“Simple recipe for chocolate chip cookies.” “What is the first law of thermodynamics?” “Restaurants near me.” All of these phrases are in my recent internet search history. With the click of a button, I have access to an unlimited amount of information. The presence of the internet is an integral piece of the daily lives of most. Yet, there is longstanding controversy whether the existence and use of the internet is enhancing or harming human behavior. On one hand, many people view the internet as a tool. For example, Kevin Kelly, co-founded of Wired magazine, claims that the internet is a “wilderness” (5) that should be explored for all its beauty and practical uses in his article “Technophilia.” On the other hand, skeptics are cautious of technology and the internet as they take a look into how it is affecting human behavior outside the online realm. Sherry Turkle, PhD in sociology from Harvard University highlights an opposing perspective in her essay “The Empathy Diaries” when explaining a recent issue in the current generation that she claims as the “flight from conversation” (344). Turkle argues that the newfound devotion to the internet seen in the current generation has led to the degradation of genuine conversation. I agree that internet is beneficial in the sense that the boundless knowledge it holds has increased human efficiently, however a reliance and devotion to the internet is causes us to lose characteristics that make us uniquely human.  

                  Before diving deeply into the exploration of the internet’s beneficial nature in conversation with how it is physically changing human behavior, it is first crucial to analyze the properties of technology that make it so compelling and attractive to the human gaze. The internet is constantly evolving to get more human-like and its this anthromorphism that we as humans love and crave.  Apple is constantly updating Siri to have smoother voice modulation and you can even change its accent within your settings. ChatGPT uses algorithms to mimic human conversation and appropriate responses to questions and statements. We feel emotional connections toward the internet when it exhibits these human-esque qualities, and we have such a deep affinity for it as it lacks all the effort required in connecting with another human being. Kelly highlights this theme by describing his own personal love for the internet. Kelly writes, “[The internet] is a steadfast benefactor, always there. I caress it with my figety fingers; it yields up my desires, like a lover. Secret knowledge? Here. Predictions of what is to come? Here. Maps to hidden places? Here. Rarely does it fail to please…” (5).