Commentsby
Bob Brandon....
Every
Breath You Take...
Welcome
to the digital age. A truly remarkable time when all privacy is surrendered,
and all civility is abandoned. The digital age will completely change
your life, and that of your children.
MIT's
Laboratory for Computing Science has been working the bugs out of a revolutionary
new system called Oxygen.
It's a great name for a truly ambitious application of technology to everyday
life.
In
the very near future, our computers will disappear. They'll still
be working for us, but we won't generally see them. They'll be built
into everything from refrigerators to sports bras. These new devices
have the potential to fuel an incredible boost in productivity.
Imagine being able to have your personal computer retrieve a snippet of
a conversation you had a few months ago, or maybe you'd like to view a
document in an associate's office on another continent?
This
new system will be able to do that, and so much more. The key is
how much of yourself and your privacy you're willing to give up.
If you become part of the Oxygen network, you'll no longer be able to hide
out at the neighborhood bar, or anywhere else in the world for that matter.
The
system will always be able to find you, and connect you with whomever is
tracking you down. The flipside is, your digital butler will facilitate
instant communication with others on the network, with video, and even
more innovative features still being invented. It will communicate with
countless appliances, from the coffee maker to the air conditioner, all
fully addressable from anywhere in the world you go. You'll be able to
talk to your computer, and it will respond. The network will be all
around you, informing, entertaining, communicating, and educating.
So
what's the downside? Anyone remember Big Brother? No not the
incredibly borning, and pretentious primetime
snorefest...I'm referring to George Orwell's forboding view of the
future. Using this new all-encompassing system will mean the
end of any privacy or secrets you currently enjoy.
That
may be acceptable considering the rewards...but consider as we surrender
more and more of ourselves to the network, it gradually will control us.
It wll handle all the mundane tasks like banking and remembering your mother-in-law's
birthday. As we become more comfortable with relinquishing our personal
data, we leave ourselves open to the kind of manipulation described in
1984.
It's
already happening. Is there a single store at your local mall where
you can go without being on camera? Is there a major street that
isn't monitored in some darkened control room downtown? When you
visit the ATM, or even the Quicky Mart, we're constantly under surveillance.
The
roadbed is prepared...soon the digital bulldozers will be here to widen
the information highway. The extra capacity is needed to keep track
of all the snackfoods and over the counter medications you buy, or which
websites you visit, or if you're overdrawn on your checking account, or
how many miles you drive, how fast you go, or even if you have your underwear
off for an extended period of time.
All
these things are happening right now. Oxygen is just going to help
ease the transition from freedom to digital chattel. By invisibly
imbedding digital sensors and controllers in everything we use, we're being
invaded and don't even know it.
The
incredible thinkers behind this project would probably take offense at
these allegations, but they know the danger is real. What would happen
if once everyone is wired into the system, a terrorist group highjacks
the network, and suddenly our airplanes can't fly straight, stock trading
comes to a halt, bank accounts are erased, and there's not a thing you
could do about it?
It's
the digital age, a truly remarkable time of truly remarkable danger. |
