Week Sixteen Blog Entry: Shift Happens

After watching the video “Shift Happens,” it made me worried about the world’s future. The first main reason that I am worried is the rate that the world’s population is increasing. The numbers are getting so large in some countries that I don’t know how it will be possible for us to have enough resources to sustain everyone. The second main reason that I am worried is that I feel like technology is developing so fast that it will get out of our hands at some point. The video talked about a super computer that will exceed the knowledge of a human being, and eventually exceed the knowledge of the human race. If it gets to this point, how will we be in control of the technology that we make?

The video also talked about how fast information is developing. It said that the information a college student learns in their first year will be outdated by their third year of college. I think that this puts a big burden on the educational system and that changes need to be made to keep up with the changes. I believe that our country needs to put more money towards education. There are simply not enough resources for teachers and they are not being paid enough. I think that if there was more money put towards education, we might have a chance at keeping on top of the changes.

I think that there are some ways in which information processing and availability are improving our lives today, and some ways in which they are detracting from our lives. For example, advances in healthcare are helping to save lives in ways that never would have been done before. The internet is enabling people to become more informed citizens by reading the news and searching information. Online dating is even helping people meets their husbands and wives when they might have been too shy previously! However, I think that there are some reasons in which this is not a good thing. Instead of talking on the phone and listening to other people’s voices, people are increasingly choosing to text message. I think that this takes away the personal aspect of connections between people. I also think that googling information can lead to lazy habits when researching information. Overall, I think that the world is going through many changes and we will have to find ways to keep up with them.