How do you imagine social interaction within 10 years, taking into consideration the impact

of technology on human relations?

By Alice Assenza

Social interaction is the way people relate and communicate with each

other. It is not necessarily a physical relation, but it may simply be a

mutually subjective orientation people have towards each other’s selves.

In fact, even if no physical behavior is involved, social interaction still

exists:

friends sending each other’s letters , people texting or chatting online.

Social Interaction

Just like everything in life, social interaction has been subject to many

changes. The importance of human communication has been recognized

from the start and this is why it has always been and it still is one of the

biggest field of research.

Let’s look at a brief history of communication..

The first form of human communication dates back to a very long time ago.

Before written words existed, the homo sapiens painted walls..

Cave of Lascaux, France.

Grafiti

Story telling..and the ancient Greeks started the tradition of the "ἀοιδός“, the story teller.

People would come together and listen to the story teller; they would share

emotions, imagine different worlds and cement the group identity.

Omero, Iliade, Book I

From the first hand-written books and to the mass print

The first real books were

hand-written by the

amanuensis and were only

accesible to few.

In 1455 Johann Gutenberg invented the first

printing press, becoming the father of the

modern printed books, and a communications

catalyst opening up the world to a quick and

efficient spread of knowledge and ideas

Marconi’s InnovationsAt the end of the XIX century, Guglielmo Marconi invented two new objects

that completely rebuilt the world of communication:

1. The telegraph 2. The radio

With these inventions not only long distance communication was enabled,

but also people travelling could always be kept up to date and could

communicate with their homeland.

The television

Yesterday

Today

In the late ‘20s the television was introduced. At the beginning the tv was

available to only few and, like the story tellers, became a medium of

aggregation. It also “shrank the world” allowing live transmission of

information in every part of the world.

With modern times the television became a mass item of communication, and

not it is owned by almost every family.

The telephoneThe invention of the telephone represents a strong turning point in the world of

communication. Nowadays everyone holds a cell phone and it is no longer used

merely to communicate through phone calls, but also to share data, to text, send

invitations to events, and access the internet..

The Internet..In the XX century “the Web” revolutionized, once again, the world of

communication. Both the speed of information and knowledge sharing

increased exponentially. No more boundaries obstructed social interaction

and people all around the world began to feel closer than ever. The

proliferation of social networks strongly affected both personal and

professional relationship.

Technology and Comunication

It is not deniable that advancements in technology have improved and made

media of communication more accessible. Undoubtly, for professional

purposes, technology improvements have been very positive; however whether

they have been exclusively positive is arguable.

At a professional level, advancement in technology has allowed:

Internationalization

Video-conferences with people from all around the world, through

apps such as Skype and ooVoo

Faster exchange of information that improve business efficiency

At a social level, advancement in technology has allowed people to:

Keep in touch with friends abroad, through social network such as Facebook

or free internet calls through apps like Skype, Facetime or Viber.

Have easy access to information

Share thoughts and news through social networks such as Tweetter

Share live-moments through uploads of pictures and videos in social

networks such as Instangram

However, it is important to consider the counter side of this technological

development, which has led to an abuse of media of communication, not

only reducing personal relationship, but also alienating people from reality.

And in 2024?

Foreseeing how social interaction will be in 10 years is not simple. The level of

technology sophistication continues to increase exponentially and affects human

relations in an irreversible way.

People will probably be able to stay in touch online more practically, there would

be no more boundaries to knowledge and information sharing and this would

allow businesses to innovate more quickly and adjust to new environments.

In 2024 probably all the instruments that nowadays we see as very innovative,

will become out to date and will be replaced by more high tech ones.

It is not excludable, for example, that within 10 years technicians will create

instruments that will be able to function just by reading people’s thoughts other

than through buttons and keyboards.

The forthcoming launch of the new Google Glass represents a very big step

toward a new and more sophisticated technology.

These are augmented reality glasses that display additional information about

what we see, “on the spot”, on a screen positioned on one of the lenses.

It has the ability to take videos, photos and connect to emails; everything can be

activated simply through vocal control.

A gaze at the future

With the risk of being overwhelmed by technological development, people

must be careful to not abuse with the use of media of communication, and

always prioritise human relations.