Mobile Phone Technology And Society Example

Mobile Phone Technology And Society Example Mobile Phone: Technology And Society â€" Term Paper Example > Mobile Phones: Changing the Way Society InteractsAbstractCell phone technology has and will continue to transform our lives as we have instant communication at our fingertips anytime, from almost anywhere. From children using or misusing cell phones to the concerns over environmental issues of cell phone disposal and more and more cell towers cropping up over the landscape, cell phones have sparked many a study and a good number of debates about their usefulness or their dangers to health and social well being. For better or for worse, cell phones are here to stay and they appear to be becoming more and more sophisticated, capable of relaying photo and video images almost instantaneously as well as keeping their user updated on current news and weather. Soon cell phones could replace ATM machines, as they can be programmed with a chip containing electronic cash. How far can the technology go? And how will it affect us? IntroductionThe advent of mobile and cellular phone technology enabled business and families to communicate more efficiently; no longer did the person on the road have to search for a working pay phone to make a call, only to find out that their change was wasted on an answering machine or answering service informing the caller that the person they were seeking was away at a meeting. No longer did mobile people have to stop and call back from yet another pay phone, jostling for a parking space in order to use it. In the beginning, mobile phone technology made life much easier. Within the space of two decades, however, cell phone use has become a nightmare for some societies. This essay will explore the history of telephony communications, how these communications have evolved, and the impact of the technology on society, for better or for worse. As consumers of cellular technology have invented new needs, cell phone companies have added much more than simple calling features to cell phones, and the trend of cellular and wireless telephony bec oming more than simple communication is not likely to slow down any time soon. How is it changing us? Where are the limits? And are we communicating better than before, or simply in a different way? The History of Mobile TechnologyOnce the wired telephone system was established and people were able to communicate over long distances, the luxury of privacy was firmly in place. While many people saved money by having a “party line, ” which was the shared cost of several residences using one phone line. The benefit was a lower rate for telephone service, but the drawback was having to wait to use the phone if another residence was using it. The party line system caused its own problems as people became impatient with their co-users, especially if long-winded users tied the line up for a long period of time. In early widespread use of telephones, one dialed the operator if there was an emergency. The operator acted as a dispatcher and notified authorities. In business, telephone operators answered incoming calls and operated a switchboard to connect the caller with the person in the office. As more sophisticated equipment was developed, switching networks made operators obsolete.