Media Free Article - University of Maryland

I honestly don’t think it’s that bad to go one day with media. I’m pretty sure it will be difficult, especially for some of us, but it’s only one day. I understand our friends will think we died if we don’t reply back to their text messages within the hour, but if it’s only for 24 hours, I think we’ll survive. We’ll just have to endure verbal assaults from our friends when we get back on to the social network.
I was pretty surprised at how serious the effects were on the 200 students of the University of Maryland. They really made it seem like an alcohol or drug addiction with their symptoms of withdrawal, anxiety, as well as feeling miserable and antsy. One student wrote that she finds it sickening to find out how clearly addicted she was. Even though I text and Facebook every day, I don’t think I’m addicted to that extent. I probably can last one day but it will be difficult and a bit irritating. I think I may become a tad bit jittery since I always feel such an urgent need to check my text messages or my Facebook page. It is sad to realize how much we depend on technology to go through our days. Even as I am writing this, I am looking around and seeing everyone on either a laptop or a Blackberry, and listening to their iPod. In the whole lounge, there is not one person reading a book. I am also pretty sure that not every single one of those people is doing homework.
Since we live in such a fast-paced world, we need some form of communication that is just as fast. So I understand why so many of us rely on texting and Facebook and other forms of technology to stay connected to family and friends. Not every person has the time every day or week to visit their relatives and friends. I still like to actually see my friends and interact with the rest of civilization every once in a while.
After reading this article, I started thinking about our own “Media Free” assignment for the rest of the week. I think I can last a day, maybe two but not more than that. Sometimes I wish we still lived in a world where technology was nonexistent, just for the simplicity of things. But yet again, with so many things occurring around the world, I think it’s necessary to keep track of these events in order to stay updated. Technology does make our lives a bit easier but at the same time, I fear what the world would be like twenty years from now. If we are so dependent on our technical gadgets now, I wonder how we would be like in the future.
I am pretty curious about how the “Media Free” assignment will go. I wonder how long I’ll last and hopefully, I will not be as addicted as the Maryland students turned out to be.