Cyborgs: A Technological Future G A U THA M DI NE SH KU M A R L A L I
Technology is deeply ingrained into the daily lives of humans in the 21st century, but it was unnerving when I saw it ingrained into a person. He swept his hand across the RFID door lock (a digital lock that can be unlocked with a particular radio frequency) and it beeped. At first, there was confusion and then our heads turned to face each other and he said, “Oh, I have a chip in my hand that I use to unlock my phone. That’s why it beeped on the lock.” This was one of my first encounters with a person that had a technological implant, and in my mind, I was thinking, “That’s so damn cool.” It made me imagine the possibility of merging humans with technology and the numerous ways in which it could transform our lives. Imagine a future where your smartphone or your computer is a part of you, not physically as a whole device but in terms of computing and technological prowess. Your brain interfaces with the internet, smart contact lenses show you information and even augment what you normally see. You get notifications on the fly, and you no longer need to worry about remembering any information. How amazing would it be to go to work as a software developer, have a monitor in front of you, but also have screens augmented into your surroundings displaying your emails and tasks? Your work gets analyzed in real-time and powerful algorithms find the most relevant information that you need to get your work done. This may all sound like science fiction, but with the rapid advancement of technology, many things that were thought to be previously impossible are happening. Scientists often debate whether or not we should be embracing technological changes to our body but I say that we should all augment ourselves to prepare for the technological future. I am going to discuss the advancements being made in AI and robotics, how it can alter our control over the world and a possible future of augmented humans. To understand what this future might look like, we need to first define what a cyborg is: a human augmented with machine parts to make it stronger, smarter and faster than the average human. However, they are often depicted as evil machines built for destruction and the killing of humans.That’s
100
EXIT 11
