Although cellular phones have been around for a little over forty years, “smart” phones have only been around for about ten. These advanced cell phones have increased capabilities and functionality when compared to their original counterparts, which could only perform basic functions, such as calling and later, texting (mobile phones have been around since 1983, but text messaging launched in the United States in 1995). Over this past decade, as the capability and functionality of these devices has increase, so has human dependency upon them in day-to-day life. Cell phone users today depend on their phones for Internet connection, communication, current events, or whatever else they have personalized their device to do for themselves. This increased dependency comes with a growing detachment from society, because many people today are so addicted to the use of their cell phone that they spend most of their time looking at their phones or listening to music on their phones when out in public instead of socializing. As Nicholas Carr tells us in “The Shallows”, these innovations can be “anti-intellectual” , because we no longer need to make a point of learning information, we can often search for it on the web in less than a minute on these devices whenever we need the information. People born in the “age of technology” may not see these changes in human nature as distinctly as those born a few generations earlier do, because the older people have a better understanding of life before the smart phone. In the following, I will explain why smart phones, while being universally useful and helpful in navigating today’s life, are having a negative effect on the human brain.
One major concern about modern cell phones, or smart phones is that their extensive functionality serves to distract users from the world around them. Before this age of smart phones, if you wanted to look at yourself, you had to go to a mirror. If you wanted to play video games, you had to buy a video game console, or go to an arcade. If you wanted to do research for an essay, you had to go to a library or actively find research materials. However, all in the past ten years, all of these capabilities have become built into a slab of plastic, glass, and metal that conveniently fits in the palm of your hand. Smart phones today are capable of almost an uncountable number of functions. For example, they can operate interchangeably as calculators, cameras, notepads, maps, newspapers, flashlights, and music players, to name a few. The combined cost of these things is more than that of a cell phone, which only serves to intensify the human addiction to them. In a personal interview with my forty-three year old uncle, Shaun Richards, he told me that he believes phones are “addictive and distractive, and are possibly destroying basic human functions and social interaction” (Richards par. 5). He believes that the common person does not need a cell phone, and that only those who have large businesses to manage or oversee do. He says this because the average person is too likely to get caught up in the usefulness of his phone, and be less productive. Also, byproducts of increased human cell phone usage, such as bank tellers, phone operators, toll booth workers, and other jobs being replaced by technology makes it harder for people to survive, which has a clear negative effect. When I interviewed my twenty-one year old brother, Darkim Miller, he told me that he feels cell phones have a profoundly negative effect on a person’s attention span, because of the “social footprint” people are desperate to leave nowadays (Miller par. 3). In his day-to-day life, he says, “it’s like most people are spending their actual life just waiting for their next notification, instead of living their real lives” (Miller par. 5). This, he feels, causes a rift between people on a daily basis that was not previously there. Nowadays there is much less of a window for basic interaction, because people may be tuning out the outside world entirely while intently engaging the device in their hands. Because of this, he feels people are becoming less empathetic towards one another and are losing the ability to communicate with people outside of the Internet.
Ironically, although cell phones were invented to augment our ability to communicate with one another, they can be a constant interruption in face to face communication. People today are likely to check their messages, watch a funny video, or take a call in the middle of a conversation, which can leave a bad impression on the person speaking to them and give both people a warped perception of one another. In an experiment conducted by students at the Public Library of Science, the conclusion was drawn that “One consequence of inattention and distraction during human communication is the disruption of ostension. Ostensive signals, which include among others directing gaze, raising the eye-brows and changing the tone of voice, constitute a natural protocol to convey pertinence in human communication” (Lopez-Rosenfield 6). In this experiment, which involved a large audience of people being put into one on one conversation scenarios, they were able to deduct that not giving someone your full attention while they are speaking to you may hinder your ability to understand them, because you may miss minor details about the subject or the body language the speaker is trying to convey, which can have major effects on what you find important in the story and shape the way you view what they said. The speaker, on the other hand, may feel less inclined to give these ostensive signals to the listener, which may diminish their overall attitude toward speaking at all, leaving them dissatisfied with the conversation and perhaps even the listener themselves.
These changes to our interactions and social patterns brought about by smart phones have also begun to affect the way humans think and memorize things. Being able to find information at the press of a button, or being able to pay for things with your cell phone, or keeping up with all your favorite celebrities’ lives by following their social media profile has made a lot of people today very short term thinkers. There is not much need to bother remembering things when most of the useful information is already on an outsourced memory. As Nicholas Carr tells us, “The Web provides a convenient and compelling supplement to personal memory, but when we start using the Web as a substitute for personal memory, bypassing the inner processes of consolidation, we risk emptying our minds of their riches” (Carr 192). Despite this statement having been written five years ago, it applies equally, if not more (due to further smart phone advancements), to the current day. holds prevalent to this day. Many people, students especially, use their smart phones to take their notes, record important dates, and even quick search information to do their assignments – all in lieu of actually memorizing and utilizing information like students were forced to before these devices came about. The human brain is adaptive by nature, and the patterns developed by getting this quick information can shape the brain to only accept information in this same fast paced rushed through fashion, which could in turn make something that requires long periods of time and focus, such as reading a book or paying attention in a class, become a challenge for people who are attuned to smart phone usage. This diminishing attention span, in addition to the heightened addiction and dependency upon the phones themselves caused by it, is a vicious cycle that is detrimental to the human brain and its functions.
While these small changes to human interaction might be overlooked or dismissed, everyone experiences them in different ways on a daily basis. Many people have a need for these devices, and perhaps are simply willing to accept the social changes that come along with them. In an article posted by The Himalayan Times, it is stated that cell phones have various uses, and therefore should be available to students, especially in college, because of their usefulness as research tools (The Himalayan Times par 5). In time, we may develop a new society or at least an education system that has adapted to the smart phone method of thinking and memorizing, but humanity has not yet had time to adapt, due to the fact that cell phones have existed a relatively short time.

