Fearing One's Own Creation (Blog 2)

"We must begin to say 'no' to certain kinds of technology and to begin to control technological change because we've now reached the point that technology is so powerful and so rapid that it could destroy us unless we control it."

Since technology boomed, humans have watched it grow from a baby to a toddler to a child and to a teenager. But now, in 2012, technology has become overwhelming and hard to handle. And in some cases, it doesn't even have to rely on its parents to care for it. It has become a quickly growing being that may strike fear in the uneducated masses that can't keep up. What came to mind immediately was the movie "AI". It is a movie that explores the moment when technology becomes self aware and capable of having intelligence. Although the movie is glamorized with sleek robots with human forms and a future world, we are closer to that future than we think. When you sit down at the computer and lose yourself in the world of news, social interaction, humor, and every form of entertainment at your fingertips, you unknowingly surrender yourself to it's grasp. Technology has you. And if, due to some new invention, it became self aware, it would quickly realize that you rely on it more than it relies on you.

Now, those circumstances are very much fears of a future that is far away, but it puts in perspective what we as people have the ability to create. We have created technology that we can foresee having to fight against for the fate of our world. This fear is of our own creation, technology. There is going to be a point where technology advances so much that we cannot hold on. Our brains will not be able to keep up, and we will surrender ourselves to it. But what does that surrender bring? A halt to technology? A "dark ages" period? Technological takeover? Who knows...what we can predict though is when the event may happen. That technology is faster than our own understanding or comprehension. And it may be even as close as 2045. Predictions from a leading scientist in the understanding of theories on Technological Singularity predict artificial intelligence becoming a reality:

"Kurzweil believes that we're approaching a moment when computers will become intelligent, and not just intelligent but more intelligent than humans. When that happens, humanity — our bodies, our minds, our civilization — will be completely and irreversibly transformed. He believes that this moment is not only inevitable but imminent. According to his calculations, the end of human civilization as we know it is about 35 years away."

Grossman, Lev. "2045: The Year Man Becomes Immortal."Time Magazine Science. 10 Feb 2011: n. page. Web. 4 Sep. 2012. <http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2048299,00.html>

So, are we to sit back and fear the impending doom we have brought on ourselves? No.

We must take a look at our creation and face it with a clear mind, and a willingness to sit back and let technology as it is for a while. The ever growing nature of technology isn't a necessity. It isn't needed to advance our civilization. We are moving leaps and bounds faster than other countries in the world. Why not wait and give other a time to catch up? It is not the technology that has created the problem, it is the humans who have. And to save ourselves, we must be aware that we still have time to slow the advancement of technology. It is still in our hands, but sitting around doing nothing won't solve this every growing problem. It is still slow enough to recognize the problem we are facing, but as soon as it begins to grow any quicker, we will lose sight of the problem, and the solution.

We Are All Victims of Future Shock

      “We are all victims of future shock.” Over the past few decades, technology has flourished. There is always something new and desirable that you just have to buy. At the moment, when you first have your brand new iPhone, you have such a satisfaction with it, but when two months pass, it becomes old. Why? Because there’s always the pressure of having something new to buy. Nothing is permanent, especially technology. It’s becoming more and more disposable and less sustainable and long lasting. This is one of the negative aspects about technology.  There is always this void that needs to be filled, you don’t feel satisfied forever, because there is always something better right around the corner.

      Another aspect of technology that I would like mention is the amount of control we have with it. Technology is like a machine that won’t stop growing and it’s not always positive. It’s becoming so advanced that machines are taking over our jobs. “Many workers, in short, are loosing the race against the machine,” (Lohr). We need to think about this logically, if machines are going to do the job for us, how are we going to buy the product jobless? It doesn’t benefit us.

      Besides being jobless, biotechnology is what I really fear. In the documentary, there was a clip of a man giving himself an “energetic shock” to arouse himself and his wife. There is something wrong in that. It takes away the real human emotion and refines it. Altering the mind and body takes away living. If I could alter my moods and be happy all the time, I would be a robot and everything would be repressed. It also teaches us to focus on our wants instead of our needs.

