Read the following article: Bill
Joy: “Why the future doesn't need us” available at: http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/8.04/joy_pr.html

Discuss the following issues:

1. write a one paragraph summary
statement about the article characterizing the main message of the article?

The main message
of the article is that we need to be careful of what technologies we develop,
and that too much technological development could spell the end of humanity.
If we become increasingly reliant on machines, we would become dependent on
them, and ultimately machines could possibly have no use for us. He also mentioned
that we need to be careful of who gets these technologies and that that person
or group is responsible with them. One person could do a lot of damage with
some of the new technology being developed. He is trying to make us aware that
these problems are not just science fiction non-sense, but truly possible in
our lifetime.

2. Who is Bill Joy?

Bill Joy is cofounder
and Chief Scientist of Sun Microsystems, was cochair of the presidential commission
on the future of IT research, and is coauthor of The Java Language Specification.

3. what did you find

3.1. interesting about the article?

I found some of the
passages from other authors very interesting. For instance, the one by Ted Kaczynski.
I think it was interesting how he showed that these aren't crazy ideas, but
completely real world possibilities. It was also interesting how this applies
to design, in that not only do we need to consider the audience with which we
design for, but that we need to consider the future ramifications of our design
(both ethical and usability).

3.2. not find interesting about the
article?

It seemed like towards
the end of the article he got a little redundant. I found the first part very
interesting, but towards the end it seemed a little overkilled. Maybe that's
because it was 6 am :)

4. with which arguments (focused
on predicting future developments) do you

4.1. agree

Reliance on robots
is a bad thing

Genetic engineering
of foods could prove harmful

We need to be very
careful with who has our technology

Destruction becomes
easier with technology

4.2. disagree

Nanotechnology is
more destructive than constructive

5. does the article relate to

5.1. other topics / themes you have
studied at CU?

We talked a little
about these ideas in my Meaning of IT class and in my Creative Technology class.
I had read this article in one of those classes for an assignment.

5.2. to your personal interests
and life?

Not in any direct
way, I think the topic is interesting.

6. how should we react to this article

6.1. on an individual basis?

I think on an individual
point, it is important to realize that we need to not immerse ourselves in technology.
We need to make an effort to keep and evolve our personal identities all the
time.

6.2. on a societal basis?

As far as society
is concerned, I think regulating these technologies and making sure they are
used for as much good as possible is really the most we can do. Of course, even
regulated technologies could eventually be used for bad, but it is impossible
to make regulation perfect. We need to walk the fine line between progress and
regulation.

7. which concepts /names mentioned
in the article did you not understand?

Some of the different
scientists and authors I had not heard of.

8. would you consider yourself

8.1. a techno-utopist (“glorifying
the future”)

8.2. a techno-pessimist (“glorifying
the past”)

8.3. or how would you characterize
your own position?

I think I am somewhere
in between each of these. I think a good example of clarifying how I fit in
is the following. I think AOL Instant Messanger is great, and is a nice, easy,
quick, convenient way to keep in touch with friends and family. It certainly
allows to keep in contact more frequently with the. On the other hand, this
could never suffice for flying out to visit them or meeting them out for dinner.
That will always be more precious.

9. how well have futurists succeeded
or failed to predict the disappearance in the digital age of

9.1. paper

Paper is still used
a lot. Whether it is to keep references for oneself, to make notes in class
(I think people write faster than they type for the most part), or turn in assignments.

9.2. books

Books are an area
that initially I thought would go away. However, it seems like people prefer
physical books to online books by a large margin. Books are usually more portable
than a computer and reading is done in so many different places that I think
currently it is hard for online material to replace that.

9.3. physical libraries

I think physical
libraries have very little use today. With the internet and sites like google,
there is nothing you can't find.

9.4. distances between people

Today communication
between people has almost no gap. With technologies such as IM, broadband phone
service, free long distance, there is no lag in communication. Until teleportation
is invented, none of these will ever suffice for actually being in the presence
of the person.