Speaking topic: Technological advances

INTERNET AND TECHNOLOGY

-          Intertwine (v) : quấn vào nhau

-          Overexposure (n): sự phơi bày quá mức

-          Sedentary (a): ngồi nhiều

-          Phish (n): lừa đảo lấy thông tin tài chính bằng email

USEFUL EXPRESSION:

Expression	Example
Couldn’t see my life without it
Become more and more intertwined
It’s time to step back and realize	Take a step back/ take a look at/ evaluate the whole picture/situation/thing
Chink in the armor	Achilles heel
Keep something protected
Keep something from doing something
Goodness gracious
It’s hard to argue with the results that	Be it.... Or...., (clause). Being it climbing a mountain or diving to watch  coral reefs, i would certainly enjoy it. ( dù là cái này hoặc cái kia)
It’s undeniable that	To name a few = ect
On a constant daily basis
Ironic for	Get something off the ground = make it success
Take it tolls (of something)	Gây thiệt hại
Deprive someone of something	Lấy đi của ai cái gì
Portray a rosy picture	Vẽ bức tranh màu hồng

Reading: Impact of technology on our society

Summary

We consider Internet as an information resource and a communication platform but ignore that fact that overexposure to it leads to Internet addiction.

We thank technology for making our life easier but forget that it has made us overly dependent on it.

Impact of technology on Society

Back to the days where there was no modern means of transport, daily life involved a lot of physical activity. Exercise was integrated into routine physical activities. It was contrary to the sedentary lifestyle of today, which leaves no time for exercise and fills days with inactivity and laze. Nowadays, we have the world at our fingertips.

Internet crime in on the rise such as hacking, spamming and phishing as there is no regulation on the content displayed on websites.

Children prefer playing online rather than on the ground

Youngsters enjoy social networking and missing the joys of real social life

Technology has deprived mankind of the warmth of personal contact.

With the means of communication so easily accessible, that magic in waiting to reach someone and the excitement that followed have vanished.

Computer technology and robotics are trying to substitute for human intellect, which can result in an under-utilization of human brains. Overtime, we may lose our intellectual abilities. Specifically, nowadays children’s mathematical abilities are deteriorating due to the use of calculators since school.

All and all, with everything a few clicks away, there is no striving, there’s only striking. With the developments in technology, we may be able to enjoy all the pricey luxuries in life but at the cost of losing its priceless joys.

Article

When we speak of the impact of technology on society, we always talk about the positive effects of technology and about how technology has made life easy. We talk about the Internet as an information resource and a communication platform and conveniently ignore the fact that an overexposure to it leads to Internet addiction. We often discuss how technology has made life easy but easily forget that it has made us overly dependent on it. Have you thought of the impact of technology from this point of view? I am sure, most of you haven't. Let us look at this aspect of technology here.

Impact of Technology on Our Society

Think of the days when there were no computers and no modern means of transport. Human life was highly restricted due to the unavailability of technological applications. Daily life involved a lot of physical activity. Life of the common man was not as luxurious as that of modern times, but he was more active. Exercise was integrated into routine physical activities. It was contrary to the sedentary lifestyle of today, which leaves no time for exercise and fills days with inactivity and laze. Today we don't want to, and thanks to the advancement of technology, don't even need to walk, move around, or exert ourselves physically to great extents in order to get things done. We have the world at our fingertips (đầu ngón tay).

We think of technology as a boon (lợi ích, ân huệ) to society. I am afraid; it's not completely a boon. The Internet has bred many unethical practices, like hacking, spamming and phishing. Internet crime is on the rise. The Internet, being an open platform lacks regulation. There is no regulation on the content displayed on websites. Internet gambling has become an addiction for many. Overexposure to the Internet has taken its toll. In this virtual world, you can be who you are not, you can be virtually living even after you die. Isn't this weird? Children are spending all their time playing online and less or almost no time playing on the ground. Youngsters are spending most of their time social networking, missing on the joys of real social life.

Think of the days when there were no online messengers, no emails, and no cell phones. Indeed cellular technology made it possible for us to communicate over wireless media. Web communication facilities have worked wonders in speeding long-distance communication. On the other hand, they have deprived (lấy đi) mankind of the warmth of personal contact. Emails replaced handwritten letters and communication lost its personal touch. With the means of communication so easily accessible, that magic in waiting to reach someone and the excitement that followed have vanished.

Moreover, we have become excessively dependent on technology. Is so much of dependency good? Is it right to rely on machines to such an extent? Is it right to depend on computers rather than relying on human intellect? Computer technology and robotics are trying to substitute for human intellect. With the fast advancing technology, we have started harnessing artificial intelligence in many fields. Where is the digital divide going to take us? How is our 'tomorrow' going to be? 'Machines replacing human beings' does not portray a rosy picture, does it? It can lead to serious issues like unemployment and crime. An excessive use of machines in every field can result in an under-utilization of human brains. Over time, we may even lose our intellectual abilities. You know of the declining mathematical abilities in children due to use of calculators since school, don't you?

