civil uprisings, told through mobile phone videos online
that have made their way into television news, have helped gather official
international support for movements that have seen tyrannical governments collapse
(Longo, 2013).
However since the birth of the internet in 1969, and its major
diffusion throughout developed countries in the 90’s, Internet addiction
Disorder (a term coined by Dr Ivan Goldberg in 1995) has become a largely
debated topic among mental health professionals (Flisher, 2010). While not
formally recognized by the World health Organisation, a study by Dr Kimberly
young in 1995 comparing the symptoms of internet addiction to those of
compulsive gambling showed many parallels between the two. A 2009 journal
article published on the JAMA Network paediatrics page, gives estimates that as
many as 1 in 8 adults in America are addicted to the internet (Christakis &
Moreno, 2009), while another study from 2010 puts rates of addiction in North
America and Europe between 1.5% and 8.2% (Weinstein & Lejoyeux, 2010.). The lack of a strict diagnostic criteria makes it difficult to
gauge exactly how prevalent internet addiction is worldwide, but the current
data suggests between 1 in 8 and 1 in 12 in North America. This shows that
although the internet is a fantastic tool for spreading information globally,
especially with the advent of portable devices, it does not come without its
dangers.
With the introduction of social media, every thought, image, song or
article that catches someone’s attention can be shared. Although this can mean
that despite the incredible power of social media to spread useful information,
it can get lost among selfies, viral videos and the favourite songs of friends.
With the increasing popularity of these sites, there has been some concern
raised by the relationship between social media use and an array of personality
disorders. A study from the University of Michigan found a link between
narcissism and social media use, but were unable to ascertain if narcissism
caused an increased use of social media or if social media caused the increase
in narcissism (UAE Government News, 2013). Whether social media is the cause of
these tendencies or simply another window through which people can enact their
search for self-gratification, the increasing use of social media is being tied
to more and more personality disorders. Social media use has also been linked
with cases of low self-esteem with a study by the University of Gothenburg in
Sweden discovered a “significant negative relationship between increased
Facebook use and decreased self-esteem” levels (Williams, R).
Despite the vast array of technology at our disposal, our increasing
reliance on it poses potential problems. Internet connections, while getting
better, are liable to cut out at the most inconvenient times, phones lose
reception, power grids go down. So what can we do when these roads of communication
are closed to us? 55% of our face-to-face communication with people is told
through our body language, 38% through inflection and tone of voice, and only
7% with the words we use (Plessis & Plessis, 2008). With this in mind how
can instant messenger or a status update convey the full scale of our ability
to communicate effectively? This loss of 93% of our communication could lead to
a future where people are unable to express themselves fully because they don’t
know how. This is a huge limit of communication for mankind and it is entirely
man-made and fuelled.
Technology is still a big mystery to many people and its limits are a
mystery to the majority. In 1999 there was an enormous scare that the turn of
the millennium would see computer systems fail worldwide. Terrified people considered
pulling all their assets out of the stock market and into cash, gold or
collectibles (Most, 1998). The “millennium bug” problem had people all over the
world fearing the monumental collapse of the world economy, all because of a
perceived limit of one of the biggest communication tools in human history.
Communication comes in many forms, and the evolution of human
communication has been full of amazing innovations such as the telephone and
the internet that have totally revolutionized the way we stay in touch with the
world. From technological advances inspired by natural phenomenon to the
outrageously popular social media sites, it has been a long journey since the
days where face-to-face contact was the only option. While the growth of
communication technologies has connected the world like never before, allowing
the flow of information from opposite sides of the globe in real-time, it does
not come without its dangers. Like anything it must be used in moderation. As a
tool there is nothing like the internet for sharing knowledge and keeping the
world in contact, but people must be careful and be aware of the potential for self-esteem
issues resulting from overuse.
References
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