Well if you're not familiar with the hype of Siri and the latest iPhone, you will be soon, probably. But the more I think about it, the more I wonder whether we are progressing forward or backward.
Here's a scenario to imagine. Let's say that a tech-savvy (or at least i-device savvy) parent realizes it is safer to use the new iPhone by giving it verbal instructions. This is where Siri comes in. Siri "listens" to normal human speak and gathers information or performs digital tasks accordingly. For example, if I say "how old is Shaquille O'Neil" … it somehow magically comes up with the information on the sceen without further input from me. I say "magically" because most people don't care how or where the information is acquired, it just is. If that isn't enough, Siri can also find the 5 closest Italian restaurants or Pediatricians with a simple voice command. It can also call "your Mom" but you will need to tell it who your mom is the first time.
So I ask: Is Siri a friend? A trust co-pilot that will lead us happily into the future?
I want to sidestep to something my wife mentioned to me. Apparently, some of the big-wigs that work for tech giants like Google, Apple, and Microsoft pay huge tuitions to send their kids to schools that are absolutely void of technology. Instead of computer class, they go to basket-weaving I guess. Here's the New York Times article she was referencing:
NYT: At Waldorf school, technology-can-wait …
So anyway, back to talking about the middle class and Siri. Was I talking about the middle class? Of course. Anyway, so "Daddy tells his iPhone what he needs and it helps him". This will undoubtedly be the refrain of more that a couple of kids who ride with Daddy to school as he tries to get a little work done with the help of Siri. Or Mommy, of course. Wonder why Siri has a female voice? I don't … but anyway …
We all know that parental behavior affects that of the kids. We can argue how influential it is but not right now. But as of today, I will no longer be talking to Siri in amazement in front of my kids. Kids need to find the answers in many ways … but simply asking a computer is not one of them. At least not in the learning stage. Still learning to look people in the eys. Still learning to read. Still learning to listen.
Sometimes the canary in the coal mine has information you might need other than the fact that he is dead. Not sure what I mean by that other than to say that I sometimes feel like a victim of the most prevalent piece of tech of my generation: the TV. The brain-sucking, addictive TV. My kids already seem to think that the TV is pretty much the greatest thing in the world - yet I have come to realize that it can completely warp people into something no one really wants to be.
Upon thinking about TV, there is something to be said for iPads and iPhones. They do require a bit of interaction. And sometimes even inspire curiosity, learning, and arguably friendship with others through sharing information and entertainment.
But hearing that the brains of our culture who get their paychecks signed by Google and Apple are sending their kids to a school that cuts the cords on the very products that pay the tuitions ? That should say something to us.
We are not on this planet to shop. We are not here to be told which device can make our life complete. We are not here to sit in front of a screen or ask a virtual 'bot all of our questions. Yes being able to talk to your phone is kinda cool. Yes it can be useful and might save you from slamming into someone while texting in a no-texting zone (anywhere while driving). But it could also help our children never learn how to learn.
Here's an image of WALL-E …
Yes, this idea has been made into a movie =)
A friendly Robot saves humans from the computers which had helped make people lazy, stupid, and anti-social. What a guy!
Your thoughts welcome …
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