Works Cited

Carr, Nicholas. The Shallows: What The Internet is Doing To Our Brains. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2010. Print.

Lopez-Rosenfeld, Matías, Cecilia I. Calero, Slezak Diego Fernandez, Gerry Garbulsky, Mariano Bergman, Marcos Trevisan, and Mariano Sigman.”Neglect in Human Communication: Quantifying the Cost of Cell-Phone Interruptions in Face to Face Dialogues.” PLoS ONE. 10.6 (June 2015): 1-9. Academic Search Complete. Web. 17 Nov 2015.

Miller, Darkim. Personal interview. 29 Nov 2015.

“Pros and Cons of Cell Phones.” The Himalayan Times. 25 February 2015. LexisNexis Academic. Web. 18 Nov 2015.
Richards, Shaun. Personal interview. 29 Nov 2015.

My name is Prince Miller, and I believe that technology is a necessary, though ever-changing, part of most people’s lives, and the path it takes can have a huge impact on the future of humankind. This is why during my career as a City Tech student, I have chosen Electrical and Telecommunications Engineering Technology as my major. My interest in Engineering in general developed in high school, and was amplified by the fact that engineering happens to encompass my two strongest subjects, math and physics. The goal of the Electrical Engineering major is to prepare students for careers as electronic technicians, which may include a wide range of different careers, such as an electrician, IT specialist, or communications engineer, which was among the highest paid of all engineers in 2014 (IEEE par. 2). I am still unsure which type of Electrical Engineering career I will pursue, but I have the strongest interest in devices and programming out of all the available fields. As I will explain devices and programming is the best career for me because it fuels my creativity. In the following, I will discuss what Electrical Engineering is, its career opportunities, my falling into the field, my growing interest in Electrical Engineering, and finally, my future goals in the field.

