The year is 1962, the date – November 26th and at 7:30 pm a new animated sitcom was on the air – the episode was called “Uniblab.” Sound familiar?
The opening song was a catchy tune and started: “Meet George Jetson, da da da dada dada da, his boy Elroy…etc…” So why is this 21st century, space-age family important? Well, for one thing, the team of Hanna-Barbera was genius in some of the cultural changes they forecast into the 21st century. No, we don’t have “flying cars,” but we do have “micro-books” on discs. We don’t have “food creating” machines, but we do have microwave ovens and home computers. We also have treadmills – whether we use them for our dogs or not…well, my guess is more not. However, it is this last category, that of treadmills and exercise that is of real interest to me. Specifically how it is portrayed in Episode 10 – Uniblab.
As the story begins, our hero, George, is lying in bed. His wife, Jane, is trying to roust him so he will not be late for work and the all-important meeting with Mr. Spacely. His groggy reply “Right with you honey, as soon as I do my exercises.” He proceeds to roll over and push a button on a console at the side of the bed, a screen drops down, and, low and behold, George is now looking at an image of himself on the screen – first jumping rope, “One, two, three four, five, six, seven, eight” the in bed George counts, “…oh boy I can feel that flab melting, YAWN, better not overdo it,” and turning over he pushes another button. “Now for a fast lap around the track, [screen George starts running] “that really stirs up the circulation,” George in bed says then after a bit adds, “that’s enough of that,” as he pushed the next button and stated, “I’ll do a couple of rounds with the old punching bag.” Moreover, in bed George proceeds to cheer on his screen self until he is visibly perspiring and decides the workout for today is over… (Hanna-Barbera, 1962)
Essentially, the screen George did the work but the real, in bed George felt it…he was one with the screen. I used to laugh at this – such fantasy! Right?
Well, maybe we are not quite there yet but….let’s start with an overview of our definition of the “app” – the equivalent of George’s exercises (jump rope, track, punching bag).
“A mobile app should be a tool to help better engage [people/customers] and ultimately achieve some goal.” (ROGGIO, 2014)
The problem is, in today’s 21st-century culture, the goal is, well life. Ok, maybe that is too dramatic. However, let’s take a look at the routines and tasks we perform in one day, then ask ourselves if we are morphing into digital/app dependency and connection. I will use myself as an example.
In the wee hours of the morning, I stir to a clock app on my Ipad, roll over, and hit the Pandora app for some soothing music as I start to wake up. Since I am a fairly spiritual person, I usually start my day in prayer or some kind of spiritual activity. For this, I have apps for two different television groups so I can listen to a morning program, another app for the daily readings and prayers, or I tap my daily rosary app and pray. Next comes the newest app – Pilates – to start the day with some stretching and warm-up before I use my next app – Nike – to capture and sync my morning fitness walks. Ok, I am not quite like George yet – I actually have to perform the exercise, but the app does record my walking, and more advanced apps record pulse, heart rate, etc…It is essentially reading the body.
While I am walking, I have my music app to keep me motivated and moving along at a consistent pace. If I am working out on my treadmill or elliptical, I have a screen on the machine to monitor my progress and sometimes the TV on. Since I am trying to lose weight, diet is also important in my routine. Soooo, MyPlate is my choice as an app that tracks my caloric intake, water, and calories burned through exercise…
After this morning routine, it is time to get ready for the workday. Before getting dressed I check the weather app, sometimes the local news app for a quick update and traffic…
Which leads to driving to work three or four days a week. These days I no longer depend on memory or even a traditional GPS. You guessed it – The Google Maps app works wonders to help me get around the Northern Virginia/District of Columbia traffic (which is a nightmare 90% of the time…).
Once I am at my destination, I have the Blackboard app to monitor classroom activity, along with Kindle and NOOK apps for reading material. I also have the “Mail” app to read e-mail and a variety of social media apps for various purposes.
During the day I normally work for hours at a time on my computer interface – both in and out of the classroom, and use my mobile devices frequently. For example, I may use one or two of my bank apps, my notes and calendar apps to keep me on schedule, my calculator app, my audiobooks (some are apps in and of themselves, others stored in the iTunes app as audiobooks), the mirror app to check the back of my hair for midday sprucing up, and one or more “corporate” apps that range from Starbucks to Uber (if I’m traveling) to Lumosity or Angry Birds if I’m killing time.
