HW #7 Interviews and Surveys

**Interview with 15 year old cousin (done over AIM)**
About how much time daily would you say you spend using electronics?
I spend practically my whole day on my phone, but since im in skool I try not 2 use it as much, but @ home I spend about 5 hours on my phone. Im probably on the computer for 2 hours and I spend an hour or less watching TV. When Im home I try and escape from the everyone so I listen 2 my ipod about 3 hours.

why so much time on ur phone oppose to everything else?
Because I can do a lot on my fone I can text and go on AIM 2 tlk 2 my friends, I can go on the Internet, and I can do hw on my sidekick. My life is practically on there! Last Friday I 4got my fone @ home and I felt so displaced from the world and I cudnt focus cuz all I wanted was my fone.

Is that healthy?
Its not healthy because 1st off its bad 2 b that addicted 2 anything and also the Internet and most things digital r used for entertainment, it stops you from being able 2 so nething productive. I dont think it really makes me ne smarter.

Overall is it POSITIVE or NEGATIVE?
I think it has both positive and negative effects like its good cuz u can talk 2 friends and other ppl easier and connecting w/ ppl is quicker bcuz back then 4 instance we had 2 send a letter 2 a person far away which wud take 4ever and now all we have 2 do is fire off a quick email or text. But its bad cuz it dominates all our free time and things such as gossip tends 2 spread faster cuz of it.

Could you live without your phone?
I need my fone I can't survive a week w/o my fone id probly b able 2 focus more w/o it but life wudnt b fun and id feel away from the world.

**Middled aged man I stopped to talk to who was in the middle of grocery shopping at the 14th street farmers market**
I spend most of my time reading, I own a TV but am always in another room when my wife is watching her silly shows at night. The constant sounds that come out of that box drive me nuts, there is nothing that i feel is crucial to watch, so i don't spend my time wasted by flipping thought thousands of channels. How ever I do spend a far amount of time on my computer, working and on the phone. Overall we should spend less time away from screens and digital items and more time on activities that actualy require us to use our minds and imagination.

**Interview with BEST FRIEND Binta (also done over AIM, just copied and pasted)**
How does the digital world effect your everyday life?
It affects my life profoundly, most of my conversations are held over text message, it provides you with a confidence that you normally would have to work to achieve through actually talking verbally with someone, but for some reason when you're texting or talking to someone on the phone it's so much easier to talk to someone...it also diminshes the need to do things the "old fashioned" way. if theres something i want to figure out, i wont think to look in a book to find out information about it, i'll just be like "oh, i'll google it". My phone is always by my side, so i'll find myself talking to someone and texting someone else at the same time, so it lessens the intamacy of conversations. They're also very distracting..digital things..they give you something to do besides what you're actaually supposed to be doing...

Do you think that effects our develpoment in social skills?
of course..it takes away from our conversational and people skills..we're so used to talking to people through a screen that we may not seem as articulate in person.

How much time do you spend using technology?
well my phone is an all day thing so from probably 8-12. I usually spend like 3 hours on the computer daily. I dont watch that much tv, and yeahh.......