It's crazy to think about how fast society has changed. The last 20 years have been probably the most transformative in history. People are able to communicate from parts of the world they would never have in the past. Advancements have been made in every aspect of humanity.
I was born towards the end of the 1990s. I barely missed the mark of being considered a millennial. I think about how different life was back then. I remember as a kid spending most days at a park or in the library. Occasionally going on outings with the family. The main technology used in the house was watching TV. We didn't even have cable. I'd wake up early on Saturday mornings to watch the cable kids' shows they put on basic antenna TV. That is in the mornings and weekday evenings when the Simpsons were on was when we experienced the integration of the television into our lively hood. I remember having a cheap Motorola flip phone to be used to call my mom after school to pick me up and to play the snake game. Texting was nonexistent because it was a pain typing.
Then in middle school, I remember the students around me having more advanced phones. Phones that'd have better keyboards and LCD touch screens. They were able to take photos on their phones and send them to each other. The first time me experiencing FOMO in the technical sense. Now thinking back about it, it was probably one of the reasons why I decided to get into the tech industry in the first place.
Anyway, so much has changed since. People are attached to their phones. It has become an extension of people's existence. The accessibility of information in the palm of your hand makes you feel a sense of power. Not knowing the longer-term side effects of technology addiction is slightly terrifying. But everyone keeps doing it. I wonder if we reach a point in society where everyone reverts back to a non-technology-based society. Maybe then people will feel more happy with their lives.