Issue 88, plz comment or rate it and thanks in advanced.

**LouisLin** · 09-30-2008, 10:17 AM

88 "Technologies not only influence but actually determine social customs and ethics."

The issue is that technologies influence social customs and ethics. In addition, the assertor of the issue also put emphasis on the fact that technologies actually determine social customs and ethics. In my opinion, I totally agree with the former advocacy of the issue and think technologies have great influence on social customs and ethics. However, I disagree with the latter topic assertion that technologies actually determine our social customs and ethics. In the following contents, I will elaborate my point view about this issue.

Undoubtedly, advanced technologies have great impact on our daily lives. Owing to technology development, we can live more comfortable and convenient than before and our life styles can be in various ways. For example, due to internet invention and multimedia technologies progress, people can face to face communicate each other no matter how long distance it is. On the contrary, it is impossible that you wanted to face to face talk to some person while he or she was in faraway places one hundred years ago. Besides, people are able to learn or work at home via computers and internet instead of going to schools or offices. Nowadays, many religious established virtual churches, shrines and mosques in order to let people worship their gods. Many obvious evidences can prove that technologies indeed impact our daily lives, even social customs.

However, technologies not only bring advantages but also make a lot of problems to us. For instances, people are bold in speaking their opinions in internet because they can be anonymous identity. As we know, people are always afraid of pressure from group so that they rarely deliver the speeches about what they think. In the virtual and anonymous, people can talk everything which they want to say. Nevertheless, some reckless people abuse internet. They slander or libel others wantonly because the anonymous characteristic of internet. The other conspicuous example is that some people violate other people’s copyrights seriously. If you can observe this phenomenon carefully, you can find out the fact that many China people infringe on others’ copyrights disregarding all laws and regulations. They duplicate music and publications, then upload to internet and share these illegal files to everybody; nonetheless, they are not permitted to do this behavior. As everybody knows, this is an infringement act. Although advanced technologies us a lot of conveniences, those also generate many kinds perplexed social problems. Based on these social problems which are produced by demerit of technologies, one sociologist, William Ogburn, proposed cultural lag theory. He claimed that social problems will emerge while culture, social customs and ethics can’t keep up with the rapid pace of technological advancement and change.

To my understanding, confronting technologies and the problems that those caused, many nations’ governments make laws and policies to restrict users’ behaviors and reduce the negative effects of technologies rather than let technologies determine social customs and ethics, even our whole society. For example, many advanced countries make law about intellectual property rights to protect original authors and prevent anyone from encroaching on others’ copyrights or patents, USA especially. Moreover, in my country, Taiwan, my government also uses criminal laws to ban network users from libeling and slandering other people. Furthermore, China government took advantage of fire wall technique and built Great Fire wall with a view to bar its people from issuing reactionary discussions. If people lived in China criticized the authority, they will arrested by net polices. From what is mentioned above, we can realize that governments from various nations make laws or policies to solve the problems instead of obedient to accept that technologies determine social customs and ethics.

In conclusion, technologies indeed do great efforts on our daily lives and let us feel more comfortable and convenient than before, even it already influenced our social customs and ethics. Therefore, I totally agree with the former assertion of the issue topic. However, technologies also brought many social problems to us and need us to get over those. As far as I know, our governments confront these problems and solve those rather than letting technologies and problems which those caused determine social customs and ethics. Consequently, I disagree with the latter position of the issue topic. From my point of view, our social ethics and moralities are there and actually have consistent truths whatever technologies evolve or innovate.

**FAFA** · 10-01-2008, 08:18 AM

The issue is that technologies influence social customs and ethics. In addition, the assertor of the issue also put(S) emphasis on the fact that technologies actually determine social customs and ethics. In my opinion, I totally agree with the former advocacy of the issue and think technologies have great influence on social customs and ethics. However, I disagree with the latter topic assertion that technologies actually determine our social customs and ethics. In the following contents, I will elaborate my point view about this issue.

Undoubtedly, advanced technologies have great impact on our daily lives. Owing to technology development, we can live more comfortable and convenient than before and our life styles can be in various ways.(not very clear structure.it might be easier to understand if you use,for ex, ...our life styles can vary in different ways) For example, due to internet invention and multimedia technologies progress, people can face to face communicate each other no matter how long distance it is. On the contrary, it is impossible that you wanted to(a) face to face talk to some person while he or she was in faraway places one hundred years ago. Besides, people are able to learn or work at home via computers and internet instead of going to schools or offices. Nowadays, many religious established virtual churches, shrines and mosques in order to let people worship their gods. Many obvious evidences can prove that technologies indeed impact our daily lives, even social customs.

However, technologies not only bring advantages but also make a lot of problems to us. For instances, people are bold in speaking their opinions in internet because they can be anonymous identity. As we know, people are always afraid of pressure from group so that they rarely deliver the speeches about what they think. In the virtual and anonymous, people can talk everything which they want to say. Nevertheless, some reckless people abuse internet. They slander or libel others wantonly because (of)the anonymous characteristic of internet. The other conspicuous example is that some people violate other people’s copyrights seriously. If you can observe this phenomenon carefully, you can find out the fact that many China people infringe on others’ copyrights disregarding all laws and regulations. They duplicate music and publications, then upload to internet and share these illegal files to everybody; nonetheless, they are not permitted to do this behavior.(sounds better if you use:to behave like that) As everybody knows, this is an infringement act. Although advanced technologies (you missed the verb here)us a lot of conveniences, those also generate many kinds (of)perplexed social problems. Based on these social problems which are produced by demerit of technologies, one sociologist, William Ogburn, proposed cultural lag theory. He claimed that social problems will emerge while culture, social customs and ethics can’t keep up with the rapid pace of technological advancement and change.

To my understanding, confronting technologies and the problems that those caused, many nations’ governments make laws and policies to restrict users’ behaviors and reduce the negative effects of technologies rather than let technologies determine social customs and ethics, even our whole society. For example, many advanced countries make law about intellectual property rights to protect original authors and prevent anyone from encroaching on others’ copyrights or patents, USA especially. Moreover, in my country, Taiwan, my government also uses criminal laws to ban network users from libeling and slandering other people. Furthermore, China government took advantage of fire wall technique and built Great Fire wall with a view to bar its people from issuing reactionary discussions. If people lived in China criticized the authority, they will(inappropriate use of conditional;they would be arrested) arrested by net polices. From what is mentioned above, we can realize that governments from various nations make laws or policies to solve the problems instead of obedient to accept that technologies determine social customs and ethics.

In conclusion, technologies indeed do great efforts on our daily lives and let us feel more comfortable and convenient than before, even it already influenced our social customs and ethics. Therefore, I totally agree with the former assertion of the issue topic. However, technologies also brought many social problems to us and need us to get over those. As far as I know, our governments confront these problems and solve those rather than letting technologies and problems which those caused determine social customs and ethics. Consequently, I disagree with the latter position of the issue topic. From my point of view, our social ethics and moralities are there and actually have consistent truths whatever technologies evolve or innovate.

good work:-)
excellent vocabulary,and unusual examples
apy more attention to your grammar,and everything will be ok.

good luck!