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(2017
final exam assignment) Model Student Midterm answers 2017 (Index) Essay 3: Web Highlights |
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Kerisha Loctor
December 7, 2017
Technology and the Future
There are several different directions the future can go; high tech, low
tech, utopia, alien contact scenarios are usually used to depict in literature
possible futures. Among these scenarios, there seems to be a
commonality—technology. Technology in the modern world has proven to be crucial
and necessary. At this rate, technology can become something that humans become
too reliant upon, which eventually can become a disastrous problem. Already
there has been several security breaches made possible through the internet.
However, a world without any technology, at this point, is unthinkable.
Technology has been more helpful than not, but a future following the downfall
of technology is a possibility.
Humans, as time passes, is becoming increasingly reliant on technology.
This dependency may not necessarily be a terrible thing; regardless of how
dependent humans are on technology, humans will be human, and that nature will
be hard to alter. In his essay, “Last Traces of Humanity,” Abel Hernandez
discusses how humans will always want to keep their nature in a world dominated
by technology. He specifically uses literature that had high tech instances:
“The Onion and I,” “Drapes and Folds,” and “The Logical Legend of Heliopause and
Cyberfiddle.” Using “Drapes and Folds,” as reference, Hernandez states, “…this
story offers fabric as a symbol for human identity and the separation from mere
faceless autonomous machines.” Though technology makes up a big part of human
advancement, there are some aspects that it will never change, such as emotions,
dreams, and identity.
Technology has helped and will continue to help humans take better care of the
planet. Karin Cooper in her essay, “In Denial of the Future,” uses “The Onion
and I” to make this point. She states, “…virtual reality gives answer to
conservation problems…” If everything that could make people happy was available
without the costly, dangerous environmental consequences, the life of Earth
could be extended. The world could even become safer as people would be less
exposed to danger such as pollution, crime, and transportation disasters.
Technology has been very useful thus far, but what if one day it all comes
crashing down? What will happen to our planet once technology becomes
ineffectual? In the essay, “Aliens Saving the Human Race from Themselves,”
Rebecca Dyda emphasizes that technology has corrupted humanity, which leads to
collapse and eventual intervention from aliens. She refers to “Speech Sounds,”
giving an insight of a world without technology where people “loses their
ability to communicate [and]…in turmoil due to their feelings of jealousy and
rage caused by their handicaps and illnesses…” Since so much relies on
technology, many things humans are used to using daily will become nothing,
leaving humankind to revert to a time without technology. This process will be
incredibly difficult and scary. Once technology crashes and becomes obsolete,
humans may experience such frustration and despair that they may lose their
empathic emotions.
To be
completely honest and realistic, this world will be a mess without technology.
Humankind has become too dependent on it and if it happens to become obsolete
one day, only chaos would follow. Technology has done some good for humans,
providing convenient options to difficult situations. Imagining a world without
technology is tough and near-impossible. Hopefully, humankind will learn to keep
a balance between technology dependency and human nature.
