In what ways has technology expanded or limited the acquisition of knowledge?

Another of the electronic media's good qualities that helped in the expansion of the acquisition of knowledge is its diversity. Today, with the help of the Internet, the television, the radio and the video people can know different perspectives of the information needed. For example, if a person wants to know the story that has lead to the dispute between the Palestinians and the Israelis, he would find different kinds of stories having different points of view because of the many different sources that are available on the electronic media machines. Therefore he would be more open minded to the conflict and to new ideas and would be more conscious about what is happening.

Nevertheless, the electronic media has also in some ways, limited the acquisition of knowledge. Technology has indeed grown in the field of media and communication, but does everyone know how the various machines and programs work? To know something is not simply to be aware of its existence, but rather it is to understand how it functions and be able to use it. Videos games, whether on computers or on consoles, are other examples of technology that are popular among people, but that do not promote any understanding. Most of the people who play those games, do not know how the graphics are made or how the characters can move. They maybe brilliant at the games, but they know nothing about its deep structure. Sometimes, people can be addicted to these games and can spend hours playing, which definitely limits their acquisition of knowledge because of their non-efficient use of time. Not only video games, but also the Internet has, in a way, stopped many people from seeking or pursuing useful "knowledge". Instead, they spend time on entertainment sites or on chat programs. People can also be addicted to the Internet because of all the entertainment they can get. For example, a student who chats for hours and hours on the Internet will not even have the incentive to pursue "knowledge" because he would feel very happy about the chat program he is using, and so, he will not bother himself to check out useful sites. Another example is that of a person who hasn't used the Internet before and who saw his friend playing games on entertainment sites. If he would later get the Internet connection to his computer and be able to log on just for the sake of playing games and entering chat rooms, he would definitely not discover the amount of information that is useful to him and that the Internet offers. Therefore, the Internet can be a distraction for many people and not a way to access useful information.

Although the electronic media expanded the acquisition of knowledge thanks to its easy and fast accessibility and because of its diversity, it also limited the acquisition of knowledge because of its addictiveness that leads to distraction and laziness, which in turn leads to the non-efficient use of time.

Technology can also expand the acquisition of knowledge in the field of medicine through the new diagnostic machines. By diagnostic machines, we include the X-ray machine, the MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging), the C.T.Scan, etc... These machines help diagnose diseases much more accurately than before. Therefore, doctors can know more about the disease and thus they can find a cure to it, unlike the old days. Before the era of this new technology, doctors were uncertain about how some diseases can be cured. For example, cancer was a major disease in the old days and had no cure; many people were dying of it. But now, some types of cancer can be diagnosed early using new and advanced machines, and therefore, can be treated efficiently. Today, the MRI technology created a new era of knowledge especially in orthopedic surgery, neurology and neuro surgery. And as knowledge expands, people are more exposed to medical knowledge, which helps them suspect abnormalities in their bodies, and hence seek medical advice during the early stages of some diseases.

Although these new machines help diagnose diseases, they have decreased the natural skills of some of the medical practitioners because of their heavy reliability on technology. For example, a doctor who gets used to and who relies heavily on the machines, will, at some point, loose his skills of diagnosing diseases by natural senses. Some will also have little incentive in research work, which would limit their acquisition of knowledge in the field of medicine.

The presence of technology in the field of medicine has also totally overpowered the use of natural treatment. Today, because of technology, doctors have forgotten the natural ways to cure diseases such as the use of natural herbs. These herbs could have treated diseases that cannot be treated today. But doctors have little incentive to search and know more about these herbs or other natural ways that could be more efficient than the use of recent alternatives. Therefore, technology has limited their acquisition of knowledge even in their own field.

Although the new diagnostic machines expanded the acquisition of knowledge in the field of medicine thanks to their diagnostic abilities, they also limited the acquisition of knowledge in the same field because they decrease the medical practitioners' natural skills and because they overpowered the use of natural treatment.

Technology has also expanded the acquisition of knowledge through means of communication and transportation and through advanced machines such as the calculators and the telescopes, etc...

For example, with the help of the mobile phones, which is a mean of communication, people can talk to each other wherever they are. They can send and receive messages and even log on the Internet. This is very useful because people can acquire knowledge wherever they are. For example, a person can get news on his mobile and can also search for information on the Internet. Nevertheless, mobiles can also limit the acquisition of knowledge because of the various games that are available on it and also because people can use them to chat for a long time. For example, if people start playing games on mobile phones and wasting their time chatting, they will not use the phones efficiently, which in turn, disables them to search or even to have the incentive to explore the fantastic abilities of this small "machine".

Transportation has also expanded the acquisition of knowledge. For example, today, people can send letters and packages easily with the help of airplanes. People can also travel easily and acquire knowledge about other communities.

Another example is that of machines, such as the telescopes and calculators, etc, that improved and expanded the acquisition of knowledge because they provide more detailed information to people than before. With the use of these machines, people can explore and know many things in different fields. But when they start depending heavily on these machines, people stop thinking and stop exploring, which limits their acquisition of knowledge.

In conclusion, although technology expanded the acquisition of knowledge in many fields and through many ways, it has also limited the acquisition of knowledge in the same fields and through the same ways. Therefore, a deductive conclusion cannot be reached. Nevertheless, if people use technology efficiently, they would definitely expand their acquisition of knowledge in many different fields.