I like to say that at an early age, Myspace indirectly ruined my life. Myspace was the opening of floodgates that propelled a generation into a super-cyber culture.

Technology in general has changed, possibly downgraded, the way I behave, where my priorities lie and why I still count on my fingers when reading clocks—those circular things with numbers on walls. Born into a world where not owning a computer is seen as a feature of an uneducated country has contributed greatly to the lack of educated people in my own country and my reliance on calculators, cell phones, iPods and the glorified Google. The information, texts, Tweets and status updates can’t download fast enough. What’s a book?

Very rarely does a day go by when I don’t wake up and immediately reach for my iPhone to read about what’s going on in my friends’ lives via Instagram, Twitter— because Facebook is totally uncool now— and Tumblr. Technology proves to act as an immediate and natural inclination that I depend on without thought. I even find the Internet encroaching in my dreams– strangers favoriting my sleep-deprived Tweets about cats and pizza. I doubt I’m alone.

The flood of memes and blatant ridiculousness Tumblr offers has engulfed mainstream pop-culture, comedy and the world around us. I mean, the fact that GIF was deemed the new word of 2012 (over YOLO) reiterates this technology-take-over. Social media sites circulating art, music, fashion and media are a constant source of inspiration for many teenagers, these ideas and work their way into commodified products and established ideas. This starts with Internet-based musicians, bloggers and artists who become tomorrow’s source of creative and technological insight—from gamers to designers.

The problem lies in the reliance that predominates the culture. With teenagers’ attention spans are shrinking faster–from every scroll through their Timeline, Dashboard or Home to every cramming visit to Sparknotes. In these instances, culture becomes more reliant on technology to provide insight, humor and information.

I am definitely a product of, not only the laziness and dependence on technology, but the isolation and individualized nature that technology provides teenagers with. I would much rather text someone than have a phone call, and I am inclined to email my newspaper cohorts rather than have a face-to-face meeting. And I don’t think it’s just for convenience’s sake. Machinery has replaced contact. Not trying to sound like the late and great Ray Bradbury in his novel (those paper blocks commonly used as a decoration or backpack cushioning) Fahrenheit 451, but I can safely say that technology has taken over, and I question if it’s for the best.

I doubt I’ll be throwing out my phone and deleting my Twitter account at this realization. But I will question how much of an effect the technology-driven world I live in has on me and if it contributes to the downward spiral education falls through.