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I think that handwriting remains an essential skill although keyboarding plays a huge role in our lives dominated by computers.  Handwriting is more intimate, adding a personal touch to compositions.  It shows sincerity and individualism, revealing details about the author’s personality.  Standardized fonts are the same no matter what computer you use.  Sloppy handwriting can lead to poor grades because it is a basic tool used for taking notes, tests and homework, at least in elementary grades.  Handwriting viewed as a chore de-motivates which leads to difficulties in writing.  A recent study states that thousands of students request scribes when taking standardized tests because they are incapable of answering questions in longhand.  

However, computers are undeniably more convenient. Accurate speed typing will give you a competitive edge in the marketplace.  Our fast-paced society forces us to be more efficient and typing improves our productivity over handwriting.  Who could imagine 50 years ago that the computer would be an absolute necessity today?  Computer illiteracy is a major disadvantage and an automatic disqualifier for many positions.  Learning how to type on a computer keyboard is essential to many daily tasks such as email and surfing the internet.  

Our technology driven age should not deny us the pleasure of being able to craft a letter, poem or essay in our own words. As our culture continues to be overwhelmed by scientific and robotic inventions, fine handwriting is increasingly becoming a lost art. Students should be encouraged to develop both their keyboarding and handwriting skills which can be equally rewarding. 

A recent report written for U.S. military planners entitled “Autonomous Military Robotics”, which outlines how robots could replace soldiers in war or many dangerous missions. The authors, three Californian researchers, claim that soon, robots would be able reason and make decisions that now only can be made by humans.

I do not believe that robots made for war are great. They do not have a distinct advantage over the cognitive capabilities of humans. For example, a robotic cannon in South Africa shot at 23 ‘friendly soldiers’. Last April, the U.S. Army deployed Talon Swords, robotic soldiers armed with machine guns, which created a controversy when they trained their guns on American soldiers. Robotic ‘killing’ machines are alike to Stephen Harper who has no empathy and to the 1980 sitcom, “Growing Pains”, with the idea as absurd as the fictional show.

I probably would only buy the Roomba, the robotic vacuum cleaner!            

Today, the most famous commercial is for the Snuggie, a “blanket with sleeves". Saturday Night Live made fun of this commercial. Mockable commercials make products better known which translates into better sales. That’s probably why this commercial has resulted in sales of four million Snuggies. I think that television commercials with real people have more impact than an online pop – up ad. Production is cheaper for these low – budget commercials and so the makers of these products can afford to buy more time on Cable Television. With purchasing power down at today’s economic state, most viewers can’t afford to buy expensive items but they may be able to afford these cheaper products. Low – budget ads (i.e. Sham Wow and Snuggie) are the latest trend in advertising. Despite their tackiness, these ads are proving to be quite effective.