Technology is a major aspect to the fundamentals of our Country as well as our daily lives, however it is beginning to over run our lives.

Technology has bombed since the 1990’s. A once foreign concept  is now part of everyone’s lifestyle. However, in recent years technology has gotten so advanced that it is changing the inner workings of everything. The working class is being “overrun” by machines. Although technology is adapting and changing to how people live their everyday lives, people, especially kids do need to learn how to do things on their own ,

“I think kids need to have a brain,” Art teacher Mrs. Toni Fein  explains.

The childhood of a lot of  middle class young kids is being spent face first into a device rather than going outside and getting their hands dirty, or just running around playing with their neighbors. Social media is thought by sophomore Darcie McDonough to have altered kid’s childhoods in a bad way. There are many things that get put online that are inappropriate and  young children are sometimes seeing that. The kids should be interacting with their friends and using their imagination, but instead, “Kids are becoming brainwashed by technology, explains McDonough. “They would rather watch Jojo Siwa’s Youtube videos rather than going outside and doing something fun and active.”

Recent studies in National Institute of Health, are trying to figure out how screen time affects physical structure of a young brain, their emotional development and mental health. Recent MRI studies of 4,500 kids show differences in the 9-11-year-old’s brains show significant differences in kids that use screens for up to 7 hours a day. It shows the thinning of the cortex, which is usually shown later, however they do not know if this will turn out to be a bad thing. Researchers gave the children a skill test. The test showed that kids on their phones for more than 2 hours a day scored lower on thinking and the language test. Researchers will soon be able to see if screens are addictive, however they still have to wait a while because the have to keep following the kids and seeing how they develop.

Babies 18-24 months shouldn’t be playing with virtual blocks on iPads because they are unable to transfer the two dimensional skills to three dimensional skills. This is due to the fact that this is the time where they are supposed to be a critical time for their brain development.

Teenagers spend about 4 ½ hours a day on their phones. Sudden behavior changes and mental health changes have occurred with the strong usage of smartphones. Loneliness and depressed feelings became much stronger with the usage of smartphones.

Psychology professor at San Diego State University, Jean Twenge says, “She was startled to find that in the four years that followed, the percentage of teens who reported drinking or having sex fell. But the percentage who said they were lonely or depressed spiked.” Twenge also explained that, “It’s not just the loneliness and depression from these surveys. It’s also that ER visits for self harm like cutting have tripled among girls age 10 to 14.”

Time spent with friends and family should be special. Family time is an important time where families joke and laugh around. Junior Marcella Hubbard-Brucher explains that as long as when you are with your family you are not constantly on your phone, then you will have the same experiences than before phones were such a huge part of today’s society. Technology may affect how kids, teens and even adults interact, however, she said

“It’s just the way things are now. The world is constantly changing and progressing.” Hubbard-Brucher said.