The impact of technology on society is deep. It is both positive and negative. Technology has largely influenced every aspect of living. It has made life easy, but so easy that it may lose its charm one day. One can cherish an accomplishment only if it comes after effort. But everything has become so easily available due to technology that it has lost its value. There is a certain kind of enjoyment in achieving things after striving for them. But with everything a few clicks away, there is no striving (cố gắng, phấn đấu), there's only striking. With the developments in technology, we may be able to enjoy all the pricey luxuries in life but at the cost of losing its priceless joys.

Expressions

something makes/has made it possible for sb to do something

Video: Modern Technology – The Ugly True

There is no doubt that new advances in technology have forever changed the way we live, from entertainment to business.

As modern technology becomes increasingly intertwined with our lives, it has a tendency to influence us in undesirable ways.

It’s time to step back and realize that in this digital age, it’s important to know how these new innovations affect us and future offspring.

For business

Companies wouldn’t be what they are today without innovations in transfer money and information. However, one serious chink in the armor is that information in computer system can be stolen easily. Anything from identities, bank accounts to confidential stuffs are modern pirates’ target. Hence, it costs the companies a fortune to keep their information protected. Besides, music, software and movie industries lost 10 billion dollars each year as digital copies are created and post upon sites where they can be downloaded freely.

For family

State-of-the-art devices become commercially available for general public. It’s obvious we’re surrounded by technology and we’re interactive on a constant daily basis to the point where we have grown dependent on it.

Society

Communication using social networking sites like FB or My Space lead to bad social skills as users do not practice real time in verbal responses.

Technology has become a weapon of mass distraction, ironic for devices that are meant to encourage productivity. Email, internet gaming sites, social networking are served as a distraction and keep people from getting their work done.

Conclusion

It’s undeniable that technology is our future, which is completely integrated to our lives. Therefore we need to be aware of its effects on us and society as a whole. People need to realize that it doesn’t hurt to take a break from social networks. It’s time to remember that computers and smartphones are not the objects which are responsible for a future. We are.

(Video transcript)

A talk on the negative effects of Technology

First let me say that I love technology. Couldn’t see my life without it. The fact that we now have a mobile device that has a camera, GPS and functions that would make most laptops plus is just amazing. Let’s just think about it. In the 1950, there was the world’s first commercially available computer......And that just hardware. These new advances have forever changed the way we live, from entertainment to business. this is simply how we communicate. But is there something we’re not seeing? As modern technology becomes more and more intertwined (quấn vào nhau, bện vào nhau) with our lives, it has a tendency to influence as an undesirable ways. It’s time to step back and realize that in this digital age, it’s important to know how these new innovations affect us, our workspace and our future offspring.

This step was first used in business so that’s a good place to start. For all agreement that companies wouldn’t be what they are today without the latest innovations – the way they transfer money and information, they’ve changed completely. You probably already know that. So let’s move on to the negatives. One serious chink in the armor is that information in the computer system is easier to be stolen by pirates. Meet the modern computer pirates. Any personal information like identities or bank accounts or just confidential stuff they wanna make it theirs and they’re not easy to handle either. It costs companies on average 75.6 billion dollars to keep their information protected from these guys. And it doesn’t stop there. They go after their products. The software, music and movie industries lose tens of billions of dollars each year as pirates create digital copies of their work and post upon sites where people can download for free. I mean the software business lost 50.1 billion alone. Goodness gracious (chao ôi). Really make you think if it’s all worth it. Information funds pass more freely but it’s hard to control and can cost huge loses. I’d like to go further but I need to move on.

Through out the years, devices like phones, laptops have gotten smaller, cheaper, perfect to become commercially available for the general public. It’s hard to argue with the results that people’s houses now are full of technological devices. It’s obvious we’re surrounded by technology and we’re interactive on a constant daily basis to the point where people have grown independent on it. Society is facing a shift like no other. Social networking sites Facebook, MySpace are entertaining ways to stay in touch with family, friends, and people you don’t know normally see. I mean 500 million people around the globe use Facebook.

Using a social network consistently without other forms of interaction has shown especially for kids because bad social skills as communication on these sites is a synchronous and so into text. A person does not practice real time in verbal responses leading to a group of people who are very awkward in social situations. It is only part of the issue. Technology has also become a weapon of mass distraction, ironic for devices that are meant to encourage productivity. Things like email, internet gaming sites as well as social networking, they also serve as a distraction and keep people from getting their work done. Distracting like this truly handle the productivity, not only people at work, but school and pretty much anywhere else actually. It’s undeniable that technology is our future, and it grants us the ability to accomplish tasks that men and women twenty to fifty years ago could not even imagine. But as modern technology has become completely integrated to our lives, we need to be aware of its effects on us and society as a whole for this new technology to be constant factor in human race. People need to realize that it doesn’t hurt to take a break from our social networks in Youtube videos. It’s time for us to remember that computers and smartphones are not the object responsible for a future.  We are.