     There are some characteristics of technology that we have to put a stop to because the change takes away so much of what has already been given to us by Earth itself. The issue is “there are those who are looking towards the future and there are some that are not”.  Half of this planet is already brainwashed by clever marketing and the other half are aware and can see the truth. I know I don’t want to be a “stepford wife” anytime in the near future; it removes my life decisions and takes away my power.

Bibliography:

Lohr, Steve. "More Jobs Predicted for Machines, Not People." The New York Times. The New York Times, 24 Oct. 2011. Web. 03 Sept. 2012. <http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/24/technology/economists-see-more-jobs-for-machines-not-people.html?_r=1>.

Future technology Blog #2

I believe that current technology and technology of the future is slowly making the human race less intelligent. Simply because instead of how previous generations grew up to know all 50 states and capitals and could recite most of them on a whim, today's youth could not do so, simply because why remember them all when you can google them?

Along with declines in intelligence, there is also a decline in social skills between kids of present day compared to kids from previous generations. This quote from university chronicle explains my point, "While all of these new forms of communication have their advantages, they also tend to cause many disadvantages. It seems the more ways we have of communicating with others, the more it actually hurts our ability to communicate effectively. We are glued to our cell phones and laptops, constantly checking for updates on messages, statuses, and new information. Most of us will do this an unhealthy amount of times throughout the day." (universitychronicle.net). With all this constant status checking, texting, and so on there is a rapid decline in the actual face to face conversations people have. 

Yes technology has made our lives easier in many ways through these technologies. It is much easier to connect with people that live far away and it is an easy way to contact people instead of wandering around looking for them to go do something. The only statement I am trying to make is that people take these technologies to an extreme, they may have 500+ friends on Facebook, but they do not interact with any of them in person simply because they lack the skills or drive to do so. 

I do not look for the future to bring a stop to any of these technologies, I only foresee it getting worse. Simply because everyone is starting at a younger age and are being consumed for longer periods of time than others. 


http://www.universitychronicle.net/index.php/2011/02/13/new-technological-devices-lead-to-decline-in-social-skills/

Tick-Tock arrows on the Clock .. Tick-Tock to the Future Shock.. (Blog #2)

First off, my initial response to watching the videos.. I almost was put to sleep watching them.  But when I was not half asleep, I enjoyed what I was listening/watching.  The video made several valid points about technology.  It was interesting to me that this was over 40 years ago and this was made.  This man thought so in-depth into the future that he knew how rapid technology was becoming and tried to describe this to the people.

The quote mentioned on Moodle... "We must begin to say 'no' to certain kinds of technology and to begin to control technological change because we've now reached the point that technology is so powerful and so rapid that it could destroy us unless we control it." ...  is powerful in its own sense because of the use of technological advances we have made since the time these videos came about.  I am a big supporter of technology and cannot wait until the next "big thing" comes out.  I love to see where the world is headed next.  

People need to say no to some of the technologies coming out.  I feel that life is a competition and whoever buys the new technology first wins the competition. That person is the first one to show it off to his/her friends.  In this case, the technology is similar to an alcoholic.  I say this because what does an alcoholic do?  He or she spends most of their time at a bar drinking alcohol.  Now, how does this relate to new technologies?   Most likely, the person that goes and buys the new technology first, has had a history of being #1.  That person has probably had every version of the iPhone and other new technology.  So, in reality it is like that person is addicted to the newest technology.  I believe these kinds of people cannot control what they are doing because it has become such a way of life.  So, who is really in charge of their life? Technology has, basically, taken over.

I found a piece of information talking about the future for technology.  According to IBM...

"This year IBM thinks very soon people will never need passwords; mind reading will happen; the so-called digital divide will cease to exist and junk mail will become important.  You will never need a password again because of what IBM calls "multi-factor biometrics." Smart systems will be able to use retina scans and other personal information in real-time to make sure whenever someone is attempting to access your information, it matches your unique biometric profile. IBM scientists are among those researching how to link your brain to your devices. If you just need to think about calling someone, it happens. Or you can control the cursor on a computer screen just by thinking about where you want to move it."

