The title maybe a bit humorous or far-fetched, but is it really? We already see robots and computer programs that are getting closer and closer to being more human. And we are become more like they are. In class we discussed how we are so tied up with technology and how it is consuming every part of our lives. many of us felt uncomfortable with the idea of being tracked everywhere and were even more horrified at the idea of "enchipped" by big brother...I mean the government to ensure our "Safety and Protection". I make the case that no true good can come from such continuation of technology and will lead this world into more chaos.
We can agree that in this country, smart phones, hi-tech computers, and etc. are needed to in order to manage the busy lives that we have. without such tools we would be lost in a world that lives half of its life in cyberspace. Facebook isn't necessary, for example, but without it you might not receive a job if an employer can't learn about you from the web. Writing a paper would take twice as long if we, God forbid, only had books to get information. GPS for me is the compass of dreams. There is a clear understanding that there are goods, but the negatives are so detrimental that people lose or kill themselves because of what is put for all to see.
I don't believe the majority of people understand that technology is growing to be more powerful than we are and has changed everyway we function. We cannot be independent from it. Everyday we willfully give our locations, tell people what we think, take pictures of everything that we see. The only step higher than this is a chip in us to record everything that we do. and like all technology, it can be hacked for the selfish deeds of those that have the power to abuse the masses.
I truly believe such a time will come, and I believe in those days we will see more cyborgs than actual people. And there will truly be no escape from technology, and it will be because we didn't act in time.
You're going to love the reading for this week ("The Singularity Is Near")!
ReplyDeleteI believe that humanity is consumed with technology. We carry our smartphones with us everywhere, and without them we feel as if a part of us is missing. We depend on technology so much that we don't notice the resultant changes in our behaviors that have occurred within the last decade. As you said, many people can't even get through the day without the use of technology. Of course not everyone condones technology as the future of mankind. The people who choose to live without technology are able to live adequate lives, but they do not have access to everything that technology users do. Most people don't have the patience to wait for the few to catch up because of our obsession with instant gratification. Like you, I am afraid for when the day comes for us to be chipped. It may not be mandatory at first of course, but as time goes on and people become obsessed with the next new thing, the people like us who don't want to be chipped will technically be required to because without it we would not have access to anything that we would need to preform daily tasks. Therefore, I strongly believe that technology controls our action without our knowledge. We don't pay attention to the fact that being chipped means that we are tracked 24/7 but instead that we have a cool digital screen on our arm that we can text on, or whatever the "cool" features are. We are so distracted by the advancement of technology that we don't to notice that it is slowly consuming our human rights. With chips, storing our private information, embedded in us at all times, we become increasingly vulnerable to ID theft and discrimination. Insurance companies can refuse to do business with you and hospitals have the ability to let you die from a severe injury if they know that you have cancer anyway. The people who hack chips will have access to all of your information, even things that you want kept private. It is no longer only the government that can track you and access private information, but also anyone around you who has the ability to hack into your chip. These chips come with a lot of personal privacy dangers, even if they are marketed as a simple way to hold all information in case of an emergency. The first people to be chipped won't think of these dangers, only that they will be able to have access to more advanced technology.
ReplyDeleteTechnology is amazing. The amount of short cuts and life hacks that it provides make life so much easier to manage. Some stuff we never thought we needed we end up not being able to do without. However, I agree with you. There will be a time where technology is just too big. The sad thing is that I think it has become such a huge part of people's everyday lives that it is closer to disaster than it is to being comfortably managed.
ReplyDeleteI actually would not be surprised if within the next two years they would start microchipping people. Through out the years since humans have been on this each technology has continued to progress. Now to some degree we have become TOO RELIABLE on technology as if we just cant do without it. But in some cases especially this generation we need it. What if we were forced to do without it? Some of us would be screwed simply because our whole life is focused around technology.
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