Breaking news of amazing scientific discoveries and major technological leaps are becoming a dime a dozen, nowadays. In recent months alone we’ve discovered water on Mars, we’ve found Earth-like planets in numerous solar systems, we’ve explored true artificial intelligence, we’ve further developed quantum computing, and hell, we’ve finally got some semblance of hoverboards and flying cars to boot. And we’re always getting closer and closer to the science fiction world we’ve wanted from our novels, movies, TV shows and cartoons.
Johnson & Johnson and Alphabet Inc have recently announced “smaller, smarter and less costly robotic-assisted systems for surgery,” robots whose “machine learning” would allow them to analyze hundreds of previous surgeries in order to properly instruct the surgeon where to cut. And it got me thinking: the further we develop artificial intelligence and augmented reality gear like Google Glass, the less we’ll need specialized job training for things like surgery.
I know, I know. It’s hogwash. Jumping to conclusions. Doom-saying. But hear me out.
Do you remember that scene in The Matrix? Neo gets strapped into the chair, Tank plugs him into the computer, and he begins downloading ten hours worth of martial arts into Neo’s head. At the end of it all, when Morpheus comes to check on him, he opens his eyes and whispers in awe: “I know Kung-fu.”
It sounds like science fiction, and hell, it is admittedly a science fiction flick. But that was until a few years ago when it was reported that a group of scientists had learned to hack the process of learning in human brains. During a study with participants who weren’t even aware they were learning, scientists induced brain activity using decoded functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to improve visual skills. Simply put, they’ve been learning how to make brain activity match the activity of people who already have particular skills. Something the doctors believe will lead to automated learning.
Not exactly “jacking into The Matrix,” but that’s still pretty exciting.
And that’s not even mentioning the aforementioned robots and artificial intelligence that are being updated and evolved into both a software and hardware workforce, capable of solving any problem by running solutions and/or performing tasks on their own. Even when they’re not handling things themselves, they’re assisting humans by guiding them through each step of a task.
Think about the apps on your smartphone or programs on your computer: there are so many now that give you instructional, often free lessons or education about a variety of topics that you can learn anything in no time. Even more, who needs to memorize anything anymore when information is just a second away from being looked up on the internet? There have been so many articles about how smartphones are affecting our memory and attention spans over the last few years, because anything we need we just get it in moments: no need to commit anything to memory anymore unless you live somewhere without technology or a stable signal.
This brings to mind a short film production called “Sight Systems” by the CG Bros, Eran May-raz and Daniel Lazo. The short, which was their graduation project from Bezaleal Academy of Arts–shows an interesting world where everyone has implants in their eyes and brains that augment the world around them.
Clearly inspired by Google Glass, users of Sight Systems in the short no longer need decorations in their abodes–augmented reality provides decorations, achievements and pictures projected directly into their vision. Users no longer need to have their own motivation to do simple daily tasks: a simple augmented reality game encourages them to achieve tasks efficiently for points. Most importantly, users don’t need to know much about anything or anyone: they can look up information in an instant thanks to specialized programs and algorithms (you can check out the entertaining short film below to see what I’m talking about).
So with all of this said, is this a bad thing? Would having devices, robots, implants, mental downloads and induced-learning be the detriment of education?
Perhaps in our current way of doing things, yes. Job specialization would become nil if people could learn skills in little time. With the right resources, anyone could be an expert of anything. So the better question to ask is who would have access to these resources? Would the disadvantaged be left in the dust while the privileged make use of new technology to literally be anything they want?
Would users–especially those with prolonged lifespans–find themselves jumping between specialized roles over the years? Would this technology be used for mass problem solving? Could it be used for difficult roles that normally require too much time and money to teach? Would it devalue the idea of art and creativity? Or would increased specialization add to humanity’s vision and perspective?
Of course I believe a basic education is absolutely necessary. We have to develop ourselves. But if you could avoid going to school for the first quarter of your life, and instead learn everything instantly, would you take the offer? Blue or red pill? Tell us what you think in the comments below.
Links: Reuters, Eurekalert, Huffington Post, The Telegraph, Popular Science, The CG Bros,