Before discussing why this is my chosen field, I would like to first explain what Electrical Engineering is. Electrical Engineering is a field of study that leads to many career paths. With this degree, I could be an electrician, monitoring and testing the design of a power system for a whole building or area; or an information analyst, programming away behind a computer screen; or even a telecommunications consultant, administrating a network for the use of many. I have not yet made my final decision between a degree in Electrical Engineering or Telecommunications Engineering Technology, but both fields have similar course requirements for the first few years. In the upperclassmen semesters, the disparities between the major curriculums becomes much more concrete. Though both majors have a heavy math and physics influence, Electrical Engineering Technology is focused on power, circuits, and machines, whereas Telecommunications Engineering Technology focuses more heavily on signals, networks, transmissions, and anything else involving communication between two devices.

Graduating with a Bachelor’s (BS) Degree in Electrical Engineering Technology would signify that I have gained “knowledge in power systems, controls, microcontrollers, sensors and instrumentation, as well as the growing area of mechatronics” (City Tech 245), according to the 2015-16 City Tech College Catalog. Anyone holding this degree is qualified for work as an electrical technologist. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook, the varying electrical technologists on average made about $89,000 a year in 2012 (United States par. 13). However, since then, salary numbers have risen for some fields of electrical technology. Energy and power engineers earned $116,000 on average in 2014, while systems and devices engineers earned a hefty $143,000 on average in the same year, according to the 2015 IEEE-USA Salary and Benefits Survey (IEEE par. 6-7). A degree Telecommunications Engineering Technology would open some separate, yet similar, doors. The aforementioned City Tech College Catalog informs us that earning the Bachelor’s (BS) degree in this field would require “advanced study in data communications, coding, computer systems, probability and statistics, satellite transmission, fiber-optic communications, traffic control, economics, programming, network management, regulatory and legal issues and advanced mathematics” (City Tech 250). This degree, like its Electrical Engineering counterpart, qualifies graduates for many different careers. In 2014, signals and applications technologists earned over $141,000, while communications technologists earned $150,000 on average that same year, making them the highest earning of all those in the electrical and information technology (IEEE par. 6-7).

I was thrust into Engineering in high school during my sophomore year. As students, we had been asked to choose major courses of study, and I picked Law and Society as my first choice, neglecting to manage the order in which the other available majors were listed. I did not get in to the Law and Society major, but I was accepted into the second major on my list: Mechanical Engineering. At first, I was severely disappointed, because I hadn’t put much thought at all into Engineering, and presumed it to be boring. However, when I looked at the classes I would have to take, and the projects I would have to complete, I became more and more interested. Then, when I actually got to take Calculus and Physics in my junior year, I was engrossed by the idea of becoming an engineer. Then, in my senior year, things changed. The Mechanical Engineering class fused with the Electrical Engineering class, and we were all of a sudden asked to accomplish tasks and design projects that would require both groups working together. While we worked, I noticed we had to bang away with hammers, shave pieces of metal to precise dimensions, and other tedious things of that sort, while the kids from the Electrical Engineering major sat at their computers and programmed robots, designed circuit boards, and developed entirely new programs using code languages they learned. I immediately knew I would prefer the Electrical path, because I saw more possibility and potential in it. I would much rather learn how to design software, hardware, and programs for technology than to learn the most efficient ways of assembling things, so when I arrived at City Tech, I changed my major path to Electrical Engineering, although I still take Mechanical Engineering classes to bolster my qualifications and expertise.

For me personally, Engineering as a whole is an amazing outlet for creativity and curiosity. Engineering is the primary reason humans have been able to make it this far, especially with respect to the advancements we have been able to make as a species. For the past three hundred years, engineering has been improving the quality of life for people at an amazing rate. Without Electrical Engineering, we would have no power to light or run our businesses or cities. Without Civil Engineering, we would have no parks, bridges, sewage system, or highways. Without mechanical and aerospace engineers, we would have no cars, trucks, planes, jets, spaceships, or any other vehicles to transport ourselves and our possessions freely, meaning we would never have achieved flight or space travel. Without Communications Engineers, we would have no cell phones, laptops, or any other communicating or transmitting device. Without Biomedical and Chemical Engineering, we would not have access to the wide variety of medicine we have today, which has undoubtedly saved millions, if not billions, of human lives. This is just the tip of the iceberg. There are many more types of engineers, and many more inventions and innovations that each have come up with. For this reason, I am very excited to begin my career as an engineer. When I am an engineer I will have both the freedom and qualification to add to this list of innovations, which I plan to do. In this way, I will be able to help the next generation of humanity, as the former generations of engineers have helped me. I will also gain answers to personal questions I have about how and why certain machines work.

