What We Need And Want

 What We Need And Want

Today, we are used to the comforts of modern life. It is contemporary to us. In the past, it would have been magic. If we put ourselves in the past, it is not modern. It is ancient history. A working modern device will be updated sooner rather than later. It will happen sooner because another device will replace it before it becomes unusable.

We face our lives with contemporary knowledge. Plugging a device into electricity is as simple as opening a door. The idea of working with electricity in the past was undoubtedly mysterious and only possible for the highly skilled. When you think about how many parts go into just a regular automobile, it is doubtful that one person could make a car alone. Something as simple as a pencil would be a challenge for one person to make. Without modern technologies, even making something like a hamburger or a sandwich would take you months to prepare to make the final product.

When you get right down to it, you can appreciate modern conveniences. When the Internet was new, it was mysterious and strange. No one can predict how crucial it will become to modern life. Also, no one can predict all the different Internet applications. Surely, in the future, the newer technologies that will come out will still have that air of mystery, with young people gravitating towards the newer technologies and older people clinging to the ones that are comfortable for them.

Large language models, also known as artificial intelligence (AI), are currently in their infancy. Many people are trying to figure out what applications are useful. However, as history has shown us, with the rise of the Internet, no one can predict how ubiquitous the Internet will be for the masses. The one thing that can be predicted is that AI will change our current paradigm and most likely make life more efficient.

That does not mean it will improve life. Has the Internet really improved humanity? What about smartphones? What about social media and social networks? There are supporters and naysayers for all these. The same is true of AI.

You live in interesting times, and you truly do. It would be amazing to see what AI will be like in five years and how it will affect and interact with our lives. Add a few more zeros to that five, and none of us can predict the future of artificial intelligence. But it is interesting to speculate.

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