Have you ever been so caught up in the process of creating something, you wind up losing sight of what you wanted as an end product? Hard work and ambition are admirable, especially when invested in the creation of new and exciting technologies. However, it is easy to get lost in the mechanics of work and to forget about the vision that inspired you to take up the mantle in the first place.
In this episode, Alexander McCaig and Jason Rigby discuss the negative impact of the ongoing tech race on humanity—and how we can fix it.
Jason pointed out a discussion made by Aubrey Marcus that was pertinent to humanity’s current situation. It was about how Inspector Gadget was dependent on his niece, Penny, to solve crimes and figure out cases. However, he always thought that he was the one responsible for saving the world when he created all sorts of new and complex technologies.
Several parallels can be seen between humanity and Inspector Gadget. One is that despite our desire to foster peace and understanding, we do not approach such lofty goals with a concrete plan nor with small actions we can commit to on a daily basis.
Another is in our obsession to constantly develop new and exciting technologies without a clear end goal in mind. Since the 1800s, when humans started experimenting with the implications of automating routine activities and making work more efficient, there has been a tendency to look at technology as a way to bring about heaven on earth.
However, utopia cannot be achieved just by perfecting the physical aspect of our world. It’s also about the parts of our human experience that are not tangible, such as our understanding of one another. The work we put in research and development can easily become divorced from our understanding of each other, and of nature, when we forget about using technology to co-create with nature and not around it.
Why do we keep losing our way? According to Jason, it is because we believe that more tech automatically makes us more happy—even though there was never an assurance that increasingly sophisticated technologies would bring us more fulfillment.
If modern technology is being used to process and analyze data at the speed of light, why don’t we turn to nature for inspiration more? Nature is constantly generating and giving data. The problem now is we are stuck churning out technology just for the sake of having it.
When it comes to smartphones, it seems like we have plenty of new models to choose from every year. Plenty of people plan their finances around the next flagship device to be released, immediately letting go of the ones they just bought as they chase the next best thing. However, there was never a need to let go of so much tech. Their main function was to serve as tools for us to make better decisions, but not to hold our hand and teach us how to make these better decisions ourselves.
What’s this extravagant tech race all about? What are we trying to reach for?
Perhaps we invest in the latest technologies in the hopes that it can give us a deeper understanding of ourselves.
“We've had great advances in technology, but why has there not been a correlation of war and death going down? Why has human happiness not gone up? Right? Why has all these prevalent diseases increased?” Alex asked, “It's because we still lack understanding. The technology hasn't been designed to understand one another.”
We could start using technology to start asking and answering the difficult questions. Maybe we can finally compel ourselves to reflect on how there are aspects of our personality that are mirror images of what is happening around us; or how our thoughts are similar to the state of nature. We can look into the log of thoughts, behaviors, and actions that are produced by our devices to finally face the parts of ourselves that we’ve been trying to ignore.
The TARTLE marketplace envisions a world where everybody has access to that deeper understanding. Anybody, regardless of their social status or location, can take responsibility for their part in changing the world.
Amidst the pandemic, the call for isolation has had a massive effect on the human experience. We are similar to trees in that when we stand alone, the likelihoods of withering away are high. However, when we live in communes the way forests are made out of a society of trees, our individual identities and personalities help ensure our continued survival as a collective.
TARTLE is analogous to what is going on in the forest. It is composed of many people, with a wide variety of characteristics, personalities, and thoughts. We have the opportunity to unite and data that is right, truthful, and meaningful with others around the clock.
What’s your data worth? Sign up for the TARTLE Marketplace through this link here.
