Monday, February 26, 2007

Blog 7:

As we have learned there are three relations to technologies (or at least this is what I think I picked up in class, I blame technology for scrambling any information I have acquired).
1)Embodiment - technological artifact becomes a material extension
2)Hermeneutic - technology is a means for interpretation, presents information for an idea that cannot be physically seen. (ex. understanding of how cold it is outside from reading the thermometer)
2) Alterity - treating the technology as am object itself, a quasi-other, anthropomorphism

The super computer in the star trek episode can be classified according to one of these theories/relations. We can see that the super computer was not an emodiment relation as no personel used it to extend their bodily functions. The machine had a part in hermeneutics, as it relayed information about the status of the ship and its surroundings to the crew. The best area for the super computer can be characterized by an alterity relation. The computer took on a free will, exhibiting human thought by using the intelligence and programming imparted from the humans themselves. Thus, the technology would fall under the formula:
Human --> SuperPC-(-World). However, this means the technology is a quasi-other. It is not a complete human form, giving some assurance it can be turned off. The presentation in star trek showed the super computer as a thinking, calculating, and life fearing individual. It did not want to be turned off for the choices it made. This unique situation has brought up the thought that perhaps the computer is the one using the technology now, as under embodiment relations. It could be formulated as following: (SuperPC-Starship)-->World. The intelligent computer is embodying the ship as its own body, a sort of complete, overall extension of itself in which to interact with the outside world.

On a completely different note, does technology have to have some sort of intelligence in order to conquer and control humans? We ourselves give technology a certain life that we depend on as seen here:Kinda hard to read but in the first caption the boy is saying "The poor young chap's IBook died! And his IPod! His IPod Nano! His shuffle!! His Blackberry!His gameboy! His web-browsing, instant-messaging, game-playing, musical phone!"
In the last caption the boy says, "We killed him."

1 comment:

Jerome Langguth said...

Thanks for the cartoon, Nick. Very amusing. I also like your analysis of M-5 in terms of Idhe's notion of alterity-relations. Your question about whether M-5 is in some respect a user of technology as well as a piece of technology is intriguing. We will explore this issue in more depth in connection with Isaac Asimov's Robot Visions.

2:21 PM