The meeting of our advisory committee for the Harrisburg Area Community College Music Business division was called to order early on a Tuesday Morning in October. I sat down as an Adjunct Professor ready to interact with my fellow teachers and advisors. I pulled out my iPhone 4 out of my pocket, placed it on vibrate and set it down on my desk. Then it hit me. This was the exact same room where, as a student, I typed out punch cards for my COBOL (Common Business Oriented Language Class) 33 years ago. The contrast between the data in those rubber banded stacks of cards versus the data contained in my 16 GB phone along with its power for global interaction caused me to pause for a moment. The big question I faced was “What will technology be like 33 years from now in 2047″?
The simple answer is that it will be smaller and much more powerful. The more complex question is how will the next dawn of technology with singularity and robotics combine to effect our day to day life? Peace of mind? Honest sense of joy?
Incredible problems with disease and new cost effective strengths in physical construction materials could be attained with our upcoming technological advances but the problem will be with who holds the power. What will be the options to turn if off or walk outside away from its presence?
Walking outside will be the key. Be it a garden, walk with your dog or watching the sunset. That is the area where joy has come to the human race for centuries and where it will come again in the future. Plan time to be outside so you can unplug and hope the day never arrives where we are forced to permanently attach or swallow a smaller more powerful permanent IT connection.
