Sunday, March 22, 2009
Whoa.
Remember when you didn't know everything? If you wanted to know what the names were of the Apollo 13 crew, you had to ride your bike to the library, look up a subject in the card catalog, find the most appropriate title, go to the stacks, find the book, go to the index, thumb to the page. And THEN write it out longhand on a piece of paper. Which you had to keep track of.
Well, when we explain that shit to our kids, it's going to sound as ridiculous as phrenology and home ice delivery. What do you think the chances are that sometime late in life you'll be asked the question: "What's a book?"
I'm not complaining. I'll buy one of those motherfuckers so fast it'll make your head spin. It is a major EVOLUTIONARY MILESTONE FOR OUR SPECIES that we are moving ever closer to constant interaction with all recorded human knowledge and information. Which begs the question: "Who controls the stream of information?" Is there any question that competition for search results position will be the primary focus of corporations in the years to come?
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4 comments:
That is nut-rageous. I think it sounds good and exciting, but -
The gadget, as much as it is supposed to provide more information, actually may get in the way of the user receiving information first hand. With a persistent filter essentially on everything you touch, there is little room left for individual exploration and the development of an organic impression or perspective. I like the mundane efficiencies like telling time or calculating numbers on your hand or making notes and taking pictures. However, getting Amazon reviews of books and Facebook reviews of people you meet sounds like it robs us of organic experiences and reduces these experiences to populist blurbs. It's also another way for corporations to advertise to us and buy our personal air time.
PS Do we really need that much help to choose a toilet paper?
Retarded
I LOVE that the audience spontaneously applauded the CALCULATOR.
Also, DS, big props for mentioning Phrenology and ice delivery. Very funny ...
I had to google phrenology and I thought TED was an airline.
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