Unable to hand-write for a longer period (I currently have this issue). Ironically, our brain can process information better while hand-writing.

"There's no [brain cell] regeneration, there's only decay" (Carr, 2011, p. 24).

This week reading is truly eye-opening. I am now scared about what will happen to the future generations. At some point in the future, people may not know how to hand-write. Ironically, existing studies reveal that hand-writing promotes information processing/retention (as in taking notes by hand-writing).

With the development of speech-to-text software, people can opt not to type anymore. Here's my concern. Writing requires a process, e.g. brainstorming ideas, organizing ideas, building thesis statements and supportive arguments. I don't know how one can complete this process by speaking to software. I wonder if people's writing skills may degrade in the future and writing pieces would be only in the form of microblogging, brief graphic and video. It's already happening now that people prefer these venues rather than reading a long article. However, we will never know since people read through symbols in the past and during Plato's time, writing was believed to threaten "to make us shallower thinkers" (Carr, 2011, p.55). Isn't it interesting that our civilization may evolve in cycle?

Despite the scare, I can't deny that technology has made our life easier. There are still advantages. For example, the use of technology in healthcare setting has resulted in effective and efficient procedures. Even "intellectual technologies" used in healthcare setting, such as the software used by physicians to record the meeting/consultation outcome with each patient, are proven to be helpful.

There are always pros and cons. Since technology development is inevitable, perhaps, we can view this as an evolution of our civilization. Our job is to help route the evolution to the "good" path by contributing research and best practices on using the technology for better purposes.