It seems as if we lost the basic fundamentals of what molds this society together as a whole…Trust, truth, community, and reasoning. The outcome of misinformation that’s being spread is withholding anger, resentment, and unsettling opinions or ideas that aren’t made up to fair the liking of many. We don’t know how to handle the amount of information we are exposed to or what to even do with it, we are at the beginning stages of a huge crisis and it could be the last. It begins with you and the technology you hold in your hands.
Every app has created an algorithm that feeds off of what you click. When you click that one ad there is also other ads that are recommended that are based on the one thing you clicked… For example, you see a video about flat earth and it piques your interest, as it piques your interest, you see another video recommended on Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, etc. it is a theory on how vaccines cause autism and seizures, then the next video is another theory related to that video, lo and behold, you’re down the rabbit hole. In addition, you can also see how many people have liked the same recommended video, the app recognizes this, so they proceed to connect you to other people who also like the same idea. Now they have a full-frontal product (you), which is feeding into the same idea.
They know you’re going to give into as much information as they give you because they are finding out with each click who and what you are, what you like to do, and so forth. The scary part is this information is unlimited and can go on for ages, with the “endless scrolling” included. These little clicks that seem to be doing no harm turn into these massive theories and beliefs that are now becoming your truth, you think this information is true so you start to spread this overwhelming new information to others. This is where the fake news comes in. These theories that are being suggested are only suggested because the main apps like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, are getting paid for every click you have redeemed worthy enough to “like”.
Based on this information they will keep providing you with more because they know now what you like. This keeps you in their data format and will continue to contribute to the falsification that inhibits society today, the exposure of this is dividing races, cultures, and people who were once close to one another. It is placing mistrust between countries and their governments. Theories that are being spread without any real research and even if you go and try to do your research into google, google automatically will you show the first three suggestions based on what it thinks you will be more in favor of. This is the newfound power of A.I.
How do you see this illusioned reality will or could all play out in the future to come if this is not taken seriously for our kids, environment, and society?
In addition, It is harming younger generations to come. In The United States, the global uprise in suicide, depression, and anxiety in girls has increased 151% since 2010-2011 from pre-teens aged 10-14. In this research, it was conducted that it pointed to social media by professional Jonathan Haidt. Cyberbullying is one of the main causes that inflicted on these rates. It’s triple the amount that has happened since 2009. We have flipped the switch on how we’re using these apps and what they are actually showing us. We now base our value on how many likes, comments, and notifications we get a day. It’s a dopamine rush- just as a drug addiction does, technology does the same to our brains, it hits the same spots that the drug hits, we crave that feeling over and over again.
Try your own experiment at home: Don’t use your phone for a week and see what happens inside your mind. You’ll get a better understanding on how it reacts the same way as an addiction does and how it’s hurting your mental health more than nurturing your growth.
We are living in a new world where we don’t know who to trust or believe and it’s because the device in our hands upholds this power that people didn’t even know it had, we are oblivious to it. The power it has will increase to control all of us and if we don’t start making a conscious effort in making a change on how we’re using this or why. We need to make a stand for what we NEED in society, for what will help us become better because if we don’t there will be more culture wars, more lies, and no more trust between any persons. There is an action we need to be taking to stop being careless. A commitment to ourselves and the creation of law for technology for how much data they use from us and or restricted. If we fail we are looking at a highly illusioned dystopia. The matrix is no longer such an abstract idea, is it? It is staring us right in the face and controlling our every behavior, emotional response, and ideas.
We are rapidly speeding up into incapable zombies being consumed whatever we desire by just one scroll, one click. The danger lurks between the “user” (you) and the addiction (your screen). Do you notice how many apps have the word “user”? It is not a coincidence. This was on the blueprint since the beginning. We need a solution. Not more distractions on the same screen to help limit the time we use, we need self-control. We need commitment and ambition to become better than what is right now. So, what can we do based on all this information? It does seem overwhelming at first.
Willpower is used in this and you will possibly break the chain many times but it is only because of how much we truly rely on this device for many things. Once we’re aware of this pattern there is no going back to how you initially were before because you have accessed the state of awareness between us and the device, we see the fault and it’s hard to miss. We can give ourselves the appreciation and recognition that we are trying! The outcome is to change completely how we use your data and distinguish how we use social media to stray away from what is being consumed. Some people will oppose this idea, but the ones who hold their ground to a better future and life throughout the process are the ones who do see a more optimistic approach to technology and the world it creates for us. This truth might take years to show for. However, just holding on to that vision and doing what we can day by day, to spread the word, it what will show what is possible within this reality.
*It’s important to note that this isn’t the worst thing that’s happened to mankind and there are positives to things like meeting new friends, old family members, to finding where the nearest market is. These are amazing astounding features we are apart of. Nevertheless, that is why we need to take a stand and change the way it is currently…To use it for good. It is not necessarily one person’s fault and no one was actually prepared for how this was going to work out. The reason why this is being brought up is that we like the idea of how the technology works for us, but maybe in a better turn of events perhaps. We want real, we want to change within society and ourselves. We can blame other people for the problems of the world if we want too, Even so, we have created it collectively, we adopted the ideas and stuck with them. We can choose another way of being. Not everyone or everything is out there to get us. It has created this world full of fear, hopelessness, and despair. Fear is now the ultimate mover in this world today. If technology is not taken more seriously, the next years to come will become oblivion, Nevertheless, we must shift our focus to what matters, not technology. To get in touch with, not destroy our utopia, it starts with us, not what is on your screen that is being perfected for your existence.
