With humor and an easy tone, Stevenson keeps telling us
about interesting and surprising facts about what the future could bring, for
the good... and for the worse.
What are your thoughts about this second part? Can you see a
scenario with robots claiming their rights or becoming our masters? What about
the nanotechnology manufacturing? Do you see yourself spending your summer
holidays in a hotel in Mars?
As always, looking forward to reading your comments!
Really, the robot thing is always a fantasy corrupted by thousands of films.. the duality that Stevenson talks about with the example "C3PO and Hal9000" is too well established in my head. I don't see how robots could really feel, they can be programmed to have a similar reaction, do as humans do, but doesn't mean they will feel anything, could machines ever reach the point to be whimsical, fall in love? I like a lot the film Wall-E, but that doesn't mean that it is going to happen. However, I do believe that developments in this field will produce interesting products and specially in nanotechnology, that it is already being used in many different applications, from flooring till medical devices.
ReplyDeleteAnd I want to highlight one phrase that one of the persons mentions in the book: "Never look at a limitation as something you ever comply with. Never. Only look at it as an opportunity for greatness". I think it is a wonderful philosophy, always try to reach over the limits for new solutions. I think it is really in the same line as the title with its optimism.
My main doubt about robots is why do we want them to be like us? What is the point? I don't understand why robots are expected to have human feelings, to have rights, to be eligible for sick leave or holidays... WHY? I want a robot to clean my floor, to be precise in surgery, to drive a train, not to be my friend. Robots are machines and I think we should always keep that in mind.
ReplyDeleteAs for nanotechnology, I agree with Rocio. Uses and applications are here already and we'll be seeing more of it in our lives. Sometimes I try to imagine how our lives will be in the future, thanks to these and developments in other areas. In some ways, this book tries to draw a picture of how experts see our future, though it is impossible to know which technologies will work and which ones will get lost along the way.
I agree it is difficult to know what technologies will work and which ones will be abandoned for one reason or another. I have the sense that some of the experts whose points of view are presented in the book might be a little bit carried away by their own enthusiasm, vision of the future, and technical knowledge.
DeleteAs the book progresses, I like even more the author's humor and how easily presents subjects quite complex to me. Still, I find some subject-specific parts too long and there are things I do not completely get, like that "simplicity theory…".
ReplyDeleteI have to acknowledge that I am too far behind the author's line of thinking. I cannot see the scenario of robots claiming their rights or the predictions of mergers between humans and machines (which I don't see it as the same as using "robot" prothesis).
I am amazed at people who are in the next level of evolution thinking. The author says he can't find evidence that points to robots becoming our masters. I agree, but in a simpler way, cause I can't see the sense of it. Somehow as Arantxa and Rocio, I cannot imagine robots being more than that, machines.
One idea I could definitely buy is that of eating muffins and donuts that taste as trash food but are healthy :-)
Being very in line with this part of the book and our latest discussions, it is worth taking a look at the cover story of The Economist this week:
ReplyDelete"Morals and the machine. As robots grow more autonomous, society needs to develop rules to manage them"
http://www.economist.com/node/21556234?fsrc=nlw%7Chig%7C5-31-2012%7C1977420%7C37186116%7C
Greetings!