I am a lover of science but I am also a person who searches out new experiences. I think people think I am strange when I can enjoy something completely random and get excited about it. There are people that are passionate about science but have no time for sport. That's ok but you shouldn't make a decision on anything in life until you experience it, at least once. When you are in a stadium with a huge crowd chanting for your home team it is not just the game that is moving you it is the pride in your team, school, town or country. The atmosphere is electric as they say. In science the possibilities are endless. I find people are scared of science because they don't understand it or they say they don't understand it. Science has it's own language which can be difficult to decipher. Generally there are too many words. Ultimately it doesn't matter, if you end up using the technological advances you don't really need to understand how it works so long as you have a use for it. I like to search for new discovers and watch how they will be developed in the future. Some disappear altogether. I am still waiting for the car that runs on compressed air.
The coming step in technology is artificial intelligence. It will make a huge impact on our lives in the near future. Machines will be able to do things man cannot. It is an interesting time. As humans I wonder though does communicating with a machine make us happy? When I catch up with my friends in person it's like a battery recharge. If I haven't seen them in a while I get cranky. I may talk to them on Facebook or social media but the experience is not the same as seeing them, giving them a hug or physically being in their presence.
Machines that can think for themselves. Machines that can evolve like humans. Machines that can learn. The research is fascinating. The reasoning for why we need these machines is also fascinating. One reason is that we are making machines that can think better than we can so there are less mistakes. But isn't this how we learn. Don't we make mistakes so that we will learn to do things better in the future. Then again as humans we have been to war many times and what have we learnt? I have no doubt that AI will be used in warfare. That's what really scares me.
Technology has it's place, it is definitely a part of our lives and will continue to be but it is only 1 part, it is an accepted part but for me I like to try and enjoy the simple things and try new experiences, meet new people, listen to their stories and not just live life but experience it..
Monday, April 27, 2015
Monday, April 20, 2015
Unexpected Change
There is a young man I have known for sometime that I have watched grow over the past 3 years. He is only 16 years old. He was studying here at a boarding school. His home country is so different to ours. It was a huge culture change for him to live here. His family were all overseas and his school mates became his brothers. Living here had it's difficulties for him but he was here so that he could have a better future. But things were cut short when his father took ill and he had to go home to help with the family business. Here is a young man who was playing rugby and mucking about with his mates one day and the next he has to grow up quickly to look after his family.
You might say poor boy or what about his education. Well he is now learning from life. He will have hard days but also good days. He has the opportunity to go back to study later on or do night classes. With the internet now he has the chance to study online. He is with his family that he loves and he has a good head on his shoulders. I am very proud of him. I wish him the best for the future.
Look beyond the unexpected change. Enjoy and embrace the new things that you will learn.
You might say poor boy or what about his education. Well he is now learning from life. He will have hard days but also good days. He has the opportunity to go back to study later on or do night classes. With the internet now he has the chance to study online. He is with his family that he loves and he has a good head on his shoulders. I am very proud of him. I wish him the best for the future.
Look beyond the unexpected change. Enjoy and embrace the new things that you will learn.
The fear of change.
There are many fears in this world. Fears of snakes/spiders and the dark to name a few, but what is the most universal fear among most humans. I would say it is 'Change.' Change of any sort is so feared that people will fight against it even if it is good for them.
Why is this? Is it the fear of the unknown or have we been programmed from very young to have set rules that we must follow.
The world is changing quickly. Technology is changing so quickly it is hard to keep up. New words have been created like 'Exponential organisations'. We now have organisations like Uber, Alibaba, Airbnb but the general populations don't know how they work. They can't fathom that these new business can make billions of dollars in only a few short years. Businesses that have been successful for years can not understand why or how business is changing and they can't keep up. Look at Kodak once one of the most successful companies in the world and now it barely exists. If they had looked ahead and embraced change maybe they would still be a leader today.
Traditionally we have been taught that businesses should be a top down structure with bosses, managers, assistant managers. But if you look at the structures of these new exponential organisations you will see a much more horizontal structure. When we were taught about market share we looked at physical boundaries. Exponential organisations have exponential market share. Basically the sky's the limit. This in it self is hard to fathom, it's hard to understand because we can't measure it. Who is your target market? Marketing 101. Well now it has the potential to be everyone. This does not however make everyone feel comfortable. We like to live in our own space. Villages use to work together to bring in the harvest, families use to work together to run a family business now we have the tools to do a lot of things ourselves.
