Many of us can't imagine life without a personal computer. And yet, it's becoming ever more sophisticated, with developers constantly delighting users with something new. It's no wonder that more than half of Russians consider a computer the main “convenience of the 20th century.” However, people also acknowledge that it's harmful to health.
Personal Money presents the results of a study examining which opinions our fellow citizens agree with about the impact of computers on humans, and which they consider myths.
In June 1977, the first Apple personal computer, the Apple 2, went on sale. It weighed less than seven kilograms and cost $1,350. Its main advantage was its reliability compared to other microcomputers of the late 1970s.
More than 30 years have passed, laptops, netbooks, PDAs, and so on have appeared, and now, if not everyone, then many own a PC. We work on them, easily (compared to a typewriter!) create documents, store thousands of photos, watch movies and listen to music on them, not to mention addictive games and online communication. Is it surprising that, according to a VTsIOM poll, 53% of Russians named the computer as the invention that most changed people's lives in the 20th century. However, it still ceded the top spot to the telephone (73%).
Citizens rank the automobile third in importance (51%). The internet (42%) and television (39%) are also among the most important inventions. About a third of respondents consider the bank card and refrigerator (31% each) and the airplane (30%) to be the most important “conveniences” of the 20th century. Twenty-six percent favor the invention of the light bulb. Russians least often cite the role of the subway and heated toilets (17% each).
But progress is progress, and health shouldn't be forgotten. Russians acknowledge that computers have a negative impact on people. For example, 80% agree that they are harmful to eyesight. 74% believe that their negative impact is more pronounced on children. 72% of respondents believe that they emit harmful electromagnetic radiation. Furthermore, respondents tend to believe that prolonged computer use is addictive (58%) and that the noise they emit negatively impacts health and mental well-being (48%).
Furthermore, our fellow citizens tend to believe that computers benefit from gentle handling (43%) and believe that they work better when used by their owners (39%). Thirty-six percent also believe that cacti near the monitor make computer work less harmful.
Computer owners are more likely to acknowledge the harmful effects of computer use on eyesight (87%) and the fact that it has a more negative impact on children (79%). Furthermore, this group is more likely to believe that computers are addictive (60%). At the same time, these respondents are more likely than others to believe that computers benefit from gentle handling (53%) and perform better when used by their owner (47%).
