Lipograph

Juliet's Speech minus shortstack

O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?
Deny thy father and refuse thy name;
Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love
And I'll no longer be a Capulet.

me, me, weefe u me?
Deny y fe nd efue y nme;
r if u wil n, be bu wn my lve
nd I'll n lnge be pule.

Youth, Violence, and Video Games

Our world is powered by technology. From phones to computers to video game systems, people are always using technology. So it only makes sense that video games are one of the leading forms of entertainment of all ages. But as blatant violence becomes more acceptable and graphics become more realistic, the video games themselves can start to hit a little to close to home.

There are thousands of games that portray a very realistic violence such as Halo, Call of Duty, and the very controversial, Grand Theft Auto. But is the violence and supposed morals learned from these games become an issue with the youth that plays them? Are games like these really the cause for the raise in youth crimes?

There have been many studies done on whether or not violent video games really increase violence in a person. The studies show that there is a slight increase in violence in people who play video games, but there is also an increase in their level of confidence in being able to defend themselves in a fight. And although there is an increase in violent tendencies in people who play violent video games, they do not directly relate it to a higher crime rate.

There is violence everywhere we look. On the news, in movies, video games, even just in our everyday lives. We can't hide from it. But I think that if you were to look at a child's face as they "killed" their friend in a video game, or even someone they didn't know, I believe that it would not be even close to the same as if it was really happening, as if they were actually watching someone die, whether they knew them or not. I believe that just because someone enjoys violent video games does not necessarily make them more violent in person. I think that although some games do push the limit of what is morally acceptable, such as Grand Theft Auto, that overall violent video games are not the problem.

What is humanity?

So how do we define humanity?

According to dictionary.com humanity is "the quality or condition of being human, human nature. It also states it as the quality of being humane; kindness; benevolence." Humans are also defined as being particularly adept at utilizing systems of communication for self-expression, the exchange of ideas, and organization.

With the rapid growth of artificial intelligence we are creating human like machines that can not only communicate but can even develop emotions. But does that mean that they have humanity? In movies such like IRobot the robot feels remorse for the death of his creater, and all the robots that are thrown into bins and left for trash show signs of depression as well as care for one another when in battle. Emotion is a large part of humanity, so does that mean that these man made machines have humanity?

Not only do things such as robots show humanity, but animals do as well. But that does not make them human, so what is the deciding factor? Do we have to be able to communicate and speak a language as well as a beating heart to be human? Where do we draw the line between human and machine?

Technology Takeover

How many times a day do we rely on technology to help us do something. We use technology every day to help us eat, sleep, communicate, and even live. When we wake up in the morning we use an alarm clock to help us get out of bed. When cooking almost any meal we use technology in some way, whether its using the stove, oven, or the most recent and probably most dangerous of the three, the microwave. But these are just a few ways we use technology in our everyday lives.

People are very social beings. Technology plays a huge and very significant role in communication. Think of how many times you send a text or an email, make a phone call, page someone, send a fax or a message on Facebook or Plurk! I personally send between 50-100 text messages a day and receive nearly the same! Even this blog that I am writing is a form of communication through technology. Technology is rapidly advancing everyday, soon we will rely on technology to do even the simplest tasks. Even now people use electronic toothbrushes just to brush their teeth.

In hospitals there are thousands of people who are hooked up to machines helping them breath, helping them live! So when is it too much? When do we draw the line between man and machine? Will we become like the people from IRobot with mechanical limbs and robots to do our chores, carry our groceries, and even drive our cars? Or like the ones from Wall-E who are permanently attached to a chair with a TV screen in their face telling them what to wear, what to buy, and what to eat? With technology advancing as quickly as it is the point where the machine becomes smarter than its creator is rapidly approaching. With discoveries in artificial intelligence being made all the time, the day where machines replace people is not far behind. But will we make the decision to stop, or will we keep making advances until one day everything will be ran by machines?