Created By: Carolyn D. and Cristina C. Section: A2

As years pass our world gets smaller and smaller because of the new technology available to us. Some of these iconic technologies include the computer, the airplane, the television and now the cell phone. The first handheld cell phone in the U.S.A. was made commercially available in 1983. So although it may seem like cell phones have been around "forever" the technology is only 25 years old. Because of this most of our parents can remember a time when you actually had to be home in order to make a phone call. Cell phones have now become integrated into our society and have bee increasing important in the lives of young people like us. We choose this topic because we felt we could really relate to it. "Is that thing glued to your ear?" " Stop talking on the phone we're in the middle of dinner!" "The phone bill has been getting high again! You used up all of our minutes!" "In my day we used to whistle to call our friends!" We all have parents who nag us about our cell phone use. So we felt that we could really connect to what many Indian teenagers are experiencing in India as well. Recently India has been developing very rapidly and cell phones have become more and more common. It has been fourteen years since the cell phone was introduced in India and the "cell phone revolution" is well underway. Young people are quickly becoming attached to their "cellies". They have it all, texting, Internet browsers, music videos, and of course the ability to make phone calls. But with this new fad comes a price. A new type of social hierarchy is evolving in which the new status symbol is yours truly: the cell phone. "What model do you have?" "Wait you don't have texting?" "Oh that's to bad..." Many Indian students are often left out because they don't have a cell phone. But this is changing. In 2004 mobile providers made incoming calls free so more are more people can afford to have a cell phone. Plumbers, maids, chauffeurs etc all have cell phones. And the "cell phone revolution" is not just hitting young people but the older generation as well. The cell phone has become a useful tool for business and many small businesses have boomed because of the cell phone. So it seems as though the "cell phone revolution" has taken all of India by storm. Today there are about 166.1 million cell phones in use in India. But although the cell phone may seem to have a lot of advantages there are always some questions. Is the cell phone adapting to the Indian culture or is the Indian culture adapting to let the cell phone in? As the cell phone becomes more and more integrated into Indian society it is hard not to wonder whether it will take the place of some of the more traditional forms of communication. Should a country sacrifice tradition for technological advancement or can technology and tradition coexist? These difficult questions are haunting many Indian households. Only time will tell us the answers.

These pictures show an old woman and an old man in traditional Indian attire while at the same time talking on their cell phones. This really illustrates the tug of war between tradition and technology because while at first glance they seem very traditional, technology is still a part of their lives. Perhaps this is proof that technology and tradition can coexist.

This picture portrays a snake charmer using his cell phone on the job. Snake Charming is a very traditional part of Indian culture and Snake Charmers can be seen on the streets showing off their art to the Indian people. But this snake charmer, in traditional attire and surrounded by traditional artifacts, is using his cell phone. This shows that technology is finding a way into even one of the most conservative traditions in Indian culture.

Karan and Varsha are normal high school students in New Delhi. Karan just got a cell phone.

Karan: Hey!

Varsha: Hi, who is this?

Karan: It's Karan.. on my new cell phone!!

Varsha: Oh my god you finally convinced your mom they don't cause bad karma?!

Karan: Yeah, first I had to hear her trip down memory lane. "Back in my day we didn't even have a home phone..." But she finally gave in after Dad told her how much more money he made because of his.

Varsha: Well now you can be part of the C-Crew and sit with us at lunch again. What kind did you get?

Karan: Well..

Varsha: A NokiaN95? A N76? A N78 like me?! Oh my gosh if you got a N95 you could sit at the head of the table!

Karan: Okay what you have to remember is that I got a cellphone..

Varsha: Oh.. that bad huh?

Karan: A 1200..

Varsha: Oh my god. Well.. it's still a cellphone. Now you can search the net with all the rest of us.

Karan: Actually my mom didn't want to buy the premium package so I don't even get texting.

Varsha: Oh my god did you explain to her that the best part of a cell phone is downloading the new music videos?!

Karan: She didn't care. She says that she doesn't need the internet so neither do I and that I should be very grateful for the neighbor's television.

Varsha: Wow.. she's really living in the past. So you mean all you can do with your cell phone is call people? Oh my god....that's tough. Well you can just say your cell is retro so that adds some coolness to it. And no one will have the same one!

Karan: Right.. whatever. At least now I can call people without talking to the operator first!

Varsha: Haha right! Well I have to go eat dinner. Call me later on your new cellie!

Karan: Alright later!

On the left is the Nokia N95 which is a new high-tech Nokia which Karan could

have shown off. On the right is the Nokia 1200 which is a very old Nokia which

would not help Karan's status amoung her friends at all.

Works Cited

Pictures:

Nokia 1200 Picture: http://www.mobile-arsenal.com.ua/img/nokia/nokia-1200.jpg

Nokia N95 Picture: http://www.tech2.com/media/images/2007/Oct/img_29821_nokia-n95-8gb_450x360.jpg

Old Woman with cell phone: http://psdblog.worldbank.org/photos/uncategorized/2007/05/23/cell_phone_india.jpg

Snake Charmer with cell phone: http://www.indiadaily.org/images/cell-phone-india_26.jpg

Old Man with cell phone: http://www.thepicky.com/images/2007/09/sadhu_mobile.jpg

Information:

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/in.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_mobile_phones

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3585257.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6726437.stm

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