Clay Wilder

I decided to "unplug" for a little over a half a day last Saturday, and it felt great. I honestly don't feel like I use technology all that much, but then again I certainly rely on it more than I'd like to admit. I am not on my phone as much as my peers, but I realized the technology I prefer using the most is television and video games. It was pretty easy to avoid these temptations as I decided to leave my dorm and get outdoors. I went to my sister's house in Shelby County and spent time with my nephews, we went fishing, frog gigging, and played several different sports with them. I found staying away from technology fairly easy, even though we finished the night watching the NBA playoffs together. My nephews are young and don't have phones yet, and not a whole bunch of access to technology so I wasn't "phubbed" by them. I try to not "phub" others, and my friends and we typically agree to put our phones away when we hang out. I hate wh...

Social media is something I used to be very into, I was constantly trying to get more friends/followers on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, you name it I was hooked. I put way too much stock into it, and I believed these nameless "followers" were the key to happiness, and that they actually cared about my life. It was a conversation in middle and high school, we would all compare followers and likes, and act like it actually meant something if we had more than our friends, or enemies. As I've gotten older I've deleted the majority of my social media, and the pages I still do have are private and can only be seen by people I choose to let "follow" me. Social media definitely has it's positives, but I believe some of those positives were created by negatives. Looking at it from a technological determinist perspective social media is undoubtedly a "get on the train or get off the tracks" phenomenon. The reason my grandparents and the majority of my f...

I, personally, am mixed on concern when it comes to privacy. I think national security is more important than the comfortability of the individual, but businesses and online companies should not have access to people without them knowing. It also makes me uncomfortable that if I'm looking at particular website or product on my phone, the next few weeks I will get constant advertisements popping up on my phone that are from that same website I visited. It's one thing to protect our country from terrorist attacks through the PATRIOT Act, but another for random corporations to have access to our personal information. I have never really done much to protect my privacy, as far as digitally I'm not completely sure how I would go about doing so, but I plan on researching new ways to to protect myself virally. Some people are very into social media, and just want as many "followers" as possible, often not caring whether they've ever met those people they are followed...

I play video games a lot in my free time, and have several different opinions on the subject. Most recently, I for one have reconnected with friends who live hours away from me. Just as it seemed like our friendship may have run it's course, I got a PlayStation 4 with a microphone, and due to it's online capabilities we were not only able to talk to each other through our microphones, but we were also able to play games together, completing revitalizing our relationship, and we still play together and catch up on each other's lives in that way almost weekly. Not only have I maintained old relationships, but I've also met new friends playing games online. Another positive of gaming for me has been able to immerse myself into things that interest. I for instance, am a huge Star Wars fan, and there are new Star Wars games coming out almost monthly, giving me a chance to put myself into the Star Wars universe, and feel like I'm really apart of it. This also translates i...

My first experience with a computer was a game called Reader Rabbit, and I played it constantly. It was a learning game made for first graders, but I played it when I was much younger. I loved to read and was always looking to expand my young mind. This was my first experience, but far from my last with the world wide web. This had such a lasting impact on me because of the memorable gameplay, and iconic characters. As far as technological determinism viewpoint goes, I think it was vital to my future to get involved with computers at such a young age. Little did I know at that point in my life how important the computer would turn out be. After countless hours of playing Reader Rabbit, I eventually outgrew it, and started trying my hand at endeavors such as the Sims and various other games that stressed my intelligence to its limits. When games would no longer feed my hunger for electronic growth, I moved onto the exploration of the internet. I considered myself a fairly creative perso...

