in the virtual world for hours and spare no time for a close relative or friend yearning for an uninterrupted meeting in the real world.
The internet, for many people, creates Plato’s cave of illusionary world where images and shades are thought to be real and keeps man deluded forever. Google and other search engines are loaded with bulk of information on every imaginable topic but the problem is how to filter valid and reliable material from junk. Students even do not think through what they have dumped in their home assignments and projects. Even research papers and dissertations are prone to cut-copy-paste temptations in Pakistan with tricky ways to fool plagiarism software like Turnitin.
Time, which was ever thought to be precious, has gone to the wolves. The young generation, in particular, spends their waking hours surfing, chatting, and sharing pictures/videos on the internet just for fun. Very few are doing something worthwhile.
A few days back, an expatriate belonging to my village had a fatal accident in Saudi Arabia while driving and surfing on the internet at the same time. But who cares for time and life in a country with a bulging population and no pressure to work.
I am neither a cynic nor a conservative but the way we change so fast is horrifying. Capitalism thrives on novelty and does not allow us to think twice before buying something new. Look at the hype created before anything new (read gimmick) is released to the market and how crazily people respond. The craze erodes in a few days only to be rejuvenated by another illusion and the wheel keeps spinning forever.
Should we collectively apply a brake to innovation and change? No. What we need to do is save the social fabric from breaking up by investing as much time and effort in human development as we do in technology.
To begin with, government and civil society can join hands to create awareness about the social implications of using technology on attitude formation, physical exertion, and most importantly human relations. Exclusive dependence on technology for fulfilment of our physical, social, psychological, and spiritual needs is too much to expect from it.
The writer teaches at FAST-NU, Peshawar.
Email: zeb.khannu.edu.pk