I believe my future as an engineer is very bright. As I read in the European Journal of Engineering Education, “Engineers are expected to be experts in their field” (Keltikangas 87). I have accepted that this will be very challenging, both as a career and a hobby, but if it was easy, it would not be fun. I plan to join the IEEE, or the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, while I am still enrolled here at City Tech. I also have begun to complete some of the entry level certifications for Cisco, to bolster my experience and credentials as a network administrator. When I finish the intermediate ones, I will be able to apply for an internship and gain experience in the field. From there, my career will only advance, until I ultimately have created my own network or software.

Works Cited

Keltikangas, Kirsti and Miia Martinsuo. “Professional Socialization of Electrical Engineers in University Education.” European Journal of Engineering Education. 34.1 (Mar 2009): 87-95. Academic Search Complete. Web. 4 Nov 2015

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). “Median Income of     Electrotechnology, IT Professionals Rises to $130,000 for Largest Gain in Past Five Years, IEEE-USA Salary Survey Reveals.” 1 Sept 2015. Web. 4 Nov 2015.

New York City College Catalog 2015-2016 (City Tech). New York: New York City College of Technology, 2015. Print.

United States. Department of Labor. Bureau of Labor Statistics. “Electrical and Electronics Engineers.” Occupational Outlook Handbook. Washington: Bureau of Labor Statistics. 8 Jan 2014. Web. 4 Nov 2015.

I am Prince Miller, an Electrical Engineering student at City Tech. I was drawn to this major because I have always had an affinity for electronics, and I think that stems from my video games as a child. All my life, I have been extremely interested in video games. According to my mother, I even learned to read using a toy that would announce and pronounce a letter upon my pressing the correspondent button. I’ve been pushing buttons on video game consoles ever since, from Super Nintendo to PlayStation 4. Video games were a huge part of my childhood, and many people who know me personally believe that my infatuation with video games is what inspires my childlike and playful nature, but I think that stems from having playing video games as a means of bonding with my family. Having these people to play with, and against, has made me extremely competitive. I even started outdoor sports because I liked the video games about them.  Honestly, I don’t think I would be the person I am today had I never played video games.

My first introduction to video games happened when I was a baby. I have a brother who is fifteen months older than I am, and when I arrived home from the hospital after being born, our family already had a Super Nintendo, and from what I remember, he was pretty good at video games without needing much help. Strangely enough, I was told that I initially hated video games because I thought they were too scary. My brother constantly used to tease me for crying whenever I saw a bad guy or monster. I did, however, really enjoy playing with my alphabet toy, which helped me learn to read fluently at just two years old. That was my first positive encounter with a game-like device, and since then it has been off to the races for me. In no time at all, I grew to have an affinity for video games over the years, since I beat my first game, Pokémon Red, at just three years old. Ever since then, I have been playing some game or another. Nowadays, I enjoy my Playstation 4 games the most.

As I grew older, I found that playing video games with my family and friends also served as a bonding mechanism.  This bonding made me like video games all the more, because family has always been one of the most important things for me. Whether we had to work together to defeat a level in Army of Two, battle one another to settle a dispute in Mario Party, or simply see who was best in NBA 2k, video games have always been an integral part of my relationships with my brother, sisters, and even my parents. For example, video games taught me a lot about sharing, taking turns, and playing fair. I found that simply the act of sitting beside someone while you play the game together, whether you are playing as their teammate or as their opponent, can silently bring two people closer together. Put another way, I believe that video games go a long way in bringing people together, because their difficulty (to solve a puzzle or beat a level) and competitive edge (having someone push you to become a better player) requires you to reach out to others. For this reason, video games have the power to end arguments and repair relations. The camaraderie that results, among other things, is one of the most enjoyable parts of gaming for me.

