Digital Futures Read online

Digital Futures

  Human beings have always had something about them that set them apart from any other living creature on Earth. They have a yearning for more. A want, and some may even say, a need to move forward. While this can be seen in the evolution of a high percentage of other living beings in this world, the Human need is often seen as selfish, a need for need’s sake. However, it can not be looked past the amazing and wondrous feats that Humanity has completed and created. Most recently, the movement in to the digital age has dominated the way people think, and certainly the way that we live our lives. From the advent of written language, to the concept known as time; Humanity’s imagination knows no bounds.

  When looking at the latest technology, it would be easy to assume that much of the time spent inventing new gadgets simply for the amusement and entertainment of humans. This, while it could be argued, is not entirely true. The origins of many devices used today were first thought of as a luxury, and that while they would be enjoyable to have, they were not seen as a need. As the technology has evolved, societies concept of a ‘want’ and a ‘need’ have changed. For example, the idea of a communication device, with which you could speak to a person across the world and hear their voice respond, was unheard of at one time. However, in the modern era, it would be unusual to find a person over the age of 15 without such a device in their pocket or purse.

  Many people would see ‘digital technology’ as computer systems, or iPhones, but these creations would never have been possible without the advent of the Alphabet. The Alphabet gave humanity something to set themselves apart from other creatures on Earth, a visual systematic aide to go along with verbal and audible communication. While other species use visual aides to convey meaning or emotion, such as facial expression or the movement of appendages, the Alphabet provided a set of symbols which provided the base for written language. While this may not seem remarkable by modern man, the Alphabet helped bring about the advent of countless inventions and developments in human life. While the Alphabet differs for each language, the concept of having a visual or written counterpart is an element of almost all languages spoken by humans.

  While we can look back on the prior generations and see progress and the assistance that the Alphabet has had on shaping the modern language and technology, the very concept of the Alphabet had its detractors. For example, Greek philosopher Plato saw the Alphabet as a step backward in language, and that the tradition of aural communication would suffer. He believed that the human memory would also suffer, as information could simply be produced in a visual, rather than being exchanged aurally. At the time, there was a rich tradition of aural knowledge, and Plato believed that the Alphabet would halt this process. While this may seem unusual to modern man, humans have often panicked at new ideas, only to find the positives soon after.

  Humanity, rightly or wrongly, has often been accused of Homocentrism, the concept of putting the Human race at the centre of the universe, figuratively. While many care for the Earth itself, or its other inhabitants, humanity normally promotes ideas and actions that will further its own species. Recently, there has been improvement in this area, with more attempts to create sustainable products or actions that, while positive for humans, are not affecting other species on Earth.

  Digital Government

  With the rapid increase in digital technology in the modern era, many theorists are calling for the governments of the world embrace this new knowledge, and evolve into a digital government. Currently, the two sections of the many governments sit separately, with little public knowledge of large amounts of decisions. With the addition of a digital government, greater amounts of information, and to an extent, control could be given to the public. A digital government could also help lead to more transparency of governments that may other wise be susceptible to becoming corrupt. If the greater public has the ability to keep track of the actions of the government, this should theoretically keep society content.

  For example, the voting system in most countries involves a paper ballot vote, in which members of the public travel to voting booths to cast their vote. Voting is mandatory in a minority of governments around the world, and this can lead to an unjust result in elections. With 196 countries in the world, only 28 have compulsory voting, while only 10 enforce voting with some kind of penalty. A system in which voters could use the internet to cast their vote has been looked at as a possible alternative.

  An online voting system has many positives and negatives, but the concept certainly lends itself to a particular government that wish to show their forward thinking. With an online system, it would become a much more convenient action for the voter. This may help with the lack of voters in some countries, and could work as an alternative to mandatory voting. Using the positive reinforcement of allowing the voter to choose the time to vote, and the comfort of being able to vote from home may convince some previous non-voters to cast their ballot. This could be the alternate of the punishments given to those who do not vote in countries where it is mandatory.

  The main negative points are that of security and accuracy. With the levels of technology becoming more and more sophisticated, as have its critics and adversaries. If online voting allowed people to cast their ballot from their personal computer, there is the risk that the government could keep track of IP addresses and make note of who voted for any particular party, thus eliminating voter confidentiality. Also, if the government became corrupt, they may attempt to fix the voting system by deleting opposing party’s votes. However, this has happened with the current voting systems, and would be harder to eliminate all evidence of this.

  If one government was able to create a viable online voting system, and were able to show that it was secure from viruses or the threat of identity theft, and provided convenience for voters, as well as less time spent counting votes, then many governments would need to look at it as a feasible option. This voting system would have to be run by a third party entity, which had no ulterior motives for the election of a particular party. This way, the election would be fairly conducted.

  The upside and downside to the Digital Age

  With the advent of the internet, and online peer to peer services like chat rooms and virtual reality video games, this digital age gives people with physical and mental disabilities a never before seen opportunity. In the past, if a physically disabled person was to make a new acquaintance, they may feel self conscious, and recoil from the situation. However, with access to a computer and the internet, a physically disabled person would be free to socialise with anyone. This can be looked at in two different lights, a positive and a negative.

  On one hand, why does this person need to hide from their disability? While it is positive that this person is communicating with others over the internet, it shouldn’t be ignored if they have a genuine problem with face to face communication. Just because a person is confined to a wheelchair, the assumption should not be made that they would rather communicate over the internet rather than in person. This technology must be looked at as a positive communications tool, not a way for people to alienate themselves from society.

  However, if there is a person who is confined to a wheelchair who truly enjoys the new technology, then it has tremendous benefits. They have the ability to feel far less confined, it can help with the feeling of uselessness, and may help with confidence issues. With this new media, they have the ability to do things for themselves that may have previously need help to complete, allowing them to feel like a regular member of society.

  Digital Futures and Beyond

  With the continued research into the use of technology to help further the functionality of the human body, much has been made techniques of cloning. Cloning, from a medical point of view, could hel
p eliminate many forms of disease and illness. Imagine if, instead of having to wait for a particular organ to be donated, and the small possibility of it accepting the new body, if a custom made organ could be created from nothing, and given to it the person who needs it. This would not only give many children a second change at life, but it would give medical research more time to actually cure the illness.

  One argument against this type of organ creation, is the question, when it something an original entity. If a full body was created, to simply maximize the organs available for harvest, is that being now a person, or simply a shell to hold these organs? If so, when is this transition made? If the being is without a brain, many would argue that it cannot have a conscious, and thus, is not a living being. However, an argument could be made that people with extensive loss of brain function are in a similar category.

  A similar argument is raised when talking about Artificial Intelligence or AI. Currently, some of the uses of AI are for basic research, and it is used extensively in video games, to provide a realistic opponent for the user. However, at what point does this become a functioning being, if they have the ability to think, and make decisions for itself, even thought it may have no organic matter.

  We can without doubt see the affects that technology has on the modern life. From the Alphabet, to video games, the human mind has created a vast array of concepts to help the human life become for fulfilling. While most ideas have their detractors, these concepts will shape the outlook of mankind, and will hopefully bring about a more rewarding digital future.