Kevin Kelly talks through his thoughts on technology's history, how it should be viewed, and how it has a role in who we are as human beings. As he took the listeners from his year without technology bike-riding across America to the plea that "we have a moral obligation to invent technology", I was struck by his description of technology. His descriptions created the idea that technology is a living organism, almost outside of our control as humans. In his words, "technology never really dies. " A page from a late 1800 Montgomery Ward catalog supports this theory since all of the tools on the page are still in production today.
He wanted to elevate it to a place in the scientific classification as the seventh kingdom. The idea that something humans created stepping outside of human control has fed science fiction for years. If I stop to think about it abstractly, it makes me wary of these tools. However, when I am faced with a new tool, I am engrossed in the possibilities it provides.
His question was "what does technology want?' My question is "what does technology want from my students?" According to Kelly's logic, it wants them to explore every avenue of its chance, possibility, opportunity, etc. In this scenario, I can guide students and redirect them as they tackle these possibilities. This is a topic to revist later...I need to mull it over some more...
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