Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Inevitable

As this century progresses, I see various vestiges of the last one drop away every day.  More and more electric devices replace every interaction.   I'm not sure it's all gloom and doom, but I do worry about how human interaction is diminishing.  The irony, of course, is that as we get more connected, we actually don't.
If my experience today is any indication of this brave new world, then I've seen the future a bit more and possibly a bit clearer.
I like t read a newspaper in the morning.  I could go online, but I actually like to hold it in my hands, fold it, do the crossword with a pen, look at the sports page and letters  to the editor.  In my town it's even more difficult to get a newspaper.  It's down to 3 days a week for home delivery, and the number of boxes on the street is dwindling.  When you do find one, pray that it works or that there is even one of the few they put inside daily left.
I decided I'm going down with that ship.  I'm going to put the quarters in the slot for as long as it's possible.

I use a debit card on occasion, but I would never buy a cup of coffee or anything for that matter less that $20. with it.  I don't like to leave paper trails, and cash is faster.  But cash is fast becoming a ting of the past for many folks.  I see them swipe a card for everything from a candy bar to a latte.
In the education world I inhabit, the love of data and the use of computers for everything from curriculum to grading is changing the teaching profession.
I fear what is about to happen to human interaction.
Today I went through a brief training session to learn a new online assessment program.  We will soon point and click in neatly organized rubrics for an evaluation that ends up being 1,2,3, or 4.  I actually asked about the comments that could be made.  Answer: 300 characters.  That's about twice the size of a Tweet.
I may not like all this, but I know that it is all inevitable.  No going back.  In about 100 years, it'll be interesting to read what someone says about the latest technology and what it holds for the future.

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