The Great Global Brain

I have to say I found Imagine 2020 pretty inspiring.

It is interesting to view technology as augmentations of our innate abilities as humans. The telescope is an expansion of the eye; the car is an expansion of the legs; the remote control is an expansion of our overwhelming desire to be very, very lazy.

With the invention of writing and the invention of mass producing this writing, we have invented a technology that augments the brain. When we collected this writing into a central location, Holy Great Ghosts of Alexandria, Batman!, we were really on to something.

But the internet is truly an evolutionary milestone. Now the central location for information is everywhere.The earth is now wired in such a way that hubs of knowledge pepper the surface of the planet almost resembling neurons in the brain, and these hubs connect and reconnect like neural pathways.

The Great Global Brain: an open source of vast amounts of information accessible anywhere.

And this is the beauty of it all: Somewhere out there is a very brilliant child, living somewhere in an impoverished nation which would have never been able to provide crucial information to fire this young mind's imagination. But now, with a simple computer and modem, an unimaginably vast world opens to them.

How many great minds never came to fruition because they didn't have access?

Out there is a cure for disease, a revolutionary energy source, and a change in the view of the universe as profound as Einstein imagining flying along side a beam of light.

Plus it is a good way to find and buy vintage toys you loved as a child such as my beloved robot pal 2XL:

Virtually Sedentary

Computers and video games have always been demonized as the culprits of physical inactivity. There is some credence to this accusation, but the truth is the whole thing is a symptom of a life which no longer requires much physical motion in order to manage in day to day life.

I could literally wake up, roll off the bed into a cushy chair with wheels, gently push my way to the computer console, have a meeting with my boss over a webcam, do my work by mere keyboard strokes, order my food by bluetooth, all while my iRobot vacuums the floor. If I feel like I may need some sunshine, my screen saver can perfectly emulate a nice summer day.

This is why the Wii fit is a great concept. I really like the idea of a computer technology which is designed solely to promote human movement. The body was designed for a time when we had to chase down wooly mammoths and run away from cats twice our size. Now all we need for food and defense is a credit card and a TASER gun.

So, in a way, the Wii is quite a revolutionary idea. I really did like the idea of a Wii workout room. Video games are so immersive now that it is pretty brilliant to use this world as a motivation to exercise...to turn it into a fun game and not torture.

I also really like the NutritionData site. Typing in my information I realize that I need to get this bacon double cheeseburger out of mouth, strap on some boxing gloves, and go a few rounds with a young Cassius Clay on the holodeck.

Formal Introduction

3.5 billion years of evolution and here I am, the pinnacle of biological achievement, hunched over a computer keyboard, squinting at a screen, and trying to think of something worthwhile to say.

I think I'd feel more useful and alive if I was outside hunting wild boar with a spear.

I heard they have websites where you can shoot and kill caged animals remotely by a click of your mouse.

2 million years from now we will have evolved into floating gas-bags with our neural tendrils intimately attached to every port and orifice on this infernal machine.

Truthfully, I love computers. In a matter of mere seconds I can prove to my girlfriend that Jennifer Aniston was indeed the lead female in Leprechaun and most likely get Rick-Rolled along the way.