P1 Technology brings problems as well as benefits to humankind. Since Henry Ford began mass-producing automobiles in 1908, they have provided us with a cheap and convenient means of transportation. However, they have also brought us traffic jams and air pollution. A technological development that is changing our lives as much as the automobile is the personal computer. Since the 1980s, computers have become common in homes, schools, and businesses, and just as automobiles have brought unexpected problems, so have personal computers.
P2 To begin with, communication by computer has caused some problems. Although we can easily send messages to hundreds of people in an instant, we can also receive hundreds of unwanted messages in just a few minutes. A newspaper reporter for the Chicago Herald-Tribune recently received more than twelve hundred junk mails in one day!
P3 The lack of censorship in cyberspace is another problem that no one has solved yet. Our expanded ability to communicate means that anyone with a computer can communicate anything to anyone on any subject at any time. Therefore, a child can receive photos and listen to chat-room conversations about sex.
P4 In addition, computers have also caused problems in business. They have created excellent opportunities for computerized crimes. Computer hackers use their skills to obtain secret business information and to steal money. For example, Kevin Mitnick, a computer hacker from California, obtained twenty thousand usable credit card numbers breaking into the computer files of a credit card company. He also erased the accounting records of another big company before he was caught and arrested.
P5 It is clear that personal computers have made our lives easier, but they have done so at a cost. As with every new invention, there have been negative consequences. It is up to us to find the solutions to the problems as well as to enjoy the convenience of
the new tool.