To me, these advances in technology blow my mind.  If I think about something on a computer in my mind, the computer will do it for me.  This does two things for me: 1. The technology is insane that we can be able to accomplish this. 2. This might make people even lazier than they already have become. This new technology might destroy how we communicate with other people and we will not be able to control it.  I think this example is perfect for the videos about Future Shock and to the quote mentioned above on Moodle.  This topic really puts things into perspective for me.

Cooney, M. (2011). IBM predicts five big technologies of the future. Network World. Retrieved December 20, 2011, from http://www.networkworld.com/news/2011/122011-ibm-predictions-254274.html

Orson Wells: telling it like it is (Blog #2)

"We must begin to say 'no' to certain kinds of technology and to begin to control technological change because we've now reached the point that technology is so powerful and so rapid that it could destroy us unless we control it."

Something that really stuck out to me in Orson Well's Future Shock was the idea of a "premature arrival of the future".  It really reminded me of George Orwell's 1984.  In this groundbreaking novel, Orwell explores a society in which technology is prevalent, and ultimately invasive in society; a society that is built around a technologically advanced government that sees and knows everything.  

The themes in 1984 are very similar to the themes mentioned on Future Shock.  The idea that there's way too much change in so short a time that to an extent it is out of control.  This film, in a sense, terrified me.  Considering it was made in the '70's and it was already recognising that the world was moving too fast.  

In the past few years we have heard about new security cameras being set up in cities like London.  Cameras placed at every street corner, and buildings, and even bathrooms, in an effort to minimize crime.  But there was an uproar about invasion of privacy and how these cameras should be taken down.  Talk of it turning into Orwell's "Big Brother".  Yes, these cameras did minimize crime, but it made the public feel ill at ease, so was it really worth it?

There has also been talk, in fact it was briefly mentioned in Future Shock, of being able to use technology in science to, in a sense, "build your own baby".  Using genetics, it could be possible for expecting parents to mess with the genetics of their child to, say, prevent disabilities from occurring.  I'm sure some people think this is awesome, but me?  That's wrong.  Letting technology interfere with the natural order of things is going too far.  

We have so many incredible resources at our fingertips, but when will we realise when it's gone too far?  Will we ever realise?  Could our most groundbreaking invention be our ultimate downfall?  Only time will tell.  But I'd really like to see time slow down for a while, so we can live this life as fully as we can.  And I'm not necessarily sure that building babies is the right way to live.


Orwell, George. Nineteen Eighty-Four. London: Penguin, 2000.
  

The Harsh Reality of the Future Blog 2

"We must begin to say 'no' to certain kinds of technology and to begin to control technological change because we've now reached the point that technology is so powerful and so rapid that it could destroy us unless we control it." This statement is a scary statement that I believe is true. Technology is changing too much and is destroying lives. I agree that people do need to start saying no to technology so they do not become completely disconnected from everyday life. I do not think people will be able to keep up with technology if it keeps advancing. If manufactures would slow down the production of new technology it would give people the opportunity to catch up to technology. I doubt this would happen because everything that is done in this world is about money. Technology is another way people make money so the production of new material will not slow down. If technology comes to a standstill it is possible that manufactures would not make as much money, since every time a new product is released the price is always more than the previous version. I don't think people understand how dangerous technology is become and how much more dangerous it can get. I think people should pay attention more to some things that are in movies. I Robot showed something that could possibly happen because of technology. There have been products created that were considered robots and people are only going to search for ways to improve these so called robots. The way that technology is constantly changing I do not see any reason why sometime in the future events like in the movie wouldn't happen. People are going to continue to get smarter and technology is going to continue to make things easier for people. Future Shock allowed me to see how much technology has changed from the 70s to now. It has changed a great amount since then and won’t stop. It showed that somebody believed that technology could become a problem someday. That was a correct assumption since technology is a problem in the world today. Twenty years from now it’ll be a bigger problem than it is now. I am anxious to see where technology will be in twenty years but I am also nervous. I see that the way it dictates the everyday lives of people today and I believe it will only get worse. I see technology really becoming a problem in sports. Part two of Future Shock made me believe this. When the doctor showed the prosthetic arm and explain how it worked made be think that people could start to gain an advantage from prosthetic appendages. These parts could become stronger than the basic body parts of a human body. Athletes could gain advantages from injury because of technology they could come back stronger from serious injuries because of the growth of technology.