I think this article is very relevant in today's society, and in every generation, both in history, and the future. Of my four grandparents, only one has a smartphone, as well as any type of social media. The premise of the article makes a lot of since, judging by my experiences and older people I've been around, at a certain age technology seems to inevitably outrun you. There are many reasons for this, including the fact that it's simply easier to learn and adapt to new technologies when you are younger, coupled with the observation that as people grow older, keeping up with the latest technological trends, typically, does not sit atop their list of priorities. Obviously, as there is with every rule, there must always be exceptions. Since technological advances have come around, there are some older people, like the author, who will fight the stereotype with all of their might, and refuse to be apart of this statistic as long as they can. This is not something I'm a...

I personally do not believe personal blogs are nearly as relevant in today's societies as they once were in the recent past. Blogs used to be a way for people to express themselves and their viewpoints, but now blogs are just watered down, overused vehicles that nearly everyone has or has had at some point. We have blogs for everything by people that consider themselves "experts" on certain subjects, or people who just wanna share their "journeys" into various endeavors. I think the problem comes when people are unable to discern the differences in credibility between a legitimate medical journal, and some internet "doctor" posting opinions, and that works for any field or profession/hobby. It's also frustrating that anyone can essentially post anything online, like inappropriate pictures of colleagues as the article mentioned. Unfortunately, I don't think regulating credible internet users in this day and age is a realistic goal, so other th...

I'm going to look at the past, present, and future of TV through the theory of technological determinism. This may seem like a difficult connection to see, but both the programs and the actual television itself shaped a lot of our society today. It impacted the health of people, the goals of individual's, and the way societies of other cultures are viewed by people's unfamiliar with that particular culture. Television itself has impacted the health of our society, both positively and negatively. Since the conception of TV in America it has done thing consistently from year to year, grown in users. This is negative, because that number has directly correlated with obesity in America, and many people attribute the large number of people sitting on their couches watching TV frequently takes time away from people spending their time exercising or doing other forms of physical activity. Another negative aspect is the social belief that it takes time away from emotionally being...

I would say that I am not a technological determinist, especially when it comes to my education. I have always, and will always prefer the classic printed textbook over an electronic book or kindle. I understand that it works better for some people, due to the mobility, affordability, and convenience. These books cannot be solely depended on, in my opinion, because technology is not always reliable, but with a classic textbook you don't have to worry about your wifi failing, your device's battery dying, or a professor who prefers students to not use technology in their course. As far as Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) go, they can be a very useful, and educational tool. They give high school students the option to begin their college education for free, as well as gives those who don't choose to attend college the option to be able to higher their education and better themselves and their future. Certain technologies can cause laziness in the classroom, such as people ...

I am a huge music fan, and I have been for my whole life. My music roots are founded in the gritty, working class tone, used most often in both Motown and classic rock styles. I credit this particular taste to both my dad, and another influential man in my life, the classic rock being instilled by my dad, and the soulful Motown "bluesy" side of me is accredited to John Allen, the aforementioned "influential man in my life." It's interesting how the devices I've listened to this music on has changed throughout the years, seeing as, by societies standards I have been regressing. When I was younger I listened to music almost exclusively on my iPod, then as I grew older, and was able to drive, I listened to FM radio and CD's in my car, eventually evolving (or, rather, devolving) to the turntable. In high school I listened to music most often on my turntable, but that has now transitioned to almost exclusively CD's. I still sometimes use my phone to liste...

My name is Clay Wilder, and I'm a sophomore at the University of Louisville, I'm a strong Christian, and love leading Bible studies, I am also an RA and play LaCrosse for UofL. I have three older sister, four nephews and two awesome parents, and an amazing girlfriend. My dad used to own a successful electronics/home installation store in Louisville called Wilder Electronics, which was handed down to him from my grandfather. I have been around certain electronics my whole life, like speakers, radios, televisions, and home theaters, so i am definitely bias toward that kind of technology. As far as laptops, phones, and gaming systems go, I've never cared much, I have an older iPhone and Mac, with of which work fine for me, and I'm not someone who always feels the need to have the latest technology. I personally the rise in smartphones are good and bad, but in my opinion they do more bad than good. Children having smartphones their whole lives will drastically impact thei...