I don't know if I see more things about social networking and technology now because of this class and I am more tuned into listening to related topics or if there is actually more discussion about technology and the growth of social media. Either way, since I have been writing a weekly blog about the possibilities of social media for marketing as well as the growth of various sites I have seen several segments on the evening news dealing with teens and other age groups that use technology.
Tonight as I was watching there was a segment about teens and multi tasking and how they have the ability to multi task better than anyone from other generations. They related this to their ability to use multiple technologies at once to gather information or to keep in contact with others their age group. There is a doctor that has been tracking the same teens and runs brain scans on the same group every two years to follow their development.
The parents of these teens were interviewed briefly and they said that during homework time the teens generally have a laptop, a cell phone, notebook, and textbook out in order to complete an assignment. Instead of completing the assignment then texting or making phone calls or going to various websites they are doing everything at once. The parents' concern was that the homework was not being completed efficiently or correctly. The doctor actually dispelled this. He stated that from this work and research that the teen brain is more efficient and can hold more information and he contributes this to their ability to multi task.
A lot of this multi tasking can be attributed to the ability to take technology anywhere. Smart phones allow anyone to do practically anything they can do with a computer. The ability to always be connected is something that my generation (20 somethings) and younger will not know how to cope without.
I can definitely relate to this. Whenever I am doing homework on my lap top, I always have Facebook and Twitter up in my browser and my cell phone by my side. I don't always immediately respond to a Facebook chat, a tweet, or a text message, but whenever I hit writer's block or just need a break, I'll take a few minutes to respond to those trying to communicate with me. I've read statistics on how much time a person loses being interrupted by phone calls and text messages. However, sometimes I think the extra stimulation makes me more productive by revamping my brain every time I take a small break to communicate with others. So, thank you social media for helping me out with my studies!
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