<p>I wrote the following essay in response to one of the prompts in the Official Guide to the SAT. I posted the essay in the SAT forum in the hopes of receiving some feedback, but so far have had no responses whatsoever. I know this forum is probably not the best place for this thread, but I would greatly appreciate an adult's input regarding the essay. Thank you! </p>
<p>This is the last practice essay I plan to write this week (I will be taking the real SAT this Saturday). The prompt is as follows:</p>
<p>"Technology promoises to make our lives easier, freeing up time for leisure pursuits. But the rapid pace of technological innovation and the split second processing capabilities of computers that can work virtually nonstop have made all of us feel rush ed. We have adaopted the relentless pace of the very machines that were supposed to simplify our lives, with the result that, wh ether at work or play, people do not feel like their lives have changed for the better.</p>
<p>-Adapted from Karen Finucan, "Life in the Fast Lane"</p>
<p>Do changes that make our lives easier not necessarily make them better?"</p>
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<p>My response:</p>
<p>Technological advances that can make our lives easier do not necessarily make our lives better. This thesis is exemplified by the Industrial Revolution era of the early 1800s, as well as by the more current advances in communication via the Internet.</p>
<p>During the 1800s, Great Britain experienced a time of rapid technological and social change that was embodied by the Industrial Revolution. The enlightened patterns of thinking of the previous century had brought new inventions to the country, promising to improve the lives of its citizens. The Newcomen steam engine, as well as the cotton mills of the northern England cities, led many Englishmen to believe that the urban poor and the rural subsistence farmers would soon be employed and content with their lives. </p>
<p>Instead, the Industrial Revolution brought upon the English working class an extended period of suffering. Although many men and women who had previously been unemployed were ushered into new jobs in the factories and mills, their lives were no easier than they had been. Fourteen-hour work days threatened to utterly exhaust new workers and their families. The dank and unsanitary conditions present in the mills wer psycologically (sic) oppressive, shutting the employed away from the outside. In addition, children as young as six years of age were requested to perform the menial and often dangerous labors of factory work. Up until the Reform Bills of the 1830s, British working class life had in fact deteriotated, not improved.</p>
<p>In the present, we have further evidence that new technology may not guarantee improved living for all. Indeed, for example, while the Internet has helped people around the world connect with each other, it has also proved to be a breeding ground for perpetrators in identity theft and sex crime. To date, hundreds of thousands of Internet users have had their personal information stripped from them by lurking con artists and "web" burglars. Too often we hear of the unsuspecting teenager lured to his or her fate by someone who appears to be friendly and charming online, but whose non-Myspace identity holds a more devious intent in the real world. In these respects, the internet has not proved to be especially beneficial to the individual human being.</p>
<p>Although technology has led to significant changes in the way human beings live, the fact has not necessarily entitled us to better lives. In fact, we should be cautious, as in the cases of the Ind. Rev. and the Internet, about what the future of tech. brings.</p>
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<p>Thanks very much for your help! (Incidentally, "psycological" is the only word I spelled incorrectly on paper; if there are any other misspelled words in the above text, they would have been the results of fast typing, not poor orthography!)</p>