Mind Numbing Convenience?
Idealist raises an interesting point in her post about the mobile applications hypothesized in Fogg's book, Persuasive Technology.
"A computer that tells you what you should study and an implant that lets your coach know if you're drinking enough water? With a computer to tell you when to study, will students learn to manage their time by themselves? Will new technology take away our ability to think for ourselves?"
Of course, everyone loves for things to be convenient. The faster and easier we can have or do something, the better life is, and the happier we are. We strive towards a world of instant gratification, and technology is certainly paving the way for such a world. Despite all the magnificent ways technology has made our lives easier, is there a point where technology is making lives too easy?
For example, having your mobile phone tell you when you should call your mom because a specific time period has elapsed; a computer telling you how, when, what to study; handheld device telling you that you should take the bus to work after you entered some information about the day.
Is society so obsessed with convenience that we are willing to allow devices to think for us, even when it is something as simple as when to eat lunch? Are people so busy in today's society that they can no longer think for themselves? In other words, is technology taking away guesswork of functioning day to day?
"A computer that tells you what you should study and an implant that lets your coach know if you're drinking enough water? With a computer to tell you when to study, will students learn to manage their time by themselves? Will new technology take away our ability to think for ourselves?"
Of course, everyone loves for things to be convenient. The faster and easier we can have or do something, the better life is, and the happier we are. We strive towards a world of instant gratification, and technology is certainly paving the way for such a world. Despite all the magnificent ways technology has made our lives easier, is there a point where technology is making lives too easy?
For example, having your mobile phone tell you when you should call your mom because a specific time period has elapsed; a computer telling you how, when, what to study; handheld device telling you that you should take the bus to work after you entered some information about the day.
Is society so obsessed with convenience that we are willing to allow devices to think for us, even when it is something as simple as when to eat lunch? Are people so busy in today's society that they can no longer think for themselves? In other words, is technology taking away guesswork of functioning day to day?
2 Comments:
I once had a car that was a manual transmission. The car had a light on the dash board that told me when to shift. I quickly realized that I knew better when to shift then the car did and promptly ignored it for the rest of the time I had the car. Computers already tell me when to go somehwere (Microsoft Oulook) as well as when to call my Mom (Mother's Day, her birthday, whenever I set a reminder), I regularly choose to ignore these and other suggestions from computers (Yahoo Maps comes to mind) all the time. It is, however, very convenient for me when I do choose to take their advice (Mapquest comes to mind here). So I think we should continue to embrace the advances in technology, while understanding that the power we have over computers is that we can always turn them off.
My fellow red state outcast, I wrote about this study, but in a different direction. I think you raise a valid point here. We are moving in a direction that we are so reliant on technology to eliminate our inconveniences that we are starting to eliminate social interactions. No longer do you have to talk to a bank teller when you can get money out of an ATM. You don't have to even talk to the people at the ticket counter at the airport. Technology is vital to the constant expansion of knowledge, but at what point does it eclipse our desire for social interation.
And as for jd's closing comments...you never know when Skynet may become self aware! haha
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