At night I frequently unwind with a book – of course using my Kindle or Nook app, or watch a show or movie using my Netflix or Hulu or Hallmark Channel apps.
So, regarding the question I asked in the beginning about “digital/app dependency,” well at least for me that ship has already sailed. The devices I use simplify my life…I think? I do not need a myriad of tools to accomplish my daily goals. My laptop, IPad, and iPhone centralize a whole host of activities. This is the good part…however, there are also some negatives.
First, we have to think about all the issues of privacy and security now that so much of this activity resides in “the cloud”. How much of my activity can be tracked? How much of the material I am working with do I possess? Then there are the health/physiological issues that are emerging.
A recent article in The Economist, “Is digital technology re-wiring your brain?” states:
“It is already accepted by neuroscientists that the Internet and digital technology will leave some physical impression on our neurological systems. All interaction causes changes in the brain. Whilst these changes are particularly pronounced in childhood; the brain continues to adapt throughout adulthood, forming new neural connections and pathways and destroying old unused ones, through a process known as neuroplasticity.”
Some researchers believe that this type of digital technology can actually “help improve cognitive health and tackle neurological disease” and that “a small amount of screen time with the right apps or games could help…development. However, too much time with technology or the wrong kind of content could be harmful” (Stark, 2013). Researchers “are worried that digital technology and the internet, while doubtless having positive neurological impacts, can also undermine critical mental functions when used to excess” (Is digital technology re-wiring your brain?, 2015). For example, “The addictive nature of some computer games was also leading to serious social disorders, doctors giving presentations at this year’s Australian Council on Children and the Media conference said” (Stark, 2013).
Moreover, it is not just children and young people that are being impacted. Research indicates that all this constant stimulation, all the apps all the time, don’t give any of us enough downtime. Our brains are on constant overload. And this impacts our actual memory and learning even as adults, (Richtell, 2010).
Then add in the phenomenon of “phantom vibrations” or feeling the vibration of your cell phone when it is not ringing. This is becoming so common researchers believe our brains have been changed, rewired so to speak, as a result. In fact, more researchers are devoting time to study this, as it is becoming more common than once thought (Hu, 2013).
So, brain rewiring, social disorders, overload, actually feeling vibrations when they do not occur…In light of this my original statement “I am an app device,” doesn’t sound that farfetched. As far as George Jetson’s exercise program – the wireless connection between the screen and his body – well, it is still not a total reality but let’s say I am not laughing so hard anymore.
The key is to manage and try to cut back on our use of such devices. And, as I look around my office, I see my unopened print newspapers that I’ve already read on my IPad, books in my bookcases that are now on my reading devices, and yes, even my old Smith Corona typewriter, in a place of honor collecting dust, while I work on two computers, one desktop, and one laptop, in the course of a normal work session. Then I have to think, at least for me, the ship has not just sailed, it is steaming along in open seas, not looking back at the port anytime soon.
Works Cited
Hanna-Barbera. (1962, November 26). The Jetsons – Uniblab.
Hu, E. (2013, September 27). Phantom Phone Vibrations: So Common They’ve Changed Our Brains? Retrieved from NPR All Tech Considered: http://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2013/09/30/226820044/phantom-phone-vibrations-so-common-they-ve-changed-our-brains
Is digital technology re-wiring your brain? (2015, January 8). Retrieved from The Economist: http://www.brainhq.com/news/digital-technology-re-wiring-your-brain
Richtell, M. (2010, August 24). Technology: Your Brain on Computors. Retrieved from The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/25/technology/25brain.html?_r=0
ROGGIO, A. (2014, June 3). 3 Mobile App Ecommerce Strategies for 2014. Retrieved from Practical Ecommerce: http://www.practicalecommerce.com/articles/68962-3-Mobile-App-Ecommerce-Strategies-for-2014
Stark, J. (2013, October 5). Digital Life. Retrieved from The Sydney Morning Herald: http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/digital-life-news/screen-overload-puts-brain-development-at-risk-20131004-2uygt.html