Internet as the Greatest Transformative Force in Human History - Essay Example

? Internet as the Greatest Transformative Force in Human History Arguably, we live in a time of transformation andthese transformations are very significant in human history. The internet refers to electronic communication networks that link many host computers all over the world (Kaminow 1997). Undoubtedly, the internet is increasingly one of the irreplaceable means of communication, for instance, it enables individuals to keep in touch and bring different people together, allows arrangement of meetings over the net among others. Therefore, many people argue that the internet has indeed adjusted their way of interaction with others. Most people including children spend their leisure time exploring the internet, download movies, video games among others. Moreover, people do join virtual social network through which they can discuss various aspects of daily life, and develop friendships and interact as if they are living in the real life. Some services provided by the internet such as webcam enable individuals to communication with relatives and friends from a distance. Furthermore, the invention of World Wide Web has impacted positively on the economic activities worldwide. For instance, today, various communicate or send a contract to customers from any part of the world. More so, people are able to send and receive e-mails instantly, and so, internet has enabled the international companies to manage their economic operations without experiencing many challenges. According to Anthony Giddens, the internet is the greatest transformative force in human history, and this paper presents a thoughtful argument supporting Giddens’s claim. The internet is rapidly becoming a natural part of people’s lives, and many people access it, including children who today, grow up with the internet (Bargh and McKenna 2004). Internet has been noted to be one of the greatest technological inventions in human history since it affects almost all aspects of our lives, and the most important component of the internet is World Wide Web that makes communication and interconnectedness possible (Groves 2009). Arguably, the rapid information and technological developments mainly the emergence of the internet has significantly transformed the world, enabling people to raise their voices and bridges the communities worldwide (Onyejekwe 2011). The internet can be viewed as a database that is full of information and offers many services making people’s lives easier and cheaper. Back then, people used to travel to places in order to meet people, go to the libraries to do research, but with the development of internet, nearly all information needed are accessible (Groves 2009, 108). Today, many people use the internet for various purposes such as conducting research, sending e-mails among others (Lightman 2002). E-mail enables the user to compose a message and send it to the targeted receiver regardless of the distance (Kaminow 1997). Truly, the internet has transformed various aspects of our lives over the past few years, and it has transformed the whole world into a global village. In the contemporary world, life without the internet is impossible and unimaginable because almost every individual in the world depends on it either directly or indirectly. To start with, internet is very useful to many multinational companies as it enables these multinationals to provide necessary information on different products. More so, today, the internet is the heart of mobile banking and so, banking sector entirely depends on internet. In addition, many educational institutions use the internet for publication of different circulars and posting results, the students use the internet for study purpose. Moreover, individuals are capable of accessing a huge amount of information on any topic through the internet. This makes learning easier and students benefits a lot by using the internet for conducting research and doing their homework. Accordingly, the internet plays a very significant role in research work and medical fields, and any information needed can be obtained from the internet through major search engines. Therefore, the internet is very useful especially for students who are required to conduct countless researches in the course of their studies. More so, the internet has enabled people to hold videoconferences which make learning, business contracts and meetings possible, and this has enhanced the learning process and many businesses thrive globally. In addition, the internet has also led to easy access to information, for instance, online reference books and dictionaries among other academic materials found online have helped individuals no to go to the bookshop or libraries in order to do their research. More so, it is cheaper to search information in the internet than to buy a book. Most importantly, the information acquired through the internet is new because most information in the internet is renewed and up to date. Accordingly, internet advancement serves as a democratic source of information to promote economic, political as well as social development. More so, it is an essential tool for women’s empowerment because internet use can increase their self-confidence, self-esteem as well as their independence (Onyejekwe 2011). Most people do surf internet to search for information relating sports, health situations, stock values among others since studies conducted in various parts of the world reveal that the internet is mainly used to seek information (Haythornthwaite 2001). Moreover, various apps, videos, games, and music can be accessed easily and downloaded from the internet instantly. Anyone is able to download or listen to music on the internet because in most cases, downloading music from the internet is free, but this actually affects most musicians especially those musicians whose