Colorado Springs resident Dan Woolley, who was making a film about poverty for Compassion International, used the first aid application on his iPhone to learn how to make a tourniquet for his leg and stop bleeding from his head injury while being trapped for 65 hours under rubble from the Haitian earthquake.

Using a recommendation from the application, he also set the alarm clock on his phone to 20-minute intervals so he wouldn’t fall asleep. Believing he was going to die there, he kept a journal on a notepad to his family.

Chances are Woolley never imagined he would use his smartphone to save his life. Most extras we use on our phones are for convenience or entertainment. Advances in technology leave some of us in awe and others in disgust.

A recent poll by National Public Radio, the Kaiser Family Foundation and Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government shows Americans overwhelmingly believe computers and the Internet have made our lives better.

Those on the other side of the “digital divide,” the poll revealed, were more likely to be lower income, lesser educated and over age 60; however, many poorer families now own computers and have Internet access at home.

People’s concerns about technology mostly revolved around Internet safety and accessibility to lower income people.

Whether you are the first person you know to snatch up the latest gadget or the first to dismiss it, one can’t help but be amazed at what humans are able to accomplish. Someone out there made that cell phone, that computer, that GPS.

And to think some of us couldn’t even program our VCRs back in the day. A sampling of some mind-blowing new toys:

iPhone applications
There are literally thousands of applications – often called “apps” – available at the palm of your hand. Some are practical, like GPS and flight-tracking apps. But many are just amusing, like the Designated Dialer, which directs “drunk-dialing” attempts to a toll-free number that reminds you of what you are actually doing; iSteam, which allows you to “steam up” your phone and write messages on it, or write messages on it and then “steam” it up to see them; and iVoodoo, which lets you channel your aggression and stick pins in a life-like doll.

‘Puppy Tweets’
“Puppy Tweets” is essentially a plastic device you attach to your dog’s collar. By connecting the device to your PC, you can create a profile for your dog on the social networking site Twitter and receive daily tweets (messages under 140 characters).

Yes, tweets from your dog. The device uses sound and motion to create preprogrammed tweets; for example, it will send funny messages when your dog is presumed to be running, jumping or sleeping.

Livescribe Pulse Smartpen
The Smartpen can be used for taking notes and recording audio and stores up to 4 GB of memory. It uses a high-speed infrared camera and a positioning system that tracks everything you write or draw on specialized paper. You can also use it to record everything you hear during a lecture or meeting, and then download and save the notes and audio directly to a computer. You can also search for keywords and it will go directly to that part in your notes.

Apple’s new tablet
Apple was scheduled to release today a much-anticipated tablet, which will likely be a 10- to 11-inch touchscreen device.

Rumored to be called the “iSlate,” the slate-like tablet can be used to read magazines, newspapers and books, surf the Web and other general purpose functions like gaming and photos. Think computer meets Kindle meets smartphone. The tablet, although pricey, will likely be one of the hottest items of the season for gadget geeks.