  

 

Is It Really A Sickness (Blog #2)

Is it really a sickness?

(Blog #2)

            “We must begin to say ‘no’ to certain kinds of technology and to begin to control technological change because we’ve now reached the point that technology is so powerful and so rapid that it could destroy us unless we control it.”

           

            I think the first time I saw this movie I was probably around 10 or 11 years old.  I was staying at a friend’s house when I saw it.  My parents would never have allowed me to see such a movie at our home because they would have decided it being too scary for me to see.  In seeing these parts the second (and third) times, I once again found myself looking at a fairly good indicator of the future.

            Advances in technology keep happening.  Is it possible that in our earnest attempt to keep us with the changing times, we have been kidding ourselves?  I mean, are we trying so hard that in our failings we are ignoring that we have finally become more like the tortoise and less like the hare?  We are constantly reminded that we are slowing down while things and technology around us are speeding up.  Not just are things around us speeding up but people are hurrying passed us, too.

            After watching Future Shock, I looked around to see what others thought and was impressed to see that their views were very similar to my own.  “Future Shock is a sickness…it is a sickness that comes from too much change in too short a period of time…it’s the feeling that nothing is permanent anymore.  Things happen so fast that we barely have the time to absorb them.  It’s the premature arrival of the future.  It can be pretty devastating for those unprepared.”  (Bill Gordon)

            In the film, I thought it of interest that the automaton figure’s faces were a metaphor for the fear of the unrecognizable, cold, and chaotic future society that Toffler thought we were all headed for.  The film gives no pointer on how to proceed, only simply that early 70s society must do something anything.  But without suggestions or any type of game plan, the result does nothing more than stir up paranoia.

            Toffler states that too much information would drown us – witness Google’s mechanism as an example of our ability to filter out only the information that we desire – the rise of a new field of study related to information gathering.

            I realize that the assignment was to critique the film through the above statement. I realize, too, that it was important to deduce the need to control technological change.  Technology is rapidly changing, of which I was reminded of twice today.

            First, when informing the head of the TLT here on campus that I was soon to get my own personal laptop and my need to come to her to get a rented laptop would cease.  She asked what kind and when I told her, she suggested that I take the time to ‘update the Windows updates’.  When I asked her why, she was quick to let me know that the updates tend to expire within days of their being put into the computer to begin with.  I didn’t know this.

            Secondly, and while reading an article entitled “Too Much Information, Not Enough Intelligence” produced by the National Defense magazine dated May, 2012, Sandra I. Erwin writes: 

                “Automated analysis tools for video feed are gradually entering the market”, says Wenzel (Vice-President of Advance Integration at Booz Allen Hamilton).  The National Football League has developed software to search video archives that some defense contractors are using as a model. 

                One of the more promising systems that could help military ISR (intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance) operators manage data more efficiently is the DI2E, or Defense Intelligence Information Enterprise.  Wenzel goes on to say, “The entire Defense Department and Intelligence communities will be able to share information.  There is still too many stand alone legacy systems.”

                Regardless of advances in technology, he says, a larger conundrum for the military is figuring out how to manage information so commanders and troops in the field don’t become overwhelmed.  “They have to sort out how much information is enough.”

            It is apparent that even the military continue to struggle with the gathering of too much information and not knowing how to decipher it properly.  The fear is that the information that is  received tends to be updated by the time it has been forwarded on to the proper personnel. 

