Greetings, Reader,

 

I found myself deeply impacted and enthused by the tech- book, Virtually Human. Which I reference extensively. ( see below )  I am deeply grateful to our son, Grant for building and buying parts for our first internet-connected computers, which helped us close the gap in personal computing.

 

But no matter how old we are and whether we are technophiles or technophobes, we are all impacted by the Digital Revolution, for good and ill. Technology is no longer just a part of our lives. We often neglect to reflect on how the pace of change affects us and what our stance should be.

 

Thanks to our son's talents and love, we are now navigating the online world of Google, Facebook, Instagram and smartphones! But I recognise I need a map and compass to navigate well in the Digital Age.

 

With the flourishing Digital Age we are in greater need of the ‘vertical’ relationship of God who entered “in the flesh,” as Jesus of Nazareth in this human world. Technology gives us greater access to the knowledge of the entire world at a few clicks away. Instead of asking our parents, teachers or others, we can just google it. If knowledge is power, what kind of power is it? Is Google a neutral tool? Can engineers and mathematicians, who are not trained in the Big questions of everyday people, really make neutral decisions when an algorithm is involved? Does Google bring up correct answers in terms of questions in a search box without fear of bias or prejudice written in the code? 

 

Our world is awash with information but mostly without the wisdom written in that ancient but timeless text, the Holy Bible.

 

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not against the flourishing technology that pervades our planet, nor am I suggesting that we should not be thankful for the tremendous tools we have developed by a few inventors and innovators whose vision has given us our current western society. After all we are much better off under the current democratic regime of technology with its tools providing new potential to all of humanity. Should we ’fall back’ to an earlier century of technology, we are more correct to say we cannot do without our MRIs and other computer-driven advances? Or which clever app on our stuffed -full smartphones could we really do without?

 

There are many voices of academics, visionaries, authors and teachers who warn of a techno-utopia with some inner flaws: a dystopia. Do we ignore them just because they don’t agree with us? As suggested earlier, do we accept or disapprove, in part, the pace of change? Should we simply embrace whatever next technological system, tool, or advance is introduced without questioning?  Neither against, nor fully for the technology we enjoy? A yes with a no? Of course, I love technology, but where is it really leading.

Bright Utopia or dark dystopia?

 

Perhaps this partial answer from the book, Virtually Human, will point the way a little.

“The attraction of the digital world is that we are connected and in control. The reality is that the network is far from passive in the way our lives are changing. The attractional power of life online is entirely intentional. It is a direct out- working of the way the digital world has been engineered. Facebook, for instance employs psychologists and social scientists along with computer programmers (PhDs) in order to understand (and shape) how we behave online and then to increase the time we spend online…and of course the whole social media landscape is sculpted this way.”

Final thought: the most important thing is to make sure that there is no chasm between the online ‘you’ and the offline ‘you’.

This is not a review of the Book, Virtually Human. I am merely referencing it because I enjoyed reading and partially agree with it.

Thanks for reading these thoughts. Any comments, you would care to make?