Since most of the people on this forum are computer literate, and generally intelligent folks, I'm sure some you can indentify with these feelings. I apologize for its length, but without SharkyForums, I've felt a real need to write, and this is my next favorite forum! 
During the past century, we've made huge leaps and bounds in technology. Just over one hundred years ago, the idea of a flight across the Atlantic Ocean would have been considered nonesense; a dream never to be accomplished. Yet here we are today with thousands of planes in the sky flying to destinations virtually anywhere. As much as I'd like to not associate this post in with September 11th, two B-2 bombers made their way all the way from the continental United States to Afghanistan, hit their targets, then flew even farther to the indian ocean where they landed at a UK base, undamaged and undetected.
We have computers that can perform billions of operations per second, display graphical information and enable communication between anyone, virtually any where. These forums are living proof.
But society has become so jaded with the now commonplace technologies that the widely believed but never spoken idea floating about the general population is that new technology must simply grow on trees. As though there was a secret fountain somewhere in the Sahara Desert that spewed televisions and radios and microcircuitry as gifts from the Gods at the appropriate times in our civilization's history.
If only it were that easy.
One of my not-so-computer-literate social science teachers commented the other day that he had no idea it was possible to send voice communications over the Internet. Now, I don't expect social science teachers to know much about anything, but, had he put a bit of thought into the issue, perhaps he would've realized that any kind of data can be transmitted along any medium which can transmit text. Sadly, I'm sure he figures that electrons must have to assemble into patterns that resemble musical notes in order for the computer to understand the data contained in an MP3 file.
A colleague at work found a bug in a script I'd written and commented, "now why would it do that?" As though the computer was purposefully trying to annoy her. With the addition of a few statements, the bug is fixed. I came back to report, and was labelled a genius - wow, you made the computer like me. Which command on the start menu does that, again?
This lack of understanding leads to a lack of respect for the real people that spend their days pushing the world's technology forward. Not the CEOs, politicians and investment bankers but the engineerings, scientists and mathematicians of our time and those that have come before us.
We try to educate our youth about science and mathematics, yet, it is taught in such a dry and repulsive manner that most begin to question its importance because they do not understand and do not appreciate what they are learning. One of my friends asked me this, as I pondered over a problem: "What if the ban math, what would you do?"
If it were anyone else, based on the pure stupidty and broad reaching generality of the question, I would have been fuming. But I took a minute to structure my response and fully considered what he was asking. My response was, "I wouldn't be able to do anything" since the laws of physics break down down and I would most likely cease to exist.
But that's not what he was really asking me. He was questioning the importance of the abstract problem that I was working on. After all, what effect could it ever have on reality? The answer is probably none. Aside from the fact that I was particularly enjoying the challenge, it is imporant to remember that it is abstract thought which leads to applied thought. And that applied thought paves the way for the innovative technology that we have today.
The irony is that many ignorant people will get on computers, go to forums just like this one, and question the importance of science and mathematics. Why should anyone study these topics, what has it ever brought us, they will ask.
Our very economy demands advance after advance, yet our values dictate tolerance without understanding. My own mother purchased a $37,000 car: a piece of machinery and electronics that is so complex that it's taken millions of years of evolution to gain the knowledge it takes to build one. This, of course, isn't the least bit fascinating to my mother who has absolutely no interest. It gets her to work, she says.
Things are improving, though. I'm sure I won't be hung if I suggest that the Earth is not the center of the universe. But I might be looked at rather strangely if I said mathematics was an enjoyable pass time.
I'm not sure about everyone else, but the new world state of mind has left me feeling used. Quite honestly, I have no aspirations to study engineering if society turns its back on any attempt at understanding. We've all been forced to understand: understand women's rights, understand political issues, understand cultural differences.
Why is it such an unreasonably daunting task to ask that society make an effort to understand the very world around them?
During the past century, we've made huge leaps and bounds in technology. Just over one hundred years ago, the idea of a flight across the Atlantic Ocean would have been considered nonesense; a dream never to be accomplished. Yet here we are today with thousands of planes in the sky flying to destinations virtually anywhere. As much as I'd like to not associate this post in with September 11th, two B-2 bombers made their way all the way from the continental United States to Afghanistan, hit their targets, then flew even farther to the indian ocean where they landed at a UK base, undamaged and undetected.
We have computers that can perform billions of operations per second, display graphical information and enable communication between anyone, virtually any where. These forums are living proof.
But society has become so jaded with the now commonplace technologies that the widely believed but never spoken idea floating about the general population is that new technology must simply grow on trees. As though there was a secret fountain somewhere in the Sahara Desert that spewed televisions and radios and microcircuitry as gifts from the Gods at the appropriate times in our civilization's history.
If only it were that easy.
One of my not-so-computer-literate social science teachers commented the other day that he had no idea it was possible to send voice communications over the Internet. Now, I don't expect social science teachers to know much about anything, but, had he put a bit of thought into the issue, perhaps he would've realized that any kind of data can be transmitted along any medium which can transmit text. Sadly, I'm sure he figures that electrons must have to assemble into patterns that resemble musical notes in order for the computer to understand the data contained in an MP3 file.
A colleague at work found a bug in a script I'd written and commented, "now why would it do that?" As though the computer was purposefully trying to annoy her. With the addition of a few statements, the bug is fixed. I came back to report, and was labelled a genius - wow, you made the computer like me. Which command on the start menu does that, again?
This lack of understanding leads to a lack of respect for the real people that spend their days pushing the world's technology forward. Not the CEOs, politicians and investment bankers but the engineerings, scientists and mathematicians of our time and those that have come before us.
We try to educate our youth about science and mathematics, yet, it is taught in such a dry and repulsive manner that most begin to question its importance because they do not understand and do not appreciate what they are learning. One of my friends asked me this, as I pondered over a problem: "What if the ban math, what would you do?"
If it were anyone else, based on the pure stupidty and broad reaching generality of the question, I would have been fuming. But I took a minute to structure my response and fully considered what he was asking. My response was, "I wouldn't be able to do anything" since the laws of physics break down down and I would most likely cease to exist.
But that's not what he was really asking me. He was questioning the importance of the abstract problem that I was working on. After all, what effect could it ever have on reality? The answer is probably none. Aside from the fact that I was particularly enjoying the challenge, it is imporant to remember that it is abstract thought which leads to applied thought. And that applied thought paves the way for the innovative technology that we have today.
The irony is that many ignorant people will get on computers, go to forums just like this one, and question the importance of science and mathematics. Why should anyone study these topics, what has it ever brought us, they will ask.
Our very economy demands advance after advance, yet our values dictate tolerance without understanding. My own mother purchased a $37,000 car: a piece of machinery and electronics that is so complex that it's taken millions of years of evolution to gain the knowledge it takes to build one. This, of course, isn't the least bit fascinating to my mother who has absolutely no interest. It gets her to work, she says.
Things are improving, though. I'm sure I won't be hung if I suggest that the Earth is not the center of the universe. But I might be looked at rather strangely if I said mathematics was an enjoyable pass time.
I'm not sure about everyone else, but the new world state of mind has left me feeling used. Quite honestly, I have no aspirations to study engineering if society turns its back on any attempt at understanding. We've all been forced to understand: understand women's rights, understand political issues, understand cultural differences.
Why is it such an unreasonably daunting task to ask that society make an effort to understand the very world around them?
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