where is technology going?

[fluxquantum]

i am sort of disappointed with the trends in technology. processor speeds are going way up and all we have is windows. we still are using mice and keyboards. whatever happened to the sleek future i had envisioned as a child? maybe i have high expectations but i can't help but be pessimistic.

 

[kt]

The technology is there.. but it's just not cost effective enough for the masses.

 

[Buddhist]

If you think technology is not progressing, wait a few more years until you start seeing software program itself and the programmer becoming a dying breed.

-M.T.O

 

[fluxquantum]

it's a shame this thread got pushed way back. i was hoping for more replies. interesting views guys. keep it up.

 

[WinkOsmosis]

It's a fallacy that technology is always advancing. For many thousands of years technology didn't advance much, if at all. There is no gaurantee of holodecks!

 

[Chaotic42]

There would have to be money or national pride involved.

Did we go to the moon just to go there, or was it to upstage the Russians?
Did we develop radar to track storms or military aircraft?

Big things like that seem to almost always come from war. I don't know how many crazy scientists are in their basements cooking things up. That sad, because that would be a great job to have...

 

[neomits]

Interesting that you mention about the keyboard and mouse



just found this article today Future of PC Interface

 

[DougK62]

Originally posted by: Jellomancer
It's a fallacy that technology is always advancing. For many thousands of years technology didn't advance much, if at all. There is no gaurantee of holodecks!

As long as humans have been on this earth, technology has been advancing. Humans always have new ideas and build off of them - it's our nature.

 

[WinkOsmosis]

Originally posted by: DougK62

Originally posted by: Jellomancer
It's a fallacy that technology is always advancing. For many thousands of years technology didn't advance much, if at all. There is no gaurantee of holodecks!

As long as humans have been on this earth, technology has been advancing. Humans always have new ideas and build off of them - it's our nature.

Nope. Human technology has not always advanced, and only during the Enlightenment did the idea form that we are constantly advancing.
Necessity is the mother of invention, not human intelligence. Look at Segway for example... would you call that an advancement in technology?

 

[IGBT]

We need low cost broadband to further grow the internet..if I could just get 150k up/down load for say..10.00 a month I would be happy. And that's what's needed at this point..more choice and options with a 10.00 price point. I know I'am dreaming. Mabe hallucinating......

 

[Chaotic42]

Originally posted by: Jellomancer

Nope. Human technology has not always advanced, and only during the Enlightenment did the idea form that we are constantly advancing.
Necessity is the mother of invention, not human intelligence. Look at Segway for example... would you call that an advancement in technology?

Some things, like famine, disease, and religious control have slowed down technology, but it has been advancing fairly steadily.

 

[WinkOsmosis]

Originally posted by: Chaotic42

Originally posted by: Jellomancer

Nope. Human technology has not always advanced, and only during the Enlightenment did the idea form that we are constantly advancing.
Necessity is the mother of invention, not human intelligence. Look at Segway for example... would you call that an advancement in technology?

Some things, like famine, disease, and religious control have slowed down technology, but it has been advancing fairly steadily.

Yes technology has been advancing steadily, but it hasn't always been that way, and may not always be that way.

 

[Chaotic42]

Originally posted by: Jellomancer
Yes technology has been advancing steadily, but it hasn't always been that way, and may not always be that way.

Well, I'm not saying you're wrong, but do you have any sites or books or anything about this? I would think, and it would seem that I'm not alone, that human interest would always be creating new things, be it out of necessity or just curiosity.

 

[Moonbeam]

I would think you are all aware of Kurzweil's predictions about Moore's law?

An example

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Originally posted by: Moonbeam
I would think you are all aware of Kurzweil's predictions about Moore's law? An example

I cannot keep up with all of todays advances. What happens when no one can keep up with any of it? What happens if the pace of technological improvement outstrips our ability to grasp it at all? What happens if the machines do rule? I am not a Luddite, but if our technology currently has outpaced basic ethics, how will accelerating that pace benefit humanity? I do not mean in the physical sense, but in every other way. I remain unconvinced that true human progress means more toys for all.

 

[Moonbeam]

Easy Hay, ethical machines.

 

[richardycc]

just remember:

porno drives technology!

rich

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Originally posted by: Moonbeam
Easy Hay, ethical machines.

I should have forseen that response M