Within a short time, it appears that advancement in practically all areas of human endeavor has been on the fast track. In electronic technology alone it’s amazing how new and improved gadgets are released with amazing frequency. It’s quite a task to keep up with the latest technology.
All these advancements appear to testify to the ability of humanity to achieve almost anything we set our minds to accomplish. The human mind, it seems, has finally begun to fulfill its potential. The possibilities seem limitless. Yet, it might be worth our while to pause and ponder what could be the down side of such advancement.
One may assert that the availability of so many gadgets improves the lives of the masses. There can be no doubt that many of these tools help us to accomplish more tasks in less time. And we now have easier access to more information than the world has ever had before. But, at the same time, the question must be raised: how does making things “easier” actually affect the overall development of people in this advanced world?
My wife recently made a comment that started me thinking about this issue. She suggested that the calculator makes it easier for us to compute mathematical problems. But it also robs us of the discipline to actually know our math. She even pointed out how the now non-existent slide rule that engineers of the past used actually called for the use of the mind. These days, with calculators and computers, one just inputs the numbers and gets the results almost instantaneously. No thinking required.
And that’s the problem. While the gadgets testify to the heights of human intelligence, they reflect the intelligence of the few who made the gadgets. The rest of us only know how to operate the gadgets—push the buttons—but we really have no idea how it works. And we do not even care. The downside is that it can easily result in a reduction of knowledge in the rest of humanity. For example, in a recent conversation with friends, one shared how a grade five student lacked the skill of reading the regular analog clock—thanks to the over-dependence on digital watches.
Perhaps we’re too concerned about production and results. We focus on the development of tools and gadgets, of systems and methods. But we also seem to have neglected the development of persons. In the attempt to make tasks easier so that we realize our aspirations quicker, could we also have abandoned the pursuit of that which is truly important?
In all of this, the one most neglected aspect of our development is our character. We pursue advancement in our position in this world. And we use every tool available to get there. But in the process, we lose our very selves. “And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?” (Mark 8.36 NLT-SE)
—Keith Y. Jainga