For our assignment this week, we watched a video of Kevin Kelly talking about the Web. In his talk, The Next 5000 Days of the Web, he spoke about how far we've come and where we're going in relation to the internet. Who knew 10 years ago how much we'd be using it? But we take it for granted every day. As Mr. Kelly said, "It's amazing and we're not amazed."
His talk was done way back in 2007 (please note hyperbole), when the web was a mere 5000 days old. Today, when it's a little more than 6700 days old, most all the things he mentioned in his speech have come to pass.
When discussing the next 5000 days, he predicts the web will be smarter, able to anticipate our needs before we tell it and will be more personalized. Well, browsers save preferences and suggest sites based on our profiles, so those predictions have come to pass already.
He also mentions the web becoming more ubiquitous, and every day I see this in action. People unable to set their phones down for a minute, walking and texting, constantly checking their email. There's even a debate going on now about classifying Internet Addiction Disorder (IAD) as a diagnosed mental illness.
He also speaks of more ways to access the internet in the future, like phones, etc. He mentions that every device will become a "window" or a "portal" into this "machine" that is the web. I heard on the radio the other morning that they've actually come out with a watch that can access the web. You can find Sony's version here.
Some of the statistics he gave concerning the power of the web are mind-boggling. He compares the web to a brain, how every 2 years it doubles in size, and in 2040 it will exceed human processing power. I, for one, am untrusting of a computer that thinks and acts by itself. If April 21st, 2011 hadn't already passed, I might be hunkering down in a bunker somewhere to try and survive Skynet's attack on humanity.
As it is, I plan on continuing to guard my personal information very carefully, despite the grand way Mr. Kelly was talking about the future of the web and the glories of data share.
I do tend to feel the same way you do when you said you will continue to guard your safety. I did not appreciate it when Mr. Kelly said we would all have to become transparent. I do not like that feeling at all. I am more inclined to withdraw and not be a part of the machine he talked about. It is strange how today youth (including my own children) cannot stop texting for even a minute. I went to a restaurant with friends from out of state. They were using there phones at the dinner table and our conversation was...less than I was hoping for. This machine is taking over so many of us.
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Trina
I like the colors of your background on your blog.
I am so glad I'm not the only one who thought "OMG-Skynet!!!" While we watched that video. It's a little scary, but we all do it. Sometimes I think we are becoming technological lemmings. Thank you for the post (and for not making me feel as crazy)
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