Molly Miller New Media & Writing 21 January 2014 Embracing Change Throughout my fifteen years of schooling, I have

seen numerous technological advances. Going from chalkboards, to whiteboards, and then to Smartboards in a decade shows how fast our generation is changing the norm. I compare these new forms of media to the trend that our society falls into: fast paced with a short attention span. As our society demands new and improved, technology must develop alongside us. As a result of these developments, there is no turning back to what culture used to be. We can strive to bring back vintage forms of media, but we are only moving forward. According to Manovich, It is time that we treat the people who have articulated fundamental ideas of human-computer interaction as the major modern artists. Not only have they invented new ways to represent any data, but they have also radically redefined our interactions with all of old culture (9). When reading this I looked back on all of the technological advances that I believed to be old culture. Dial-up Internet, instant messaging friends, emailing as the main form of technological communication, and MySpace are some of the main things that came to my mind. From there I looked at how these old cultural advances have really shaped what we have today. As far as Wi-Fi being the norm, instant messaging becoming texting, and email being a more business oriented media, and MySpace becoming Facebook centered, I believe he is absolutely correct. This is how I view media; something that evolves but is also a cycle. Sure, there are always new advances, but they are always from an older media.

This cycle becomes the natural motion in our culture, and as I said in the beginning, there is no way to go back to what culture used to be. We simply find ways to improve the old culture as Manovich claims. That is how our culture stays entertained, yet no longer nostalgic. I truly believe that these changes within culture are for the better. They have created a language and a lifestyle that has never been seen before, and this has given us a chance to connect in ways that would have never been possible before. I think that people are ultimately afraid of the unknown, so as technology becomes a part of us, people refuse to let old routines go. I have learned to embrace the change that has taken place by looking at the opportunities it has created within my own life. Media has always been an important aspect of my life. I have been told by numerous people that I am tech savvy, but technology is more than something I am good at; it changed my life. Throughout high school multiple girls bullied me, and it took its toll after a couple years. I always tried to look past what the girls said, but I needed a way out. I continued to have a 4.0 throughout my high school struggle, but emotionally I was spent. Advancements with online schooling gave me a new start. I enrolled in online high school for my junior year, and it was one of the best decisions I had ever made. I learned to depend on communicating with my teachers and peers on an interface rather than in person. I had to motivate myself to teach myself certain concepts that teachers lectured about in traditional school. It was one of the most interesting experiences, because it was a completely different ball game from before. Going to graduation and seeing over a thousand students getting their diploma opened my eyes to how powerful technology is. We have come far enough that students who may not have graduated otherwise, are getting the opportunity to succedd in the academic world. An old media, traditional school, has the ability to be replaced by a new media, Internet communication.

As I explained before, people do not want to let go of traditional notions. Therefore, I received a lot of flack for my diploma, and my education was highly questioned by some. Except, I view this as the beauty of new media. It can empower you to experience new ideas, concepts, and communities. As I mentioned before, it grows with us. The fact that technology has enabled me to get my diploma as an alternative to my terrible experience is the exact reason Manovich wishes people to be praised. Yes, we are becoming dependent on technology. Yes, we have a small attention span, but I believe it only allows for faster innovation. I think this is where Haraways view from twenty years ago comes in. We are half machine, because we are glued to screens and reliant on certain computers to do our jobs. Except, I believe we have to be half machine. The advancements we have made are far too beneficial to not be. No one is complaining that a calculator does our math for us, or that we are able to talk to anyone across the world within seconds. So, why not embrace it and let it reestablish our culture? Peters says, The modern moment may not be predetermined but it is contingent on preexisting contexts (14). To me this means that we cannot predict what will happen in the future, but we know that the media is constantly changing. Technology will always be here. Without it I may not be here learning and getting the opportunity to be educated. It is creating a culture that is inspired and intelligent. As Haraway says, I would rather be a cyborg (30). The cyborg is now, and the cyborg is the future. We should not let that scare us, but rather it should encourage us to let techonology become a welcomed staple in our everyday lives.

Works Cited Haraway, Donna. "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century," in Simians, Cyborgs and Women: The Reinvention of Nature (New York; Routledge, 1991). Manovich, Lev. New Media from Borges to HTML. The New Media Reader (The MIT Press; 2003). Peters, B. "And Lead Us Not into Thinking the New Is New: A Bibliographic Case for New Media History." New Media & Society 11.1-2 (2009): 13-30. Print.