Week 7: Impact of the Telephone

When researching th History of Phones I found it interesting how a device could change people's lives so much. Seeing the phone completley go from a rare item to something everone has is truly remarkebale. This is due to the fact that in essensce a phone at face value didn't bring anything new. It was an evolution of the telegraph meaning it wasn't the first piece of technology to facilitate instant high-speed communication The aspect of the phone that made it unique was it part of someone by bringing their voices which is something far more valuable than just long-distance communication.

It is very revolutionary because it made communication interpersonal by allowing people to have conversations from anywhere. This was the first time in history people could be together while separated due to the phone an example of it. This is seen with its success, withing half a century of their creation you could find a payphone on every block. Their success was completely unexpected due to them originally just being thought of as a tool for businesses but they have grown not only to be something everyone owns but that everyone is expected to be using. Most jobs wouldn't hire someone without a phone which shows how mandated they are.

Their impact on society has been debated on weather it is positive or negative. Most say positive because it benefitted people and businesses in our society. The main way it has been negative is by making people reliant on it too much. Overall it has for good or bad changed our society.