Are we headed for doom?
by Brian Dexter M. Medija
Published in SunStar Davao Weekend Edition.

     In the face of rapid technological breakthroughs it’s easy to get jaded of it all.  Besides the fast pace of the evolution of computers, you may have heard about “Dolly,” that sheep manufactured through cloning, or seen the wrestling robots on CNN or ABC, or caught a glimpse of some nanotechnology—teeny weeny, in fact microscopic, machines that are capable of doing stupendous tasks.

     And you may also be aware that we are becoming increasingly dependent on technology: We push that button for the latest news and trends on TV, we beat deadlines of reports and assignments on the desktop or laptop computer, we surf the Web for research and email, we head to the ATM machines for money, and, yes, we text our mates for coffee.

     These developments definitely are a harbinger of what’s in store for us in the future. Someday, the succeeding generations would reap the benefits of the advancements that we may be so jaded about today.

     Benefits. We should realize that this is only one side of the coin.  Is it possible that the evolution of science over the ages could also bring us to peril—or even cause the demise of the species that created technology in the first place? It’s perhaps a neglected aspect of technology, for truly the foreseen gains out of these developments could easily blind us from their possible consequences.

     There is one thing I find disturbing about the direction that all this technology is heading, and this I felt while I was reading an article on an online issue of Wired magazine (www.wired.com).  The article was by Bill Joy, co-founder of Sun Microsystems, saying that in the era of great scientific advancements, posited by his friend Ray Kurzweil, we may be heading towards our own doom. It’s intriguingly titled, “Why the future doesn’t need us.”

     He gives bits of their conversations, like, that the rate of improvement of technology was going to accelerate and that we were going to become robots or fuse with robots, or something like that. Joy also discussed Kurzweil’s outlook on technology, that in the future the fate of humans would be at the mercy of the machines.  Here’s an exerpt of Kurzweil’s position:

     “…the human race might easily permit itself to drift into a position of such dependence on the machines that it would have no practical choice but to accept all of the machines' decisions. As society and the problems that face it become more and more complex and machines become more and more intelligent, people will let machines make more of their decisions for them, simply because machine-made decisions will bring better results than man-made ones. Eventually a stage may be reached at which the decisions necessary to keep the system running will be so complex that human beings will be incapable of making them intelligently. At that stage the machines will be in effective control. People won't be able to just turn the machines off, because they will be so dependent on them that turning them off would amount to suicide.“

     Ewww, another doomsday tale! Why am I telling you all this?  Well, you may think, this is either because I’m so easily swayed by such well-written, albeit O.A. philosophy, or because there may be some truth to what the article is saying. I’d stick to the latter: It is a lofty tale, but it’s got a point.  I may not agree with some points brought up there, but there are parts, such as the one quoted above, that brought me (and could bring you, too) to think and say, “uh-huh.”

     Is it possible that the technological monsters human beings have created will eventually enslave humankind, and even cause its extinction?  Or if not extinction, maybe we could merge with robots and become androids? Quite frankly, I don’t know.  What I do know is that man has the tendency to become ever-dependent on technology, and we see its manifestations today. If we should wish that Kurzweil’s rather grim outlook would not become reality, then it all boils down to ethics.

     The evolution of technology is going at a bewildering pace, and it’s possible that those concerned neglect the ethical issues that could crop up in the process. What our (mad?) scientists should put in mind while at their “thing” is their moral responsibility, and the common good.  Right, that’s as possible as attaining peace in our land, or eradicating poverty anytime soon.  Well, just a thought there.

    Okay, while that day is still a long way out, maybe we could just slip the idea at the back of our heads and just watch the news or read the papers.  Besides, at the current state of our nation, it would seem we will have the advantage over other nations of having more time to enjoy still being humans.  ¤