Productivity Future Vision
This
video was confusing. If the woman was able to hold a meeting online in real
time why was she even travelling? And, couldn’t the daughter have searched for
a recipe without her mother’s help? The man seemed very relaxed and leisurely,
almost as though his only role was to help with the cooking. Best of all, just
how dated was that frying pan!?
It
was definitely meant to be Utopian with all its smooth, white, clinically-clean
surfaces, smiling, happy, attractive people who seemingly had all the time in
the world. But there was very little humanity. The man and girl barely shared a
word, let alone a conversation or a hug…. The home was stark and soulless. Sorry
Microsoft, sitting in a hotel room wired into my tablet devices is not my idea
of a better use of my time…
A Day of Glass
Definitely highly utopian influences. Suggesting that
learning could happen anywhere, anytime, that access to info is at fingertips
24/7. That learning can be recorded and shared later. I was disturbed by
classroom uniformity and teacher-directed learning. PLEASE let the future be
more learning-centric. Field trip was exciting but felt more like a 3D computer
game. Not sure any of my students would take time searching for elk’s
hoof-prints if they could go hunt down 3D dinosaurs instead!
Communication seemed to revolve around common experiences,
or common interest.
Definitely technology-centric
Charlie 13
I can’t really see past the bleakness of this predicted
future. I wonder what the perceived danger of the old ways was and, if this is
such a positive and balanced community of tagged people, why do they have to
lie about those who choose not to be tagged? To me, it is like the current
practice of tagging prisoners but in reverse. Instead of the bad guys being
tracked, now the innocent are rounded up and branded like cattle. The police
officers conversation with the mum could be interpreted as supportive and
friendly or, in my case, disturbingly invasive and personal. I don’t want some
complete stranger knowing that I live by myself and taking pity on me!
There did seem to be only a very minute hint of choice but,
at what cost? Charlie would have to abandon his mum, break her heart, and live
behind a wire fence. It suggested that Charlie could tow the line or be
excommunicated. Of course, Charlie’s the hero so the video does lead us to want
to back his revolt.
Many people argue that Big Brother is already watching our
every move and I don’t remember being consulted on whether that was OK
with me. Having said that, it is actually OK with me so long as it is only used
to catch “the bad guys” and not misused.
I wonder why the society waits until the kids are 13 to tag
them. If this were ever a reality I find it much more realistic that they would
be tagged from birth, before they could have an opinion.