            It truly does pay to be on top of things and it helps to know that what we are getting works at the moment that we get it.  Too much information could cause things to get a little too cloudy and congested and may put us in precarious positions when it really needn’t.  I think it really does come down to knowing when too much is really enough.

                                                                                                                                        -JT

Soooo... Hows the weather today? (Blog #2)

"We must begin to say 'no' to certain kinds of technology and to begin to control technological change because we've now reached the point that technology is so powerful and so rapid that it could destroy us unless we control it."

            The above statement is form the movie ‘Future Shock’ in response to technology changing at an ever-increasing rate. People have begun to fear the affects that this change will have on people, some of those affects have already become apparent.

            The biggest problem with technology in today’s society is that it is making it harder for people to talk to one another in person. Today there are many outlets to socialize with people with the use of technology, but all of them have a certain wall that people can hid behind. For phones, you cannot see the person, nor are you talking face-to-face. For texting, be it on a phone or through Internet chat, you cannot even hear the person’s voice. With Skype and other forms of video chat, you can hear and see the person, but you are still not talking to them face to face. To me it makes socializing with people seem impersonal.

            Another issue is that technology is evolving so fast that we are no longer able to fully realize the consequences or fully appreciate new tech. Even now the idea of something new coming up is no longer as exciting as it once was. I almost wish that technology would slow down a little so that I could get used to what I already have and not worry about the next big thing.

            Technology may have to eventually stop evolving simply because people might get tired of all of it. People might start to reject tools such as the Iphone or the computer because people are starting to lose their ability to talk to people.

Blog Post 2- Future Shock

The Human race has always developed new technologies in order to solve problems. It has only been in the past two centuries, however, that technology has developed so fast that people have come to resent and even despise these new developments. Just one example of this is in the Amish church. They shun new technology, mainly anything that runs with electricity, because they see it as linking to sinful ways of living. They believe in simple living, and technology distracts them from that. 

It seems, however, that generally people of younger generations are more open to technologies that come out. For older generations, newer technology is seen as frivolous and over complex. Some are even afraid of what this technology brings and refuse to go near it for that reason. Other people (younger people too, not just older people) completely engulf themselves in technology, and become totally dependent on that technology. This is the root of the problem of "Future Shock". When a new technology is introduced, (phone, CPU, etc.), people clamber over each other to get it. They think that newer is always better than slightly older. Sometimes, this is the case, but it is definitely not always the case. An example of this is in Microsoft''s release of the Windows Vista Operating System. The system was rushed, and therefore software developers did not have enough time to prepare for the changes in the OS, so people couldn't run anything on their computers when they got the Vista OS at first. Over time, this was corrected, but the whole situation stresses the fact that newer or the newest thing is not always the best.

In order to prevent future shock, people need to learn moderation. This means to solve problems without technology, and to get out more. Learning that there is more to life than their computer screens is key to solving the problem of future shock. In the end, it is best to simply try to be a more well-rounded person. Try to get the most out of both sides of life.

"Amish." Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica Online Academic Edition. Encyclopedia Britannica Inc., 2012. Web. 03 Sep. 2012. <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/20820/Amish>

(sorry, i don't know what went wrong with the text wrapping)

The Revolution will not be Downloaded (Blog Post #2)

People are afraid of change. Change is what President Barack Obama promised on his 2008 Presidential Campaign. As the potential to become the first African-American president, Barack Obama had to overcome obstacles in his path to win the election. For many people, the idea of having a minority president was great. Yet, many doubted that this welcomed change would be great for America. A few argued that his inexperience would make him unqualified for the position. However, after securing the win for the 2008 general election, President Obama has proved that change can sometimes be scary and unfamiliar but, great in the long run.

            This same argument could be used to address the statement. In the documentary “Future Shock”, the narrator discusses how overwhelming technology has become where humanity will not be able to keep up and handle the pressures. The documentary does make a great point that it is become increasingly harder to keep up with the constant changes in technology. Even today, I find it difficult trying to remember when the new gaming console is coming out or the new update for Microsoft Windows. Nevertheless, I find that the statement and “Future Shock” overly critical on technology.

