Internet Addiction > 영어토론방

• 목록

• 페이스북 공유
• 트위터 공유
• 구글+ 공유
• 

Internet Addiction

Let's Take More Preventive Measures Against Bad Habits

The Internet has become an integral part of our daily life in this brave new world of information and communication technology. However, the tech-savvy online network is not always beneficial to all users. One ill effect of cyberspace is addiction that can no longer be overlooked. Like it or not, the Internet is often likened to ``electronic narcotics'' because of its serious addictive nature.

In this regard, the Lee Myung-bak administration announced anti-addiction measures Monday, including free software programs to limit users' access time to online networks. The programs will consist of a consensual shut-down program and a ``fatigue system'' designed to make users become bored as time goes by. We hope that these programs will work effectively to prevent netizens from being addicted to the virtual reality. What's noteworthy is a government plan to provide educational programs and counseling service to 10 million people, including schoolchildren, over the next three years.

These measures are in response to a series of tragic incidents arising from Internet addiction which has already become a social problem but with little progress in tackling it. Especially, online game addiction has reached a critical point where some gamers commit murder and other grave crimes. The nation was shocked by the arrest of an addicted couple for neglecting their baby girl and letting her starve to death. The jobless couple used to spend as many as 12 hours each day playing cyber games at Internet cafes, while feeding their three-month-old baby once or twice a day. Instead of caring for their own baby, they were too preoccupied with raising a virtual girl character, ``Anima,'' in a popular role-playing game ``Prius Online.'' What a tragedy it was!

More shocking was that a man in his 20s killed his mother in a fit of anger because she scolded him for doing nothing but playing Internet games. A middle school girl was found to have engaged in prostitution to make money for online games. A 32-year-old man died at an Internet cafe last month after playing computer games for five days in a row with few breaks and meals. These cases show how serious consequences Internet addition brings to Korea ― one of the most wired countries in the world.

No doubt Internet games are not worth risking human lives. If addicted, however, users may lose their control and become virtual slaves. Addicts usually become isolated and have disillusioned. They could develop symptoms of depression and other mental problems. Some studies discovered that the brain activities of Internet addicts are similar to those of drug addicts.

Currently, the number of Intent addicts is estimated at 2 million in Korea, accounting for 8.8 percent of online users. Over 14 percent of youngsters aged between nine and 19 suffer from the addiction problem, according to a 2008 survey by the National Information Society Agency. About 2.3 percent of them are classified as serious addicts with greater risks. Without solving this issue, the nation cannot keep its fame as an Internet and IT powerhouse. All members of our society should join efforts to win the war against Internet addiction.

Excerpt from The Korea Times
Source: http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/opinon/2010/03/202_62603.html


Internet Addicts Starved Child to Death

A married couple was recently apprehended by the police for causing the death of their baby daughter from negligence due to an Internet game addiction. They had been on the run since their baby died from starvation five months ago in their hometown of Suwon, Gyeonggi Province.

The 41-year-old father, identified only as Kim, met and married his 25-year-old wife in 2008 through Internet chatting. The couple's daughter was born in June 2009.

They spent from six to 12 hours at a PC room daily, engaging obsessively in games and leaving their baby alone at their home without food or care. The baby was found dead on Sept. 24.
An autopsy by the National Institute of Scientific Investigation determined that the death was mainly caused by a "lengthy period of malnourishment."

At the time of the baby's death, Kim made a report to the police. "When we woke up, we found that the baby had died," he said. But the couple at the time denied charges of negligence.

After the funeral, the couple disappeared, but the policed tracked them down and arrested them on Tuesday.

During an investigation after the arrest, they admitted their role in the baby's death and said that they have shunned PC rooms for the last five months due to a "sense of guilt."

The baby was reportedly in good health for the first three months after birth while she was being cared for by her grandparents. But when the couple moved to Suwon, the infant spent most of the day alone with her parents away at the Internet cafes.

According to police, the baby was said to have cried all day in her nursery from hunger, but no one was around to feed her.

Infants of her age need to be fed ten times per day, but she was only given milk once or twice a day, police said. The police requested an autopsy by the National Institute of Scientific Investigation.

The couple had no stable income and were financially dependent on the wife's parents. The police said that their addiction seems to have been a way of venting their stress and freeing themselves from money and childcare concerns.

The police found that the addicts spent their time at the PC room engaging in a role-playing game where they get to raise a female character. Players can buy clothes and accessories for the girl and keep parenting journals on blogs.

Psychology experts are calling for proper measures to help first-time parents in dealing with the stress from child-rearing.

Excerpt from The Korea Times
Source: http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2010/03/117_61843.html

QUESTION

1. Let’s have a test! - Internet addiction level -
   To assess your level of addiction, answer the following questions using this scale:
   1=rarely 2=occasionally 3=frequently 4=often 5=always

1) How often do you find that you stay on-line longer than you intended? ( )
2) How often do you neglect household chores to spend more time on-line? ( )
3) How often do you prefer the excitement of the Internet to intimacy with your partner? ( )
4) How often do you form new relationships with fellow on-line users? ( )
5) How often do others in your life complain to you about the amount of time you spend on-line? ( )
6) How often do your grades or school work suffer because of the amount of time you spend on-line? ( )
7) How often do you check your e-mail before something else that you need to do? ( )
8) How often does your job performance or productivity suffer because of the Internet? ( )
9) How often do you become defensive or secretive when anyone asks you what you do on-line? ( )
10) How often do you block out disturbing thoughts about your life with soothing thoughts of the Internet? ( )
11) How often do you find yourself anticipating when you will go on-line again? ( )
12) How often do you fear that life without the Internet would be boring, empty, and joyless? ( )
13) How often do you snap, yell, or act annoyed if someone bothers you while you are on-line? ( )
14) How often do you lose sleep due to late-night log-ins? ( )
15) How often do you feel preoccupied with the Internet when off-line, or fantasize about being on-line? ( )
16) How often do you find yourself saying "just a few more minutes" when on-line? ( )
17) How often do you try to cut down the amount of time you spend on-line and fail? ( )
18) How often do you try to hide how long you've been on-line? ( )
19) How often do you choose to spend more time on-line over going out with others? ( )
20) How often do you feel depressed, moody, or nervous when you are off-line,
     which goes away once you are back on-line? ( )

2. What do you think of government’s policy about anti-addiction? Will it be effective?

3. What is your own solution to prevent Internet addiction and related crimes?
 
이 글은「대학연합영어토론동아리」www.pioneerclub.com에서 제공하는 영어토론 정보입니다.