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A beautiful field, blooming with flowers. The sparkling snow covering the earth. The crunch of leaves under your feet. Are you too busy to enjoy the simple things in life? Between keeping up at work and spending time with family, it's difficult to think deeply about life... especially with a smartphone in your hands.
What does technology mean to us? Could we live without it anymore? Mike Daisey, an actor, commentator, and general jack-of-all-trades is opening a one-man show about the effects of iPhones and Steve Jobs on our lives.
In an article from the San Francisco Examiner, author Georgia Rowe discusses Daisey's newest show where he shares his trip to Foxconn, a company in China, where about half of the world's electronics are made.
In fact, the Associated Press reported the following:Located in Shenzhen, a former fishing village, it is a hellish place where 400,000 people — many of them children — work 32-hour shifts and sleep stacked to the ceiling in tiny concrete bunkers. This, he discovered, is where iPods are made — not by machines, but by his fellow humans, some of whom are so stressed they are committing suicide by jumping off the factory roof. Foxconn employs 800,000 people and incidents of suicide are not few and far between.
Police said the man survived after cutting himself in his dormitory room at the factory, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. It said the 25-year-old man, surnamed Chen, migrated from central Hunan province and began working at Foxconn two months ago.
The 12 previous suicide attempts at Foxconn Technology Group’s operations in southern China involved workers who jumped from buildings. Two survived. Another worker killed himself in January at a factory in northern China.
Yes this is horrible, you're probably thinking, but what does this mean for me and my technology use? An October 2010 Associated Press-mtvU Poll found that 25% of college students reported that it would be a relief to be without their new technology. They feel pressured to answer texts and phone calls and periodically feel nervous or anxious when waiting for a reply to a text. Also, people are more exposed to negative attributes like flaming or hacking.
Next time you go outside, leave your phone in your pocket and breathe in some stress-free minutes like those at the Foxconn company are surely craving.
I really enjoyed reading your second post. I thought you used a lot of good sources to back your information up with. I actually never heard of those people committing suicide before. In the future I think a way to improve you writing would be to add more to your blog post. I found your post extremely interesting and what you’ve put down is really great. However, I wanted to know more and I was interested in reading more about it. I would suggest just because you completed the 400 word requirement doesn’t mean you should stop. I think you did a really good job with your sources and writing, I personally just would’ve liked to read more about it. It pulled me in and I got really into it, then it ended so quickly. Next time you could maybe add a little more facts about that situation and it could really make your posts even greater then they already are.
ReplyDeleteI love your blog. The topic is very relevant to me and illustrates the troubles of having technology with us 24/7. Your introductions to both blogs grabbed my attention right away and I couldn't stop reading until the end. The sources and multi-media were good, current, and really added to your story. I'm not sure what you were going to write about in the future, but I would love to see an article about either internet or laptop use in our lives and how to find balance. I see a lot of people on campus (myself included) on laptops either surfing the net or working on homework and it makes me wonder what is out there for research. You could also look at the idea of proper etiquette of cell phones or blackberries in social setting (ex: hanging out with friends). I hope this helps generate some good ideas. Keep it up.
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