Hari Seldon a psychohistorian and mathematics professor predicted the future by studying the behavioral patterns of living beings. He analysed the data in short and his analysis proved beneficial for the foundation's birth and activities in helping the living race sustain.
Skynet on the other hand a self-aware AI system built to aid humans, overpowered them and caused a lot of trouble.
Of course this is all science fiction in popular culture. But if you read In the plex (a book about google) this will feel like a really possible future. Considering google is all about data, studying human behavior over the internet and recognizing patterns, I am pretty sure our future is no less than interesting. Of course I am hoping with all the great possibilities it will be better and not skynet-ish. Though the possibility itself excites me. (HUGE Judgement Day fan alert!)
With me spending so much time on the net, I am sure the engineers at google will have an algorithm ready to serve self obsessed people like me, about my behavioral pattern :P And I like that possibility even though its hugely prying. But if I gave approval may be they could do it. And that is google's biggest existential crisis. A company run by über geeks, always striving to follow the 'don't be evil' motto.
But all that apart it was a relief to know that the place is run by people whose moral values are like those of montessori kids, who believe in asking questions and working hard to build complex systems to make information relevant, reachable and useful. The sheer technological (mathematical) stuff going on at google is awe inspiring. Some of the ideas and projects going on there make science fiction seem real. And if I am to naively believe that the geeks running the company stick to their value sets, it will be a wonderful future.
A very interesting read. Technology, geekism and management wise.
Makes me like google, apart from the simple reason, that they have made life easier on many fronts.
It will not amaze me if google gets hard wired in my system in coming years. Specially, since I have stopped struggling against the wave of the digital revolution and embraced it quite happily.
~nightflier
P.S. Story behind the book - The book was recommended to me almost 2-3 months back. But it's pretty expensive which would have totally affected my monthly book budget. So I joined Tender Leaves, my new library! :D And voila, grabbed it pronto! Had to finish it asap as the librarian himself wanted to read it after me!
Skynet on the other hand a self-aware AI system built to aid humans, overpowered them and caused a lot of trouble.
With me spending so much time on the net, I am sure the engineers at google will have an algorithm ready to serve self obsessed people like me, about my behavioral pattern :P And I like that possibility even though its hugely prying. But if I gave approval may be they could do it. And that is google's biggest existential crisis. A company run by über geeks, always striving to follow the 'don't be evil' motto.
But all that apart it was a relief to know that the place is run by people whose moral values are like those of montessori kids, who believe in asking questions and working hard to build complex systems to make information relevant, reachable and useful. The sheer technological (mathematical) stuff going on at google is awe inspiring. Some of the ideas and projects going on there make science fiction seem real. And if I am to naively believe that the geeks running the company stick to their value sets, it will be a wonderful future.
A very interesting read. Technology, geekism and management wise.
Makes me like google, apart from the simple reason, that they have made life easier on many fronts.
It will not amaze me if google gets hard wired in my system in coming years. Specially, since I have stopped struggling against the wave of the digital revolution and embraced it quite happily.
~nightflier
P.S. Story behind the book - The book was recommended to me almost 2-3 months back. But it's pretty expensive which would have totally affected my monthly book budget. So I joined Tender Leaves, my new library! :D And voila, grabbed it pronto! Had to finish it asap as the librarian himself wanted to read it after me!
it's a pity I don't have a good library close by. I mean I do, but I think I got used to the idea of 'owning books' I don't know how to cure it. I got 5 new books in Sept and I think my budget is cringing in horror. But I like this one! I am going to check this out. I feel very 1984 about the present though. We are the big brother (read an article which said that) :)
ReplyDeleteI think google moved out of 'Do No Evil' way back, around the time they bought Youtube/Orkut, and starting suing Apple/Microsoft...Its still a good company, but not as clean as it was in simple search days....
ReplyDeleteUpasna : :) its an interesting take on us but debatable. My book budget got affected by my education loan (specially for expensive books :() so the library. And have to admit its weirdly thrilling :D
ReplyDeleteCalvin : Yes. Agree. But reading the book realized that how single tracked their minds are, wrt technology and innovation. That still makes me like them and hope for better stuff.
As much as I love and am awed by technology, geeki-ness and innovation, I sometimes feel that maybe too much of technology hinders the innovation. I mean just the fact that google search has made life SO SIMPLE.. the "so simple" fact *sometimes* bothers me. Gone are the days when one tried, tested, failed and then found out the best way to do things. Now, everything is available online! which in itself is awesome and yet somehow makes us lazy! Don't get me wrong, I would jump at being offered to work at google and be a part of their amazing technology, most of which they do not even make public, but whether all this is towards a better future or not, I still have my doubts ;-)
ReplyDeleteps: will try and get hold of the book. I love reading about such things!
neha : I agree but with technology there is no other option but to move forward. I still like the smell of ink pens and the feel of hand written letters, but at the same time I cant tell you how simpler life has become because of google. (getting a master's degree without it would have been such a pain :P)
ReplyDeletehaha..yes! MS without google seems almost impossible! :D
ReplyDeletePS: I bought the kindle version of the book yesterday :) will start reading it in a day or two.
Interesting post and even interesting conversations.. See I would have normally added more opinions on the whole search engine and privacy stuff but these days my mind is so clouded with poop, burp and diapers thats its a bit hard to come up with meaningful things to say.
ReplyDeleteDont worry though, I will soon get there, to my normal self.
:D I know..
ReplyDeletecool btw..its an interesting read!
ketaki : :D those things have a meaning of their own! all this search engine and stuff is moh-maya ;)
ReplyDeleteAnd yup you will get there as always :)