Many benefits have been made because of technology. Where we have evolved as a society from reading by candlelight to having bright lights in buildings is astonishing. I do not think that I could grasp having to wait to hear back for weeks on end after sending a letter. Technology is always going to move fast but I think that saying we need to have a stronger control is an overstatement.

            In a sense, I find that some control is necessary. For example, I think that a regulation on how long a person spends using technology is important. Consuming our entire life into our PlayStation 3 or on our blogs is not healthy for socializing. An article titled, Study: Multitasking hinders youth social skills, explains how the constant multitasking for young children is effecting their social skills and those who spend more time interacting outside of the computer have better social skills. “Tweens in the study who regularly talked in person with friends and family were less likely to display social problems, according to the findings in the publication Developmental Psychology,” (Milian, CNN).  This quote shows that regulating technology to an extent would be a positive for people especially young children who need to be pushed off of technology and attempt to try to become more active.

            While the quote argues that we should start saying no, some people still do not have the option to oppose any type of technology because they do not have access to the Internet at all.  Many argue that by not having access to Internet or any other type of technological resource people would miss out on many opportunities including jobs and education.

“Millions are still offline completely, while others can afford only connections over their phone lines or via wireless smartphones. They can thus expect even lower-quality health services, career opportunities, education and entertainment options than they already receive,” (Crawford, NYT).

           

Granted, technology is expensive and many people cannot afford the costs. Often we overlook the fact that we even have technology is a privilege for many regions that do not have access. Many are not caught up in the world and before people decide to reject certain types of technology, we should try to put more efforts into getting people up to date and not forget those that exist. I feel that people should become more educated in how to use technology and resources should be improved so other people can get access.

Works Citied:

Crawford, Susan P. “The New Digital Divide.” New York Times. Pub. Dec 3, 2011. Accessed Sep 2, 2012. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/04/opinion/sunday/internet-access-and-the-new-divide.html?_r=2&pagewanted=all

Milian, Mark. “Study: Multitasking hinders youth social skills.” CNN. Pub. Jan 25, 2012. Acessed. Sep 2, 2012. http://articles.cnn.com/2012-01-25/tech/tech_social-media_multitasking-kids_1_social-skills-study-facetime?_s=PM:TECH

Terminator of the real world! (Blog #2)

In the 1984 film, The Terminator by James Cameron, we see civilization destroyed by technology due to the creatures making it have the ability to think for itself. In the 1972 film adaption of the novel, Future Shock, we see how fast and rapid technology is growing and changing that we will soon be in danger of destroying ourselves with technology. These two things have many similarities in them. Both describe a time in the future in which mankind is almost wiped out by technology. 

People as whole aren't always the most careful. We fall, we break, we aren't made of metal. However, once you have broken something, permanently, some doctors can give you a metal part to place in your body to fix you up and make you stronger. Some injuries require amputation. Then you can have a prosthetic arm or leg or whatever. The technology in those arms can read your brain to tell what you want to do with it. In the documentary of Future Shock they talk about how they can one day build a fully functioning mechanical human with believable movements and realistic features making it hard to tell by looks that its fake. The thought of that makes me shiver. The possibility that there could be a Robotic human out there sometime in the future, and it could turn on us. Think about it, if we can teach a robot to teach on it's own, won't it eventually begin to wonder why does it have to listen to us anymore? Unless we create rules from them like in the film I, Robot but if the robots are anything like humans, they will begin to break those rules. 

Everyday scientists are trying to break new grounds and because of this rapid change in technology people are beginning to "morph" with technology so to speak. If you take away someone's phone, its almost like taking away part of their brain when you think about it. So many people rely on their phone to remind them of things that the human brain is capable of but people choose not the exorcise that part of their brain. 

Future Shock really showed me how much our technology is changing rapidly and most people are too oblivious or too into their current electronically device to notice. It also impresses me how much media has talked about or dived into the realm in which technology over takes humankind, and people don't even put two and two together.