I
now have the privilege of living in the sci-fi fantasy of past
generations. My car has a control panel worthy of a spaceship, my phone
is smarter than me, and thanks to social networks, I know more than I
ever wanted to know about distant acquaintances’ food preferences. I’ve
even formed and developed relationships with people thousands of miles
away, sometimes without having to meet them in person. Technology has
transformed most social relationships, personal and professional. Many
argue this is for the worse, with texting and social networks unable to
express the subtle nuances of body language and tone. I too agree that
this is often the case, and I don’t count myself among those who rejoice
in the ability to run a full day’s errands without any human contact.
However, technology has been incredibly successful in allowing people
to connect over long distances, and the innovation of video calling has
majorly benefited human contact
I
derive most of my social satisfaction from being in the presence of
another person, even in the absence of conversation. When you look at
telephone calling versus video calling, there’s no comparison. Seeing
the person’s face allows for an infinitely more complete level of
communication and personal connection, inaccessible through words alone.
Consequently, though I have worked and studied abroad in Turkey,
Ukraine, and Spain, I have done so while being fully able to maintain my
dearest relationships. Video calling technology has significantly
contributed to my freedom of movement, and my freedom to pursue my
passions.
My
academic and personal drive is based around exploring and improving
intercultural dialogue and understanding through research. In pursuit of
that, before I even had specific academic goals for it, I studied
languages voraciously. I’m fluent in Spanish, English and Russian, and I
can communicate in Turkish, Ukrainian, German, and French. I have
traveled all over trying to connect with people, developing
relationships with folks from all sorts of people across cultures and
communication styles. That passion has also driven my academic pursuits
and career goals.
As
I am about to embark on a year-long masters program at Cambridge
University, video calling has become even more instrumental to my goals.
My research will be on the gender concepts surrounding traditional
Albanian women who live as men. In pursuit of this, I will need to
learn the relatively obscure Albanian language as I will read scientific
articles in Albanian as well as communicate with local people while I
am conducting research there. Extensive searching for local courses in
Albanian or teachers who could give me private lessons yielded nothing.
My searching led me to get in touch with Valbona, a native Albanian who
teaches multiple languages in her home country. Despite our physical
distance, we arranged for weekly lessons that we conduct via video call.
We have been working together for months now, and I am now
conversational in Albanian.
My
online Albanian classes aren’t only about learning the language; I have
also been developing a relationship with my teacher Valbona and
learning about her faraway world from her personal perspective. This
closeness between us could not have been reached without the important
social gesture of seeing each other face-to-face. This simple part of
communication not only facilitates communication and instruction, it
most importantly humanizes virtual relationships.
As I begin my studies in England, and my research in Albania, video calling will not only continue to provide me with the only meaningful method of long-distance contact with the my friends and family from California to Spain to Ukraine, it will also serve as an instrumental aspect of my career goals. My computer can never replace human presence, but it comes surprisingly close. In a world that is becoming more connected and globalized every day, the way we communicate is gaining sociological and political importance. And what more effective way of improving cross-cultural understanding than humanizing others by allowing us to see them?
