There are those moments when things come together. Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Glen Anderson and the rest of the boys on the bus created the Edmonton Oilers of the early eighties. Four young people from the country of Sweden joined to form the music group ABBA. Peanut butter and chocolate in Reese’s famous cups.
There are the times when this collection of developments can be more revolutionary. The effect the changes brought about by such combinations has society trying to adapt over decades. The taming of fire must have been one of those moments. Agriculture must have been another.
More recently there has been the industrial revolution. Scientific discoveries into matter, electricity and the steam engine promised tools and power sources. Add to this the idea of economy of scale or the ability to do things “in bulk” all because of the assembly line. Suddenly we have a system that can produce things of quality very fast and at a low cost. Not only does the consumer benefit but the producer sees bigger profits which allows the company to grow and develop new products. Economies, distributions, leisure activities, and politics all get new definitions.
It is because of this revolution that some one can hand out free razors at a football game. Schik doesn’t care about the cost of a few thousand razor handles. Their money is made in the replacement blades. It’s a disposable world.
I promised I would let you know what science fiction writers are predicting for our future. The most written about concept is aptly named the Singularity. (It’s special enough to get a capital letter.) The idea was first conceived of by Vernor Vinge. Right now all machines are designed and made by humans. It will not be long until computers will design themselves. Combine this development with what we are learning about genetics and you get a revolution where living things and technology combine into a self – replicating – singular – entity.
Sci-fi predicts worlds where people quit their jobs because nano-machines do all the work. Or others simply “upload” themselves into a vast Internet encompassing the universe. There is no need for “meat” bodies. There is no difference from human intelligence and artificial thought.
And, to make it more scary, scientists are taking these ideas seriously. They are trying to find ways to make it happen. I don’t know what to make of it all. I just thought I would warn you.
