Have You Thought What Could Happen In The Future?
By Jackelynne Silva
ENG 1300
Technology started before the birth of Jesus Christ. The activities of ancient peoples, such as building boats and making furniture, were technology. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, technology consists of “applications of the principles established in the various physical sciences (chemistry, mechanics, mineralogy, etc.) to manufacturing processes.” Even though technology has benefited humankind for so long, in the future it may not.
Thanks to the imagination and creativity of some men, we have had the opportunity to create and use new machines that in some way replace the hands of men and simplify our work. Let’s try to remember what happened only four decades ago, when going to the moon was only an unreachable dream. When the first man to go to the moon, Neil A. Armstrong, arrived in Apollo XI, it was a surprise for everybody, even for those who did not believe in the potential of men.
Machines are getting more sophisticated every day, and as a result they simplify our work. Fifty years ago, when there were no washing machines, people washed clothes by hand and then waited until they dried. That process took a large amount of time, especially when the weather was bad; and during the fall season people would dry their clothes by using devices that look like irons.
Another technological advance of today’s society is the calculator. Thanks to Newton, who introduced calculus to technology, today we can make use of these machines. With them we can get an answer in less than two seconds, while in the past people had to do many operations and write many numbers to find the same answer. Therefore the use of calculators should not be seen as laziness but as intelligent devices to use at work and school. As we notice, the machines we have created not only simplify our work but also let us save time.
Can you imagine what could happen in the future? Maybe we will see cars flying, get deliveries directly from our television or visit other countries from our own house with a sophisticated internet or using three-dimensional apparatus. All these ideas are fascinating.
Have you heard complaints about man playing God? Some scientists have created duplicates of animals called clones. Others want to clone humans, but it would be in experimentation to know the clone’s behavior and his/her feelings. We are talking about giving birth to someone who does not have parents. The clone can have an owner, but who would it be?—the doctor, the scientist, the person from whom they took the cells to make the clone? This is the creation of a human being who does not know where he/she comes from. It would be harmful for him/her to know that he/she is a copy. However, cloning can also benefit humans. Knowing that the clone has the same organs as the original person, doctors can take the organs from the clone to save the life of that person. What this means is creating a person just to be used and then destroyed.
Robots are inventions of this era. They are helpful in the faster production of materials that different companies generate. Knowing that robots are like humans who replace our work makes us think that perhaps next year employers will be looking for robots as employees instead of giving men the possibility to work and support his/her family. Also, what if scientists build robots or computers that can act and even think like real humans? They could take control of our planet and force humans to work as their soldiers. Have you thought about that?
If machines become more and more perfect, would they replace at all the work of men? If they do so, we wouldn’t need to exercise because everything would be easier to get without doing hard work. We would become vegetable animals or marionettes of life. Doesn’t it scare you?
As we know, technology has already changed a lot in a short time and it will change more every second, thanks to the creativity of men. We could list more examples about how things were in the past and how they are in the present, but the above clearly shows the evolution of technology and how it simplifies our work and let us save time. The future is uncertain because we do not know what will happen; we just have to think carefully before doing certain things that can go against ourselves. Just be aware!