There were few times when I forgot my cellphone at home, and in those times, I felt isolated from the rest of the world. Electronic communication has become, as it were, the umbelical cord that keeps the modern man interconnected.
Science has made the world smaller. Right now, as I push the keys, I realize that whatever ideas I have are being published worldwide through the web. The chasm created by oceans and continents is bridged by the internet.
And because ideas are transmitted globally by mere click of the mouse, ideas are shared, discussed, synthesized, and at times, adopted in dizzying pace. We are witnessing, the gradual tearing of the cultural divide that distinguishes one nation from another. The events, fashion, and craze of one country are readily accessible to all, in an instant.
At no point in human history has the progress of science been exponential, and therefore, it's influence on society more pervasive and incessant.
China has become a phenomenon of sort. The internet has invaded that once cloistered society that western ideas are creeping into the psyche especially of the young chinese, despite the internet filtering by the politburo. Even the ultra conservative muslims cannot do away with this phenomenon. The Queen of Jordan, Afghan women, and other muslim women who once hid under their burqas are now asserting their rights, and hopefully, liberation, thanks in the great part of the information and news they gather through the electronic medium.
I was surprised when my youngest kid, a six years old , went inside the our room, slept beside me, and whispered to me, "Dad, can you buy me the Play Station III?". I was surprised because I knew then that the game machine was launched yet in Japan and U.S. He was that updated, thanks to the web.
I have been teaching in the university for nine years now, and through the years, I have observed the rapid changes of the students in terms of behaviour, outlook, and vision. When the actresses started to wear t-back bikinis, in matters of days, you could see students wearing them, and flaunting, as they wear the transparent fabric for pants or blouse. I can see students, of both gender, drinking till dawn in bars here in the city. And who ever said only the boys can propose? In my youth, those behaviour were taboos, and if violated, it was in utmost secrecy.
While before, wooeing a lady meant waiting for her in her classroom, or workplace, or proposing in her home, before the quizzical eyes of the parents, now courtship may be done by cellphone or internet. How many interracial marriages have been consumated via the web?
Here lies the danger, as the web interconnects humanity, as we bridge great distances, in the process, we tend to lose the links we have in our vicinity. Go to the internet cafe, you see people chatting with those from far away places. But as they sit alongside each other, the paradox is that they do not know each other. Moreso, as we become a citizen of the world, we cease to be a member of the small community around us.
The onset of the internet is one phenomenon that broke too many rules. Tila Tequilla, the most famous woman in the internet, is now launching her music video in the internet without the comfort of a recording company. While before all singers must plead before the big bosses of the recording companies, now an individual may launch his career alone. The corporate giants are being challenged with the new mode of marketing.
There are rogue states in our global village. North Korea. A host of African nations. Syria. Iran. But while the leaders of these states scorned western civilization, yet the inhabitants, if not them, are eating McDonald's hamburgers and drinking coca-cola products. The system of governments may differ, but underneath is the sweeping change of the culture of the people under these governments. Eventually, the cultural revolution will engulp the powers that be in these nations. The informed populace , and not the leaders, will have the final say on how they will be governed. I cross my fingers. This is a phenomenon.
Science has brought the wealth of information in our desktop, laptops, and smart phones. We now even have to review on our appreciation of intelligence. Ask any question, and you find the answer in the internet. Students do not have to memorize anymore. He has only to understand, and must be equipped with the skills to search and harness the information available in the web. Perhaps, in our present world, premium must be put to Emotional Quotient and not Intelligence Quotient. Faced with the barage of information, one has to have the emotional stability to prevent an information overload. The event in the modern world come in dizzying pace, that the EQ must be superior so as not to be overwhelmed by these events.
Last night, I had a dream. I dreamt that humanity has become one, that the global village has shrunk further to become the nuclear family of humankind.
Science has made the world smaller. Right now, as I push the keys, I realize that whatever ideas I have are being published worldwide through the web. The chasm created by oceans and continents is bridged by the internet.
And because ideas are transmitted globally by mere click of the mouse, ideas are shared, discussed, synthesized, and at times, adopted in dizzying pace. We are witnessing, the gradual tearing of the cultural divide that distinguishes one nation from another. The events, fashion, and craze of one country are readily accessible to all, in an instant.
At no point in human history has the progress of science been exponential, and therefore, it's influence on society more pervasive and incessant.
China has become a phenomenon of sort. The internet has invaded that once cloistered society that western ideas are creeping into the psyche especially of the young chinese, despite the internet filtering by the politburo. Even the ultra conservative muslims cannot do away with this phenomenon. The Queen of Jordan, Afghan women, and other muslim women who once hid under their burqas are now asserting their rights, and hopefully, liberation, thanks in the great part of the information and news they gather through the electronic medium.
I was surprised when my youngest kid, a six years old , went inside the our room, slept beside me, and whispered to me, "Dad, can you buy me the Play Station III?". I was surprised because I knew then that the game machine was launched yet in Japan and U.S. He was that updated, thanks to the web.
I have been teaching in the university for nine years now, and through the years, I have observed the rapid changes of the students in terms of behaviour, outlook, and vision. When the actresses started to wear t-back bikinis, in matters of days, you could see students wearing them, and flaunting, as they wear the transparent fabric for pants or blouse. I can see students, of both gender, drinking till dawn in bars here in the city. And who ever said only the boys can propose? In my youth, those behaviour were taboos, and if violated, it was in utmost secrecy.
While before, wooeing a lady meant waiting for her in her classroom, or workplace, or proposing in her home, before the quizzical eyes of the parents, now courtship may be done by cellphone or internet. How many interracial marriages have been consumated via the web?
Here lies the danger, as the web interconnects humanity, as we bridge great distances, in the process, we tend to lose the links we have in our vicinity. Go to the internet cafe, you see people chatting with those from far away places. But as they sit alongside each other, the paradox is that they do not know each other. Moreso, as we become a citizen of the world, we cease to be a member of the small community around us.
The onset of the internet is one phenomenon that broke too many rules. Tila Tequilla, the most famous woman in the internet, is now launching her music video in the internet without the comfort of a recording company. While before all singers must plead before the big bosses of the recording companies, now an individual may launch his career alone. The corporate giants are being challenged with the new mode of marketing.
There are rogue states in our global village. North Korea. A host of African nations. Syria. Iran. But while the leaders of these states scorned western civilization, yet the inhabitants, if not them, are eating McDonald's hamburgers and drinking coca-cola products. The system of governments may differ, but underneath is the sweeping change of the culture of the people under these governments. Eventually, the cultural revolution will engulp the powers that be in these nations. The informed populace , and not the leaders, will have the final say on how they will be governed. I cross my fingers. This is a phenomenon.
Science has brought the wealth of information in our desktop, laptops, and smart phones. We now even have to review on our appreciation of intelligence. Ask any question, and you find the answer in the internet. Students do not have to memorize anymore. He has only to understand, and must be equipped with the skills to search and harness the information available in the web. Perhaps, in our present world, premium must be put to Emotional Quotient and not Intelligence Quotient. Faced with the barage of information, one has to have the emotional stability to prevent an information overload. The event in the modern world come in dizzying pace, that the EQ must be superior so as not to be overwhelmed by these events.
Last night, I had a dream. I dreamt that humanity has become one, that the global village has shrunk further to become the nuclear family of humankind.
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