The Impact Of Invented Technology Over The Years

by Dennis Townsend, Contributing Writer

Photo courtesy of americansremember.com

I can remember the days when you had to get up to change the channel on the television set, stay at home so you wouldn’t miss that important phone call, be amazed that they finally came out with push buttons on the telephone, and something everyone loved, power steering for your automobile. Cigarettes were 32 cents a pack, and gas was 29 cents a gallon, and at that price, there was an attendant who even pumped it for you and even cleaned your windshield. Aw, the good old days, no iPhones, no X-Boxes, no remote controls. Today’s teenager would go nuts in 15 minutes.

Then technology started to emerge, and all of a sudden you got more than 3 channels on your television set, and not only that, you could now see Ed Sullivan in color. For those of you who don’t know who Ed Sullivan was, sit down with your grandmother and have her tell you some stories. As technology kept moving at a breakneck pace, the cost of everything began to also rise. People would say when gas reached a dollar a gallon, they would never drive again. Cars went from being constructed like tanks to the light weight vehicles we know today. As you could expect, the death toll also rose because if you get into a serious accident with today’s plastic cars, your chances of survival is 50/50 at best.

I was about 9 years old when I went to a department store with my mother, and we noticed a crowd of people gathering around some new invention at the back of the store. People were pushing and shoving, and I even saw a security guard standing there to keep the peace. I was thinking to myself that whatever it was, it must be really something. After pushing our way to the front to get a look, it turned out to be an automatic washing machine. Up to that point, everybody used a wringer washer like the one in the photograph. You'll want to ask grandma about the joys of running a wringer washer while you’re grilling her about Ed Sullivan.

As time continued to move on, so did the technology, and then one day they came out with a box that would cook your food with microwaves. After that, came toys that were tech based. The very first video game that came to the market was “Pong”. It was electronic “ping pong” that you played on your black and white television set, produced by the company, Atari. You would hook it to your television, and you had two paddles, hard wired of course, and you proceeded to bore yourself to tears. Another thing to put on your "hey Grandma" list.

With the easiness that technology has brought us to do everyday tasks, have you ever thought that we might be moving too fast?  Are we satisfied with letting more and more of our daily tasks be completed by technology? Just keep in mind that life is a double edged sword and while we're dancing to the music, one day we may have to pay the piper.

     

     

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