The Effects Of Airplanes Essay, Research Paper
John Doe
The Effects of the Airplane on Modern Society
The airplane’s introduction at the beginning of the twentieth century forever changed the way we would live out our lives. In America it is very difficult to even find someone who hasn’t taken some sort of trip by airplane, which is why it’s so easy to see that the air travel has had a huge impact on our society since it’s development.
Like any other technological advancement, the airplane was developed to make our lives easier, be it lightening our workload, or allowing us to do things faster. It’s the principle on which all inventions are founded and the airplane has succeeded in doing exactly these things for us.
In the time before airplanes, long distance trips were dangerous and time consuming. A trip overseas could take weeks or months by boat and was reserved for a brave few who had the guts to attempt a cross-ocean voyage. After the airplane developed into a stable form of transportation, it became the new way to travel great distances in a short time. Today it’s used by millions of people to do things that we once never would have imagined. Businessmen regularly travel through-out the country on business trips, and even internationally too. Before the airplane, a business trip of that magnitued would have been incomprehensible.
The airplane gave us the opportunity to have one man accomplish more tasks in less time. A great example of this is the cropdusters. Cropdusters were airplanes which were flown over farmer’s fields and deposited fertilizers and pesticides onto the crops allowing farmers to yield greater amounts of crops. It also dramatically cut the time in which it took farmers to do the same job earlier. Earlier methods were to use backpack sprayers which were slow hard work. The airplane made the farmers job not only quicker, but much easier as well.
Also, the aircraft enabled people accross the country and even the world to send goods much more quickly than ever before. Packages sent through the mail could reach their destination in much less time and businesses could ship things way faster.
Last, but not least, the airplane has some entertainment value as well. A tool of it’s kind is very amazing to watch, so it offers thousands of people a year entertainment for a few hours at shows accross the country. Although it may sound insignificant, the fact that it offers people a fun activity to watch should not be overlooked. Like other inventions of the 20th century, such as television, the airplane can give people something to entertain them in their spare time too. Perhaps it’s in the human nature to want to watch something when it’s a matter of life and death, and with planes it certainly can be.
Airplanes also have many drawbacks too. Like most other technological developments there are dark sides which accompany the good. One such drawback, which was hinted at earlier, is the fact that airplanes have such a potential to kill. In the event of a crash, the chances of survival are very slim. For instance, in 1985, a Boeing 747 crashed in Japan killing 520 people in one plane crash. It was the worst plane crash to to ever occur. It’s that kind of catastrophic event that really makes you second guess the invention of the aircraft itself. The airplane shares similarities with the automobile in this respect. Both are very dangerous if misused, and can result in death, just the airplane is more magnified since it is much larger, faster, and carries more passengers.
Secondly, airplanes also create a lot of air pollution. Again, similar to the automobile, they emit alot of exhuast fumes from the burned fuel. With the amount of airplanes in the air today, this can add up to a very significant amount of pollution. That pollution combines with the pollution from all the other modern day machines and contributes to greater problems, such as global warming.
Another form of pollution which the airplanes produce is noise pollution. It’s nearly as bad as the air pollution. If you ask anyone who lives anywhere in the vacinity of an airport they would quickly tell you that the noise created by airplanes taking off and landing is a serious issue. Because of the airplanes, a lot of people have some restless nights. But, obviously people value airplanes much more than they do perfect peace and quiet, or else the airplane never would have lasted.
References
Connections. Burke, James 1978 1995 Little, Brown and Company
“Aviation Mysteries and Disasters” http://library.thinkquest.org/18033/mystery.html
Visions of a Flying Machine : the Wright Brothers and the Process of Invention. Jakab, Peter L.
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