New technologies always have a social impact. Because different tools affect different power dynamics. And power is to society what faith is to religion. The ability to do something faster and much better than others is a huge advantage. In many ways, it is cheating. Because the advantage of one is the disadvantage of the whole. The emergence of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT poses a challenge in many ways.
We think of a professor who requires his students to write an essay on the Great Depression or on any other topic. Well, with the help of an AI application, it is possible to create a piece of writing of 600 words or more in less than a minute. The student can use the application as a support when doing her homework. However, the line between using that resource as a support tool and plagiarism is not always easy to define clearly. Who is the real author of the essay? Google and Wikipedia can be used as a reference. And that’s not a problem. But these resources can also be used to “cheat”. He copies and pastes.
In educational institutes, the debate around the use of the calculator, for example, is old-fashioned. Technology stunts development. The use of the calculator, apparently, brutalizes. Well, because the person who is too dependent on the calculator gradually loses his ability to do calculations on his own. The machine has many enemies due to its double effect. The machine gives power, but, at the same time, it creates dependency. It frees us and, at the same time, enslaves us. For this reason, new technologies always have their friends on the one hand, and their enemies on the other. Every disruption has allies and detractors. Allies always see the bright side of change. Detractors always see the bad side of change. In reality, all change has a mixed effect. Advantages and disadvantages.
Among Bitcoin supporters, due to the Californian influence, the technology is too often put on a pedestal. In fact, the crypto-libertarian utopia is quite wary of human institutions. But the same is not true of computers and digital codes. According to this current, these “machines” are always neutral, fair and efficient. Therefore, they are extremely reliable. In other words, keeping our money in a bank seems like the worst idea. But, in contrast, it’s genius to trust public code running on a decentralized network of computers. The difference is that technology is generally considered more secure and noble than human organizations. The technology and the individual are reliable. Everything else is suspect. Of course not everyone thinks so. That thought is not universal. For many sectors, technology is a threat and a danger.
The intention of this article is to stimulate reflection. Let’s think for a moment about the impact of technology on society. It is not a matter of accepting or denying what is presented by the author. It is about questioning our assumptions about the world. Think.
In “Frankenstein or the Modern Prometheus”, Mary Shelley tells us the story of a brilliant young man named Victor Frankenstein who, obsessed with the vast reaches of science, creates a creature in his laboratory. Despite possessing great self-confidence, the scientist was never able to control his own creation. What he got was a kind of Jurassic Park. His achievements and discoveries, in the end, caused his undoing. A power gone out of control.
The human being is a tool builder. Since the beginning, The purpose of technology has been to make life easier for human beings by saving time and effort. It is the human capacity to find a practical application to knowledge acquired through observation and experimentation. For humanity, this has brought immense technical power over the physical world.
Before the invention of the record player, for example, communities created their own music. The vast majority of people played at least one musical instrument. The average person was actively and directly involved in the act of creating and listening to music. After some effort and discipline, the person developed a musical skill that allowed them to freely enjoy this artistic activity. Because he had direct control over music production. Today, the musician-audience has been largely replaced by advanced audio devices. Now there are few musicians, on the one hand, and a large audience, on the other. Unlike in earlier times, people today relate to music passively. Something was lost in the process.
TRUE. In today’s world, there is a lot of technology, but little wisdom. You constantly live acquiring the latest technological marvel for the fear of being left out. We have no choice but to adapt at all times to the latest of the latest. Otherwise, we lose a competitive advantage in relation to others.
In a recently published open letter, more than 1,000 experts, including Elon Musk and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, called for companies developing AI applications to “immediately pause, for at least 6 months, training of intelligence systems.” more powerful than GPT-4″ because it is a “threat to humanity”. In other words, “Terminator”. John Connor, where are you?
Well, a hammer is a threat to humanity, a knife is a threat to humanity, and a calculator (according to my teachers) is a threat to humanity. In theory, this “danger” applies to all types of technology. The stone that builds can also be used to kill. For that reason, we need to define the rules of the game. All technology requires some form of regulation. A regulation, by the way, made by humans and for humans.
Will new technologies eliminate jobs? In many cases, yes. In other cases, they will create new jobs. In my opinion, in the case of us, mere mortals looking to put bread on the table, which What we must do is use these tools to increase our productivity and our efficiency as professionals. As simple as that. It’s been said. Here is my reflection of the day.
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