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The humanity of machines

April 24, 2006 by Jim Parker in future, technology

All machines are human.

Some would question whether there is anything human about a robotic welder on the factory floor, or a stamping machine that stamps out quarter panels for a new car, or a 1000 node grid computer, or even a bolt.

Let’s consider the humanity of the bolt.  This is a wonderful piece of technology that solves a uniquely human problem.  It attaches one thing to another.  These “fastening systems” as they are called today had a much simpler past.

I don’t know when fasteners were first used by humans or exactly what form they took.  Perhaps it was the use of wooden pegs to keep pieces of wood together.  Or maybe it was the use of strands of grass twisted and woven together to attach a thatch roof to a dwelling of some sort.  Either way, man has always had a need to attach one thing to another (among other needs too – of course).  But when homo sapiens first showed up on the planet, they didn’t immediately have the ability to attach things.  They didn’t inherently know that if you get this such and such kind of grass and twist it like such and such that you could create a kind of rope that could then be used to attach one thing to another thing.

Homo sapiens didn’t even have tools at first.  But over time – a long time – they started figuring stuff out.  Technology was born.  And it was nothing but human.  Technology was man’s uniquely human solution to a uniquely human problem.  It defined what it meant to be a human.  It distinguished man from animal.

That’s right.  And it’s that simple.  Somebody or some group of early homo sapiens figured something out, and then shared it with others.  Little by little, through collaboration, adaptation, and new innovations, the string or rope was improved.  That knowledge was then passed from generation to generation.  If it worked well enough, solved a problem that needed solving, and didn’t have to compete with a similar but superior technologies then it survived.  Sounds kind of like a contemporary business strategy, doesn’t it?

But that’s what human’s do.  They solve the problems posed by their environment.

Early man, just like contemporary man, was quite resourceful.  He invented language, tools, shelter, food harvesting technology, etc, etc,.

The epitome of what it means to be human is to have the ability to adapt to any circumstance the planet can throw at it.  Through innovation of ideas and technologies and constant communication of those innovations to future generations we humans can adapt in ways that animals could never dream of (if they actually do dream).  This is something that animals can only achieve through evolution – mutations of genes – bad ones dying, good ones living – survival of the fittest – natural selection.
Which brings me to my point:  Humanity’s success is not dependent on biological evolution by natural selection as animals are limited to.  We can pass on ideas and technology.  Animals can only pass on genes – and it takes generations and generations to actually pass on good ones.

Humanity’s success is dependent on our ability to resourcefully solve the problems of the day and our life through innovation and then pass those innovations on to our children.  This cycle of innovation and communication is human.  This innovation brings technology.  Technology makes our lives better because that’s what we built it for.

Technology is all about being human.

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Future Ubiquities

by Jim Parker in future

As a little girl, my grandmother rode a horse drawn wagon to the church on Sunday’s in the early 1920’s.  Today, at 94, she has a machine that keeps her heart beating reliably and is about to fly via jetliner across the country in a matter of hours to visit children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

That’s a lot of change to see in ones lifetime.

And I will see more change than she did.

Already I’ve seen some stuff.  When I was much younger (early ‘80s), my father brought a terminal home from the university.  It was a device that had a keyboard, a dot-matrix printer, and a place to set your phone receiver.

My brother and I didn’t much understand what such a thing could be for – but boy was it cool.  My dad dialed a special phone number at the university, put the receiver snuggly in the “ear cups”, and then typed something.

And then we waited for what seemed like forever.

Finally, the machine came to life, noisily spitting out words on the typing paper.  The machine had responded.

Now, you have to understand what a huge deal this was for us back then.  Here we were at home in the comfort of my dad’s office in the basement communicating with a machine 20 miles away.  Absolutely amazing and magical.

Today I can do much more.  I can read blogs on my phone while getting my car’s oil changed.  As I sit in my car in a garage hearing things like “I got oil pressure on bay 2”, I am connected, real-time, to what people all  over the world are saying about the topic of my choice.

Of course, my grandmother could do the same thing, right.  But she won’t.  She’s seen enough new fangled gizmo’s and technology in her life time.  And that’s just fine.

But what about my future kids? (“future” because my wife and I have got twins on the way – due in July)

What’s life going to be like for them when they are 10 years old?  What are they going to be writing about when they’re as old as me? 

Are they going to be laughing about how completely silly it was when they were 10 when daddy brought home an 8×10 piece-of-paper-looking video screen that had full motion, full resolution video on it - that looked like something that would very nicely fly across the room?  I am sure they will reflect on the novelty of being able to roll it and fold it and throw it (like a Frisbee) - this cutting edge display device…

…Much like I tossed around vinyl records at Christmas time one year as a kid…

…Or how we use CD’s today as coasters…

…Or how we disassemble old hard drives so we can get the wonderfully powerful and fun magnets out…

What’s next?

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To Contribute

by Jim Parker in blogging

The first blog post is the hardest.  I know this because I have already written the second and third ones.

Thus, I think I will write about why I am doing this.

I am completely amazed by some of the blogs I have read.  The imagination, the intellect, the experience, the wit just blows me away.  And these talented people are (for the most part) doing it all for free.  For free.

Well, maybe not completely for free.  We, their audience are in fact paying with our attention.  We read their stuff and think about it.  And some of us make comments on their stuff.  That’s giving something back.  Furthermore, some of us even produce our own blogs that from time to time might reference another blogger’s work.  That too is giving something back.

But there is even more that bloggers get back.  They get better ideas back.  The process of communicating is, in and of itself, a value-adding activity.  Ideas float around in everyone’s head.  Yet, when one thinks about those ideas, works on them, and develops them so that others can understand them, then the ideas change.  They become more developed, more thought out.  They get better.  And that’s just because the time was taken to prepare them for sharing.

However, the best thing bloggers get back is the sense that they did something of value.  They put forth effort that added value to the world.  They created something.  They produced.  They contributed to the betterment of world, even if only in a small, small way.

This, indeed, is a very noble endeavor.

Thus, I too will contribute.

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Attention Grab Author

• Jim Parker
  I enjoy watching all of the changes in the world that are caused by us trying to figure out technology.
• Jim Parker