The Uncertain Future of Technology

I had a deep and revelatory dream in which I metaphorically saw that we are all going to be mind-controlled by technology.

Technology has more control over our lives than ever before, partly because of what it can bring to us, but also because there is a lot of money to be made out of new technology.

To examine modern technology, we should first look at what it has brought us: smart cars and gold-plated Facebook machines. Smart cars hold a lot of promise for the future, but in the field of smart handheld and wearable devices, there just is not anything new that impressive. Fingerprint scanners as phone locks promise protection for phones against animals, but how often does it come in handy otherwise?

Higher resolution cameras improve the quality of those selfies you took yesterday while enjoying a personal moment with the bathroom mirror, and bigger screens increase the chance of someone mistaking a phone in your pocket for the Guinness Book of World Records.

The rise and spread of technology is driving humanity down a road of technological dependency, and eventually, we will finally become one with the wires and currents that cause the modern world to run. From that perspective, enlightenment will cause you to actually lose your mind to technology.

Indeed, by the time we implement a merge with circuitry, companies that have internet influence will have much more power in the world. Have you already admitted defeat to the habit of checking Facebook and watching Netflix? Once we are all cyborg, walking and driving around will involve an automatic map in our mind with navigation instructions.

Everyone will always know where they are because of a microchip implant, which will also provide live video feedback of what the wearer is seeing, in order to maximize the chance of catching criminals. Privacy is a thing of the past.

Is this really what we want as a society? The correct response is both yes and no. Yes, because many of these implementations would drastically increase security at all levels, but we would have to give up so many rights to achieve it.

Such a level of security would take away from the individuality and independence that many have always loved as an option in the modern world.

Think of it this way: if we were all superheroes, and given the choice to be made average to prevent evil, would we collectively give up our powers to prevent destruction? Giving up our powers would ignore the benefits that could come because of fear. A society that advances its members toward an average through common access to enhancements will never reach beyond itself. This creates a psychological curse against the innate human desire to do what has never done before.