I also always liked that my favorite video games usually became cartoons, and vice versa. Especially as a child, that was a big way of connecting two of my passions, and being able to play as my favorite characters from television definitely made my Saturday morning cartoons all the sweeter. Even today, the nostalgic value of these games has not been lost on me, and I am still able to have fun playing as Goku from Dragonball Z or Batman from the comics and Batman cartoons. Getting to play as my favorite action heroes in an amazing action game is a feeling that is extremely rewarding.

Generally speaking, I think life is fun, or at least the pursuit of fun and happiness, though my line of thinking may be due in part to my generally cheery nature. I am always in a playful or happy-go-lucky mood, laughing and joking day in and day out. I personally believe this is in part because of my lifetime of playing video games. When I play video games, the entire world is almost shut out at times. I can lose myself in the vast open world of a role-playing game, be thrust into the excitement and adrenaline of a sports game, or simply be too focused on the fast paced combat of an action game. The satisfaction and enjoyment of playing well is euphoric, and often lifts my mood, which does not change very often. Because of this, I am usually very cheery and laid back about most things in life, because my mind is not stressed easily. My parents agree, and are always complaining that I do not take things seriously enough, but I cannot help it. Since I have been playing these games for so long, any other activity or task I am ever involved in, I have to find the fun in it or a way to make it fun for myself, or I will not be likely to be productive in it.

One of the ways I have the absolute most fun is competition. Whether it is in sports, video games, board games, academically, or even socially, having someone to jostle against for bragging rights always pushes me to excel to or past my absolute best. When I have someone who I personally have a vendetta against, I don’t view tasks as tasks or work as work, only as competition. I bring this mindset to everything I do and apply it nearly every day, but I think it stems from playing video games as a child. All my life, my brother and I have been fervently competing with each other to beat games first, or beat games on the highest difficulty, or die a fewer amount of times, or to master the best moves. When we got Madden 08, we tried tirelessly to make the better character and score the most touchdowns. When we got our own separate Game Boy Advances, that was the first time we each had our own separate game consoles, and we played Pokemon Ruby and Pokemon Sapphire that entire day until the next morning, each of us trying to be the first one to catch the legendary Pokémon. These personal battles, I think, have shaped my mentality in life, and even drove me to compete in other ways, such as in real life sports.

Video games have also shaped me as an athlete . I began to play sports because of some of the video games I liked to play. When I was younger, playing the Madden and Fight Night franchises made me want to go out and actually become a defensive back, or a heavyweight boxer, respectively. I still remember the interception my created cornerback caught that made me ask my parents to put me on the local Little League football team, and eventually my high school football team. Later, when my father left home, I began to box as a means of connecting with him, because I remembered playing against him in Fight Night, and he had always told me I could beat Muhammad Ali if I set my mind on it.

In retrospect, having had video games as a constant throughout my lifetime has done me a lot of good. In addition to shaping me as a person, both mentally and physically, video games have helped my family chemistry by adding a dynamic that requires us to cooperate and have some level of sportsmanship with each other. For a family with five children, this was monumental in forming some of the bonds we have today. Also, they have been a safe and constructive method of having fun over the years. Playing video games has extended my vocabulary, kept me young and dexterous, and helped sharpen some of my math skills, since most games require some level of computation. I still play video games, though I have upgraded over the years, from my old Super Nintendo to my current PlayStation 4. Instead of playing those intense battles in Super Smash Bros. 64 or Pokemon Puzzle, I now play Rocket League and NBA 2K16. I don’t know if I will ever stop playing video games, but I do know it won’t be anytime soon. In fact, I plan to play with my children, because I know that it will help to bring us together and inspire their creativity and competitive drive. I am sure they will learn toappreciate video games as I have.