A lot of people say fear is in the mind. Worry will make us ill. It would be disrespectful to tell people their fear is not real, to them it is. But you have to remember that we are all in the same boat. Change is going to happen and we will see amazing achievements by some very smart people but that does not make us any less important. Everyday day there is something new that will change the world, I say bring it on. I want to see how we can change the world in my lifetime. I'm along for the ride.
Why is this? Is it the fear of the unknown or have we been programmed from very young to have set rules that we must follow.
The world is changing quickly. Technology is changing so quickly it is hard to keep up. New words have been created like 'Exponential organisations'. We now have organisations like Uber, Alibaba, Airbnb but the general populations don't know how they work. They can't fathom that these new business can make billions of dollars in only a few short years. Businesses that have been successful for years can not understand why or how business is changing and they can't keep up. Look at Kodak once one of the most successful companies in the world and now it barely exists. If they had looked ahead and embraced change maybe they would still be a leader today.
Traditionally we have been taught that businesses should be a top down structure with bosses, managers, assistant managers. But if you look at the structures of these new exponential organisations you will see a much more horizontal structure. When we were taught about market share we looked at physical boundaries. Exponential organisations have exponential market share. Basically the sky's the limit. This in it self is hard to fathom, it's hard to understand because we can't measure it. Who is your target market? Marketing 101. Well now it has the potential to be everyone. This does not however make everyone feel comfortable. We like to live in our own space. Villages use to work together to bring in the harvest, families use to work together to run a family business now we have the tools to do a lot of things ourselves.
A lot of people say fear is in the mind. Worry will make us ill. It would be disrespectful to tell people their fear is not real, to them it is. But you have to remember that we are all in the same boat. Change is going to happen and we will see amazing achievements by some very smart people but that does not make us any less important. Everyday day there is something new that will change the world, I say bring it on. I want to see how we can change the world in my lifetime. I'm along for the ride.
How the word Smart has challenged our concept of the word Change.
Change, why are we so scared of it? In general people like to do things that they know and are comfortable with. It makes them feel safe. It is interesting to see that in the last decade change has sped up with the introduction of smartphones, touch screens, smart TV's etc. Is it the word SMART that is making people accept change much faster that before? If we have the latest technology does it make us think we are smarter therefore more superior? It's an interesting concept.
The perceptions of oneself. I may not be so good at school but with this app I can tell the name of the brightest star in the sky by facing my iPad toward it. I may not be able to write or spell but I have a program that can do that for me by speaking into my device. So should we leave it up to just a few people to think for us? Write programs that we can use to make our lives easier. Why do we now have less time on our hands? Before it was normal to sit down with the family at dinner time and talk about our day. Now everyone is too busy. A good meal that took time and love is replaced with a quick meal. Funnily my son does not like to eat out. He always prefers home cooking.
In general we do not like change but we enjoy communication. People want to feel loved and to be a part of a conversation. Social media puts you in contact with the world. You can talk to someone on the other side of the planet and get an instant reply. Your messages and pictures are liked which gives you a good feeling. We all endeavour to feel good about ourselves.
So personally I want to accept change but also retain the basics. Going for a walk, clearing my mind, being a good friend, giving a nice hug, enjoying family time, being social, helping others and looking up and being amazed at what I see.
The perceptions of oneself. I may not be so good at school but with this app I can tell the name of the brightest star in the sky by facing my iPad toward it. I may not be able to write or spell but I have a program that can do that for me by speaking into my device. So should we leave it up to just a few people to think for us? Write programs that we can use to make our lives easier. Why do we now have less time on our hands? Before it was normal to sit down with the family at dinner time and talk about our day. Now everyone is too busy. A good meal that took time and love is replaced with a quick meal. Funnily my son does not like to eat out. He always prefers home cooking.
In general we do not like change but we enjoy communication. People want to feel loved and to be a part of a conversation. Social media puts you in contact with the world. You can talk to someone on the other side of the planet and get an instant reply. Your messages and pictures are liked which gives you a good feeling. We all endeavour to feel good about ourselves.
So personally I want to accept change but also retain the basics. Going for a walk, clearing my mind, being a good friend, giving a nice hug, enjoying family time, being social, helping others and looking up and being amazed at what I see.
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