Youth in the 70s are remembered for their rebellious nature and struggle for human rights.

My generation, often called the Technology Generation, can be defined by our tendency to obsess excessively over things.

When we find something we love, we latch onto it with a grip that cannot be broken. Be it technology, media or food, our obsession has defined the culture of the world in recent years.

Take cellphones for example; we've all seen a teen at some time or another, eyes glued to the screen of their phone and fingers texting rapidly at an inappropriate or unnecessary time.

To be honest, I'm texting while I'm writing this. It's an impulse. It's a disease. It's an obsession. With our cellphones strapped to our sides for easy access, we are fixated, almost dependent, on them.

Some claim they provide easy access to information. Others like to keep in touch with friends at all times. But the truth of the matter is, we are all obsessed and are growing reliant on these devices.

Other obsessions take the form of pop culture. Eccentric fans are no longer limited to sports arenas anymore. Instead they have taken over the Internet.

Groups of fans of literary works, movies and music, called "fandoms," band together on social media websites like Tumblr and Twitter to share their love of the works.

They take obsession to a level rarely seen in the past by writing their own adaptations of the works ("fanfics"), posting their own art based on the works ("fanart") and engaging in lively (and often heated) debates about the work.

This may seem like a healthy and creative outlet, but sometimes people take things one step too far and fandoms do not hesitate to defend their opinion or think about what they are saying.

These websites are addicting and turn followers into fanatics who are completely enraptured by their content and can waste hours on end sifting through images of their favourite celebrities.

A highly publicized view in recent history is the increasing obesity rate of the world's population. The media tells us that fast food and lack of exercise are to blame, but it is my belief that it is not the food itself that is the problem but the lack of moderation expressed by the population these days.

People crave and obsess over food throughout the day and often will eat out of boredom instead of hunger. Eating is a necessity, not a pastime, and somewhere in past years we forgot that.

Obsession is not a bad thing on the whole, though. We can expect, from the generation of the obsessed, a driven workforce and group of people that, when committed to something they truly care about, will stop at nothing to complete their job.

When it comes to global issues like poverty, inequality or pollution, our generation is just the stubborn bunch to handle the job.

With the planet in the muddle it is right now, maybe this obsessive group of people will change our world for the better.

We'll just have to wait and see.

Jackie Duck is a Grade 12 student at Dr. Charles Best Secondary in Coquitlam.