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Has technology made people dumber?

As the world becomes more and more technologically advanced, it seems many people have only become lazier.

A self-admitted history nerd, I always wonder what people did in, say, the 1800s for leisure and entertainment. It seems they made a pastime of reading books and writing letters to each other, among other activities.

In this age of social media, texting, and email, how many people nowadays still write letters to each other by hand?

Whereas I am a voracious reader, most of my friends wouldn't be caught dead with a book in hand. Instead, they seem to be glued to their trusty TVs, Netflix and Amazon Prime being all the rage these days.

Writing letters and reading books are, in most people's minds, the kinds of activities you have to seek out and feel inspired to do -- which at the end of the day can use up more of their mental resources (or so they feel).

On the other hand, TV programming comes at you -- you need not do much other than grab the remote control and surf channels. The same applies to much of the content you'd find online.

We can all appreciate the innumerable benefits of technology. But we must not let it impede us from enjoying the simple stuff in life, whether it be taking walks at the park and communing with nature, writing stories, reading novels, and so on. At the end of the day, we shouldn't lose sight of the fact that we control technology -- it doesn't control us.

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