Supertrends and Impact of Technological Progress on Our Future

Cornish (2004) has so eloquently discussed the importance of "technological progress," which is number one of his six "supertrends." "Technological progress includes all the improvements being made in computers, medicine, transportation, and other technologies, as well as all the other useful knowledge that enables humans to achieve their purposes more effectively"(p.23). It is my belief that continued progress has very familiar pros and unanticipated cons.

While having access to the latest gadgets including computers, internet, video games, smart phones, social media, televisions and robots that perform marriage ceremonies, it seems as if we are at risk of becoming lazy, very dependent on technology, and losing our basic skills. Our language has been reduced to abbreviations; we now have our doctors performing life-threatening surgeries via robot from hundreds of miles away as well as robots marrying people. As I am writing this, I feel as if I am writing about the latest sci-fi movie. My thoughts are "really? "

1. Language -social networking websites are very popular today. It seems as if these websites are becoming the preferred method of communication, however, when using these sites, there is more than meets the eye. Reading one's updates on social networking websites is far from what it use to be. Our language has been reduced to abbreviations including but not limited to: smh (shaking my head), @(at ) lol(laughing out loud), wtf (what the f bomb) , lmao (laughing my azz off) , brb(be right back) and writing in all capital letters is equivalent to yelling at someone. What I find to be more baffling is that while shopping in a famous department store, I see a child's shirt with "LOL" on the front. Cyber language is making it's way to stores as well as it's own dictionary. Will the abbreviated language soon be apart of regular conversation? While listening to talk radio, I heard a caller comment about his hate for technology. I now understand what the elderly gentleman meant when he said, " I was dragged into the 21st century kicking and screaming!" The consistent use of abbreviated language has me wondering what the implications will be for our children of today who are the adults of tomorrow. Our youth are fluent and master abbreviated Internet language but cannot speak correct English or write a grammatically correct sentence. "There is plenty of evidence that literacy skills continue to decline. U.S. government data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress shows that after years of educational reforms, high school seniors scored worse on a national reading test than they had back in 1992. Less than three-quarters of U.S. 12th graders scored at least the "basic" level, down from 80% in the early 1990s . When thinking about the attention given to the positives of technological progress, I find the number of negatives to be sobering.

2.It appears that technology has no boundaries. Health care has been taken to new heights. Who would have ever thought that it would be possible for physicians to perform surgery on a person several states away from the physician's physical location? We now have doctors who may be miles away from the operating room, who are using remote controlled robots to perform major surgeries.

" The Da Vinci Robotic Surgical System, a remotely controlled set of surgical tools that helps doctors operate with greater precision and less damage to the patient's body, is in use in hundreds of hospitals globally. But at six feet high and weighing half a ton, it's not exactly portable. That's why the US military is experimenting with "Trauma Pods," a much smaller version of the Da Vinci that can be carried into war zones. The idea is that a doctor sitting safely miles away will be able to remotely direct the machine to give soldiers medical care within minutes of their being injured - speed that can mean the difference between life and death." Although the use of the DaVinici Robotic Surgical System proposes to demonstrate far reaching positive affects, there still remains room for technological malfunction. What if the Internet system crashes during a life saving surgery? What is the recourse? I certainly would not want to be the person lying on the operating table!

3.Getting married is a huge commitment made between two people who love each other. Sacred vows are exchanged, rings are placed and the ceremony sometimes ends with a kiss. I would have never thought in a million years that I would see the day where a robot would perform a legit marriage ceremony. In recent days a robot married a couple in Japan. SMH! What more is there to say? Will we soon have robots at the pulpits preaching Sunday sermons? Is there any aspect of life where technological use will be prohibited? I sure hope so!

4.Are people becoming technologically addicted? There is said to be an addiction aspect, more specifically, amongst teens. As a society do we really need anymore addictions? Let's face it, technology is here and is going nowhere. When considering the cons of technology, will we be able to survive without our gadgets and the convenience that technology brings to our lives on a daily basis? Is it truly possible to be addicted to technology? "According to a new ICMPA study, most college students are not just unwilling, but functionally unable to be without their media links to the world". To add insult to injury, due to fierce competition, access to various technological luxuries is becoming increasingly affordable for upper, middle and lower classes. Your average person that is living paycheck to paycheck will have one of these gadgets that will cost them more money to upgrade or just for use. Cell upgrades cannot be avoided due to malfunction or being outdated.

The most notable conclusion of the study is that the mobility of all forms of media has forever changed the way people obtain their daily news and interact with others on a personal and professional level. The conclusion of the study is also sobering.

Personal Implications

I personally experience deterioration within my personal skill sets. Because I type, my penmanship is horrible, and it is a challenge to sign my name in cursive. I have GPS (global positioning system) on my cell phone and in my car so I no longer need to utilize a paper map. I no longer remember anyone's cell phone numbers because they are programmed into my smart phone. My cell phone is smarter than me! I am now able to place face-to-face phone calls via the Internet, courtesy of Skype. I spend a major part of my day sending and receiving text messages from my smart phone from any location. There is not that much to talk about, it is just habitual.

I no longer need to call up my relatives who live long distance because I can find them on Facebook and better yet, if I want to know how they are doing, I read their updates on Twitter. Finally,
I no longer have a landline in my home because all calls come to my cell phone. It did not make fiscal sense to keep the landline and a cell phone, however, I regret removing the landline. Recently, I placed a call to 911 and was connected to the State Troopers who wanted to complete an intake before connecting me to my local police station. The time it took to transfer me over was costly. Had the situation been severe, it may have meant death when a life could have been saved.

The Death of Face -to-Face Human Interaction

It seems like face-to-face human interaction is going extinct. There is no need to go to a movie theater to see a movie when bringing the movie to my home is quite possible and more economical. Can I really pass up one month of free movies with free shipping all the time? Negative! Going out and meeting friends use to be a big thing to me but given the current state of the economy, I refuse to pay $18.00 for a movie ticket when I can just stay home. The incentive is gone.

As for pursing my Doctoral degree, do I need to leave my bedroom in New York to attend my college class in Florida? Not anymore! Going to sit in a class and meeting my classmates were apart of the good old days. There is no incentive to get dressed and go to attend a class when I am able to do it from the comfort of my home in my pajamas.
Further, I am saving big on gas money and lowering my risk of having a car accident.

The Future

In the future we may see cars that have the capability to fly. Consider the Smart Car. It is very small and it would be very easy to build some sort of "flying" capability into it. I believe we will have the option to have escalating floors built into our personal homes, thus, eliminating a walk from the bedroom to the living room. I believe that there will be laws created to place microchips in the bodies of convicted criminals. As absurd as it may sound today, I believe that scientist will attempt to resurrect the deceased using stem cells. I also believe the use of holograms will be common. Instead of being limited to face-to-face interaction via the computer screen, the hologram will bring the image of the person right in front of you. Gene splicing will be on the horizon. If you want a child with A,B and C qualities, technology will produce it. We will see a cure for Autism, Dementia, Sickle Cell Anemia, AIDS, certain Cancers and Diabetes. I believe they will move people to MARS. More people will be working from home and be held accountable by webcam.

Everything has gone technological and what has not, will! . When it comes to our technological future the possibilities are endless.