songs are pirated and downloaded freely. Again, one is capable of reading the daily newspapers from all over the world, and sometimes free. Another importance of the internet is that, internet availability enables people to conduct most of their activities such as shopping without necessarily leaving the house due to the emergence of online shopping. Most people do their shopping online then use their credit card numbers to pay for the purchased commodities, and get these goods delivered to them while in their houses. Researches show that, a larger portion of internet users engage in e-commerce by purchasing products online (Haythornthwaite 2001). On the contrary, some have argued that there are transformational forces that contribute to the wellbeing of individuals and the society as a whole. Even though internet plays a leading role in our lives today there are other technological advancements that have transformed lives in the human history. Arguably, technological innovations can enhance, or devalue human existence and culture, for instance, technological advancements in the field of medicine have significantly contributed to demographic changes in the world including reduced fertility and increased longevity. The use of the internet can be very effective in the presence of computers because though computers, internet connection is possible, and this is very useful especially to those living in remote areas as they can easily access the internet through wireless connection. Computers can be used to surf the internet to acquire any information (Groves 2009). Moreover, some people believe that globalization is the main driving force behind rapid social, economic, cultural as well as political changes that have reshaped modern societies and the world at large. Furthermore, others disagree with Giddens as they claim that there are other important transformative forces in the human history such as the printing press and electricity among others. Just like the internet, life without electricity is impossible because most of our activities totally depend on electricity including the use of the internet itself. Therefore, apart from the internet, there are other essential inventions that have brought about significant changes in almost all aspects of our lives. People are able to meet many interesting people from all over the world through chats, Facebook and other services offered by the internet. In cyberspace, there is no appearance, and so it is possible for individuals to meet friends that they cannot meet in reality. However, some people do spend a lot of their time on the internet chatting online with the virtual friends and having minimal time to spend with their real friends. Accordingly, due to the availability of internet, one can easily communicate with an online friend using e-mails and get instant feedback even though the issue of privacy is questionable. Some people prefer to be anonymous for privacy purpose because there are many hackers who would want to read the mails. Therefore, internet enables individuals to join a virtual community and create new social contacts all over the world, and this is not easy without the internet. Such communities can also help those people who cannot find friends in real life because of their appearance or because they are disabled. There are no place limitations or geographical boundaries that may interfere with online communication. Overall, internet is the latest in technological advances and has significantly changed the world in significant ways, and many people use internet to communicate with others via e-mails, chats or Facebook so as to maintain interpersonal relationships (Bargh and McKenna 2004). However, some people have argued that the internet also transforms individuals’ lives negatively; for instance, it changes the social behaviour, habits and abilities of individuals. In most cases, children are badly influenced by the internet because they perceive internet as a suitable babysitter or a friend. They need to understand that the real world cannot be changed and so it is impossible to replace real friends with the virtual ones. In addition, there are very harmful, and offending materials that are available in the internet and this can negatively influence individuals’ behaviours. Even though the cost of surfing the internet is low, other things associated with the internet such as computers, anti-virus software and other software are very cost intensive. Concisely, the internet as the latest technological advancement has impacted both positively and negatively on our daily lives and has influenced or transformed almost all aspects in lives. Individuals are able to access any needed information, join virtual communities, construct business transactions, and purchase commodities online, study online among others. Agreeably, the internet has significantly changed our lives and so Giddens is right when he argues that the internet is the greatest transformative force in human history. However, there also other advancements that have transformed human history such as the invention of electricity, printing press, computers among others. References Bargh, John A., and McKenna Katelyn, 2004, The Internet And Social Life, Annual Review of Psychology, 55:573–90. Groves, E., 2009, The Everything Classroom Management Book A Teacher's Guide To An Organized, Productive And Calm Classroom, Avon, Mass, Adams Media. Haythornthwaite, C. 2001, Introduction: The Internet in Everyday Life, American Behavioral Scientist, 45: 363 doi: 10.1177/00027640121957240. Kaminow, I. P. 1997, The Internet and Society, Optical Fiber Technology, Vol. 3, Issue 4, pp. 279–299 Lightman, A., 2002, Brave New Unwired World the Digital Big Bang and the Infinite Internet, New York, John Wiley & Sons. Onyejekwe, C. 2011, The Internet: Empowering Women, Pakistan Journal of Women’s Studies, Vol. 18, No. 2, pp. 53-64. Read More