Post by ALLiTiZ on May 28, 2018 19:02:27 GMT
“Ok Google”
Christmas 2017 the gift that everyone seemed to get was “Alexa” less referred to as Amazon Echo or its equal The Google Dot. Whether you got one for Christmas or not, you've probably seen and still see more of these “smart assistants” as the days pass. Before smart assistants, it was tablets, before that it was smartphones. They're all basically the same thing but I’ve got a bone to pick with Alexa - well actually my story comes from a Google Dot so sorry Alexa, “Okay Google”
Now in my family when a question presents itself we don’t know we do usually wind up going to Google for the answer. My 5 year old daughter is already fully aware of this and also knows what Wikipedia is. She's so curious that at least once a week I’m stumped with the correct answer to give her so she will say “Ask your phone” and most of time I do. The newest thing I’ve been explaining to her is what research is. She’s not reading completely yet and I’m grateful she loves being read to. So other than her mother and father she knows information is learned from a computer.
These days where and how we get our information most likely is coming from our “smart” tools. Even if you reading a physical newspaper that information was compiled using “smart” tools. Imagine for a second Google was able to change all their information (they can) dates, times, peoples names anything. When people resumed asking their phone for answers they most likely would just quote this new false information. Some people might question the information coming from “hacked” Google and know it’s wrong information, they might even be able to prove it. The fact of the matter is we trust the information coming from our smart tech too much. Even if the information always remained true, I think we still rely on these tools too much.
I went to pick up my daughter from her grandmother's after a date night with my wife. Her grandparents just got a Google Dot and when we came in she was in the living room saying “Ok google! tell us a joke! Ok Google! What colors are in the rainbow? Ok Google tell us joke” she repeated the request for the third time at least. I chime in and say “Ok Google. Are you spying on us?” The company's long privacy policy gets recited, my daughter unimpressed by my uneffective joke says Ok Google! tell us joke!” What's a bunny rabbit's favorite music? … Hip-Hop. Decent joke Google, but I’ve told her that one before.
Nothing about the situation bothered me at all until the next day when I had this thought. These smart assistants are dangerous. “Alexa” do this “Ok Google. Do that” “Hey Alexa what's this?” “Ok Google what's that?” Just yesterday you had to at least reach in your pocket for your phone or get to a computer for information than mostly proceed to read or watch the information you seek. Maybe you buy a book on the subject for more thorough information. I know there’s not much difference here, but these “assistants” might be a step in the wrong direction. Knowledge is so import to the human psyche but how we take in this information is also very important. I don't want my daughter to grow up only asking these smart assistants for all the answers she’s curious about. I want her to know what a contradiction is, what cognitive dissonance is, what intuition is. As technology advances faster than we do, we’ll most likely trust future tech even more. We must listen to our intuition, then study the information we seek.
Some things are also just known, but if we keep on asking our computers for all the answers maybe these things that are internally and universally known might fade.
“Ok Google” Unplug yourself for a little while. Oh, what’s that? You can’t unplug yourself that’s ok, I go this one.