This is the first posting in 2012 and it's strange that I'd opt for a topic related to technology rather than the things I love - books, art, music. But I observe that the things I love are somewhat reluctant hostages to technology in many ways and so I find myself unable to live in a world where the two are separated. Coming from a generation that was truly transitionary - we went from the rotary dial telephone to the mobile communication devices we use today- it's been a wild ride from simplicity to sleek sophistication. In other words, user friendly gadgets designed to make our lives easier and faster.
Frankly I'm a bit of a luddite and a bit lost. I know how to use a telephone, a television and a computer. I know the various brand names and the various formats and the various uses. I know I know I know. Do I care? I apparently don't. Sure, this blog wouldn't be happening if someone named Gates or Wozniak or Jobs hadn't done what they did and I'm probably grateful to them in some sort of begrudging way. But did they put the thoughts into my head? I'd like to shout out a resounding NO. We've learned to do everything faster and in more colours than we can pronounce, but haven't learnt how to be more creative, more thoughtful, more patient, more kind or more responsible. We've just learned how to spin the wheels faster and change them every nine and a half days. Upgrades we call them. But we upgrade things. Not ourselves. Updates we call them. But we update things, Not our deeds.
I'm not against technology, certainly. In fact, I do embrace it. I like my fancy new phone and my fancy new iPad and what have you. I like I like I like. I even like the Like button. But I keep circling back to the same thought in my uncomputerised brain. What about me? What about you? What about the people I interact with or hate or love? What about them? There seems to be an inverse ratio between technological upgradation and human upgradation. The more buttons we play with, the less human we seem to become.
In the last year, there have been incredible upheavals of man and nature. The humanity of man has seen a sharp and direct drop just as technological advancement has reached new peaks. Isn't there something wrong with this picture? I would rather have one less version of Apple or BlackBerry or Android or whatever and one more version of charity, kindness, justice and peace. Would you?
The race towards the smallest chip, the thinnest computer, the fastest car and the biggest building is unstoppable. But in the midst of all this demonic speed, our humanity is still wrapped somewhere around the cord of the rotary dial telephone.
5 comments:
imagine u were a medival princess penning words and did NOT have an ipad to publish on the world wide web.... ooo and to top is off being part of the harem behind a purda. i love my wifii and my little dabba and dont want to go back. btw u r most welcome at my "coconut shack with wifii" to blog from there- first coconut is free!!!
n why is it that when i enter ur blog it warns me that there is adult content- what notty thingy have u been bloggin???
I was one of those who first balked at the "ebook reader," thinking that I would miss the tactile sensation of actually holding a book in my hands and turning the pages. But I must admit, I read much more regularly since acquiring my kindle (not a kindle, MY kindle) than I ever did before. Does it matter if I lose myself on a screen instead of in the pages of a physical book? Maybe not.
@Nilu, You bloody techno freak, you!! You and your brother, aaaahhhh!!!
@Daniel, oh Daniel, tell me you won't stop buying books and when my book is published you'll actually come to the book signing of a paper copy? PLEASE????
I dont agree with the statement that you would rather have one less upgrade Nd one more charity.... Bill gates has pledged 95 percent of his wealth to charity. The Steve jobs foundation does amazing charity work. All this would. It have been Possible without that one additional upgrade that one extra gadget.
I used to always wonder what the purpose for all this technological advancement is all about? We used to live earlier as well in the stone age. We could continue to do so now as well. This entire cycle of inventing new machines making products is only to make our life a lot easier. Think of your refrigerator for instance.... Or the humble cooking stove. It has allowed you to pursue your passion which I writing by making the job of starting a fire and cooking a meal a lot easier which gives you that much more time to pursue other interests.
Your iPad ur computer ur tv just improve thE speed with which we Accomplish things giving us more time in the limited 24 hours we have in a day to do other thing we wish to.
Now you can use that time to go out into the garden and smell the flowers or go to An old age home and make someone very happy by spending that precious time that u saved using technology with them.
But how many of us actually do that ?
The fault always lies with us human beings and never with technology or things that are there to improve our quality of life.
Steve jobs always said if the user experience is not good I will never release this product into the market. He has canned several products on which his company has spent millions of dollars just be cause the user experience was not good enough.
Give me technology any day and I will give u time to do whatever you wish to. If you r so bothered about to go do some charity with ur time or go touch someone or go spread some humanity .....
Love you
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