Author: Merry Baruah, Assoc Prof, English, Cotton University, Guwahati, Assam, India
As I sit pondering upon the title, a layperson at that, I wonder what my stand should be! Like Hamlet’s oscillation of ‘to do or not to do’ – I am torn between the positive and the negative aspects of living a life in an age dominated by technology and technocracy.
In such an environment the concept of human society is seen to undergo numerous permutations and transformations in a manner that reflects the control and presence of technology in one’s life.
For instance, social interactions in our day-to-day lives have been now more or less subsumed within WhatsApp groups where one finds a cyber version of society; the Internet of Things is the significant component that makes a Google Meet go on smoothly or impeded due to ‘technical issues’ – we have come a long way from the simplicity of wholehearted laughter in a community space to the augmented reality of metaverse which creates simulations of real-life patterns.
In a way, more than humans we are cyborgs – with technology becoming an almost indispensable part of our lives, it has become more and more challenging to remain human.
Smart technology intended to make life and living smart and easy has made things more complicated, as it lures one with indeed the easy way out but not without its invisible trap! Internet of Things generally speaking implies an interconnected network of ‘things’ – physical by nature and inanimate which work with the help of external/internal devices propelled by embedded technology. So far so good.
This way of technology-embedded work, a whole culture that has grown out of it reflects how it has colonized human spaces in terms of thought and action. Today, I don’t need to think about what I want to text – my smartphone predicts my emotions, preempting me to redirect my thoughts according to the suggestions ‘smartly’ provided. It doesn’t stop here – the algorithms that are programmed into the devices ‘mine’ into the workings of the user’s mind, thereby not only subjecting one to constant surveillance, it also leading to a steady form of addictive behaviour in the user as the consumer.
The issue acquires complex dimensions when it comes to the Internet of Things and young people who are the most vulnerable consumers. The constant flow of information in the form of images, and texts from various sources that pop up depending on the IoT’s algorithmic survey of the user’s consuming pattern, very often has little truth value.
In an age of technological boom, truth appears to somehow be relegated to the margins – the growing tendency to gratify oneself either by being absorbed into the virtual world or by using it to satiate one’s consumption needs reflects how its users are motivated by the lure that it creates.
Students, for instance, take IoT as one of the most significant markers of their ‘social status’ – be it the gadget or his or their ability to navigate through cyberspace using the latest software, they seem to be invariably carried away by the overwhelming influence.
It has allowed them to stay informed of the world’s larger life – however, that seems to be a meagre compensation that they receive in exchange for the harmful effects that IoT have inflicted upon them. It has an earplug constantly plugged into one’s ears, and having an uninterrupted connection with the phone so that they don’t miss out on anything has been indeed the root cause that has made them miss out so much from whatever is happening around in the lived world.
People young and old glued to their screens in search of ‘trending’ information, if scrutinized deeply would perhaps require such information to better their lives. Sitting for hours together, incessant use of IoT, and consuming all information irrespective of quality and content has made life rather challenging in that new forms of physical uneasiness, mental problems, and social behavioural issues are seen to be on the rise.
The ability of technology to map our minds and prompt information conforming to the embedded pattern of our thoughts has made us more and more dependent on it – students, for instance, would rather sit Googling to acquire material and resources for their assignment instead of patiently turn the pages of a relevant text; common people are very often motivated by the (mis)guided information that becomes viral, internet trolling, hyped information on trivial issues for instance, as how does a popular actress dress herself up for that ‘airport look’ though hilarious have far-reaching implications.
Such information has been constantly in a trend that creates a collective behavioural pattern in a given society which becomes steadily instilled into their lived lives. This in turn, has the risk of a negative impact on critical thinking and rationality in the masses which are perhaps the most important traits that people need to inculcate not only to remain humans but also to become accountable and responsible citizens of society – refined political consciousness emerges with the ability to rationally think and act judiciously.
Such qualities are seen to be declining as more people are motivated to align with the ‘trending’ ideas floated by the IoT. IoT in itself is certainly not harmful – but the mind that gives it an ‘ideological’ direction with an intentional agenda and the target consumers who receive it, does create a threat to the larger human values.
As I deliberate upon these ideas from a layperson’s perspective – I am much intimidated by such a turn of events guided by IoT which in turn shall motivate capitalists to mint more money by producing consumables which are ‘trending’ and the naïve consumers who would go on relishing the internet till it takes a toll on their holistic wellbeing!
The sense of alienation that affected people with the coming of industrial culture several centuries ago is now magnified; as we become more and more addicted to IoT we become increasingly alienated and lonely; its Catch22 situation or maybe Hamlet’s dilemma once again in that we seek remedy in the IoT- trying to stay connected to the cyber society trapped and addicted to the group’s chats, internet browsing on sites that offer ‘life lessons’ or ‘tips’ to stay healthy and fit among others we forget about the world out there pulsating with life – we stay glued to the device learning life skills which are in reality, available to us outside, in the world of nature, in life at large – but if only we had time to look up and beyond the uninterrupted scrolling of screens and typing out texts!
