As I read through Jamais Cascio’s “Get Smarter” article, I found myself intrigued by his argument that we should embrace technological advances because, as history proves, we learn to adapt to any consequences or challenges we face as a human race. The possibilities he discusses that the future could potentially behold for us were staggering to me. It is hard to imagine a world where it is commonplace to use drugs to push our brains past their normal capacity. Even more mind blowing is the idea that scientists will be able to develop artificial intelligence in my lifetime. I never thought about the possibility of something like that occurring while I am still alive, but when thinking about how much we have progressed just within the past few years with devices such as the iPhone, I don’t doubt it could happen. However, deciding if this is a good thing or a bad thing is a much more difficult process.
In a broad sense, I find myself agreeing for the most part with Cascio. I know on a personal level I always find it fascinating when new technology emerges and makes my life easier. Who wants to try to read a map when you can just type your destination in a GPS or even your cell phone? Who wants to look up a word in the dictionary when you can just guess how to spell it, type it into Google, and it figures it out for you? There have been countless instances just in the typing of this piece that my spelling errors have been auto-corrected without me giving them a second thought. This idea of technology adapting to us as it further develops is one of Cascio’s main points. He writes, “The trouble isn’t that we have too much information at our fingertips, but that our tools for managing it are still in their infancy” (180). Companies like Google and Microsoft are only helping us towards a better future. We have the technology, so I agree that it seems foolish to not utilize it to its full potential.
The more complicated part of these new technologies we are seeing developed everyday is when the use of them comes down to morals. When drugs are being developed to give people with access to them an edge in the classroom or workplace, it is easy to argue that this activity should be deemed morally wrong. On the surface, it is cheating. But at the same time, as long as the drugs that are being used are legal, why not applaud individuals for being resourceful enough to use them? I know plenty of people who resorted to taking ADD medication during exams to get an edge and help them focus. Even though I didn’t do this due to the fact that I found it immoral and unnecessary, it is still arguable that I let myself fall behind. The author states that “we may fear the idea of a population kept doped and placated, but we’re more likely to see a populace stuck in overdrive, searching out the last bits of competitive advantage, business insight, and radical innovation” (183). I envision this sort of debate to be a hot topic in the future, and just as Cascio does, I don’t necessarily view that as a bad thing.
Overall, Jamais Cascio’s article is an obvious opposite to Nicholas Carr’s article “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” in a variety of ways. Carr argues that new technology, specifically Google, changes the way our brains process information, leading to a lack of focus and deep concentration. This new way of thinking scares him and he fears what it may lead to. However, unlike Cascio, his argument fails to sway me toward his opinion with his use of examples that, in my opinion, lack a connection to his argument that a different brain is a bad one. I like the idea of us getting smarter and more resourceful with the aide of technology. Who knows what will happen when we reach our limit, if we ever do. However, as Cascio repeatedly points out, we as humans will learn to adapt and make the best of any situation thrown at us. I don’t see a Terminator movie situation in our future.
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