“There is no such thing as a free lunch,” goes the old adage; hidden costs are often hidden behind seemingly harmless offers. Bars in the late 1800s often advertised “free” lunch if a customer purchased one of their drinks. However, these free items were often high in salt, causing the consumer to become thirsty. As a result, the restaurant would profit from this exchange as customers would spend more money purchasing more drinks. Technology can easily be compared to a free lunch. While the technology offers many benefits, the underlying expenses are even more damaging. In the short story "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes, technology is something the main character seeks as an opportunity to become smarter. This good opportunity results in disaster as he becomes increasingly lonely and separated from those he cares about. Technology is also a major reason why so many people are lazy today. Minimal effort to complete tasks has made people increasingly lazy and undisciplined. Improvements in the transportation and manufacturing sectors have also had a major negative impact on the globe. The progress of humanity is the calamity of Mother Earth. Increased carbon dioxide emissions due to technology have led the Earth to warm faster than it has in thousands of years. Technology has solved problems but it makes people feel separated from each other, increasingly lazy and fuels global warming. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Although Charlie, the main character, has become smarter thanks to the technology provided to improve him, many bad things come from it. Charlie originally has an IQ of 68 and after the operation, his IQ tripled, making him smarter than even the doctors who operated on him. Charlie's best opportunity turns out to be his worst nightmare. After Charlie is fired from his job, he states that his new "intelligence has driven a wedge between [him] and all the people [he] once knew and loved" (297). The technology used to help Charlie ends up hurting him more than it helps him. His colleagues are afraid of him for suddenly gaining so much intelligence. This leads Charlie to be ignored by others and become desperate. Charlie's operation is not beneficial to him overall because, although it helps improve his intelligence, his social relationships are severely damaged. He becomes increasingly alone and separated from others around him. Charlie's artificial acuity also causes him to be unable to communicate with the person he is in love with. A few weeks after being fired from his job, he goes to talk to Miss Kinnian but soon realizes that "whatever [he tries] to discuss with her, [he] is unable to communicate" (298). Charlie's AI prevents him from properly communicating with Miss Kinnian, the love of his life. When he tries to start a conversation, he speaks in a way that Miss Kinnian can't understand. This creates a barrier between the two and denies Charlie the chance to express his true feelings. Many would think that Charlie benefited because he is able to learn and understand things at a much faster pace. But despite possessing this ability, he becomes withdrawn and unable to communicate with others. Its latest improvement proves to have many limitations. After the operation Charlie is unable to communicate well with others and this prevents him from having social happiness. Eventually he gets touchy,depressed and moody, meaning he misses out on happiness in an effort to be more successful. Charlie's experience shows that although the technology appears attractive on the outside, the negative hidden costs can be detrimental. Technology is something that is directly responsible for making humans lazier. People often take technological aids for granted to the point that "If they are taken away, some people may not be able to function well without them" (Previl). There are many cases where people are addicted to their phones. In fact, "84% of respondents [in an international survey] said they couldn't go a single day without their cell phone" (Gilbert). Some people who don't have cell phones experience anxiety or negative physical symptoms (nomophobia). This is directly related to Previl's theory that people cannot function properly without technology. It is difficult to imagine how people would live without household innovations such as refrigerators or microwave ovens. Technology is useful for humans, but at some point people may become helpless when technology fails. People could go crazy without access to the technology they depend on. Students are also influenced by the constantly developing tools. Academic dishonesty has always been a problem among students, but with the advent of the Internet, "35 percent of teens admit to using cell phones to cheat in school, while 65 percent say other students do it" (Kurtz). The article briefly describes how technology and the Internet change adolescents' perception of betrayal. Quickly searching for information allows students to find all the answers they need, and they often don't realize that what they are doing is wrong. The information is so accessible to everyone that people do not have the feeling that plagiarizing on the Internet is a dishonest act. The accessibility of the Internet is causing people to become increasingly lazy to actually do their assigned schoolwork. Another growing problem for people around the world is obesity. The problem is in fact so serious that "in the United States one in three adults and one in six children are obese" (Crees). The large amount of Americans suffering from this serious condition can be attributed to the fact that “the average American watches five hours of TV” (Hinckley). This is one of the biggest factors contributing to obesity. When people watch TV, they often sit still on the couch and snack on junk food. Sitting and eating unhealthy food for three or more hours a day is very harmful to that person's health. They accumulate unwanted fat which can lead to “more than 70 diseases” (Watson), including stroke, cancer and hypertension. With the invention of TV, people have hours of accessible entertainment at their fingertips. It might seem that this revolutionary device is actually helping people because it makes life much easier and more convenient. This is an understandable point of view, but the evidence provided shows that many people abuse the gift of technology. Improved devices are used thinking they would help them, but ultimately people are harmed by them. People abuse technology to the point that it damages not only their health, but also their integrity. Another phenomenon caused by innovations would be global warming. Global warming is a harmful problem for the world and the future of humanity. Global warming is often said to be caused by “the burning of fossil fuels in cars, factories and electricity generation” (National Geographic). Cars, factories, and electricity are all forms of.