Blog Entry #12

Lesson Overview: The very last lesson of technology & world change. Today, I had the opportunity of witnessing four groups present their group website.

Interesting Ideas and Observations
Technology & The Armageddon - An interesting topic that really got me thinking. Indeed, many prophecies, namely the Mayans, have predicted that we are in the end times. The apocalypse is near. This group highlighted possible causes of the armageddon, for example the uncontrolled advancement of artificial intelligence and the rise of a pyramid hierarchy system whereby cyborgs dominate the world and humans rot at the bottom of the pyramid. Although a bit far-fetched, this is definitely a possible direction that we are heading towards, especially since artificial intelligence has been advancing by leaps and bounds. Smart computers such as Milo the virtual boy are testament to this fact.


Shababies & Medical Technologies - The future aspect that this group presented on medical technologies was quite intriguing. I especially like the idea of using mosquitoes to spread vaccines and how a mirror with augmented reality technology can scan the vital signs of your body for traces of possible diseases. A cancer patient could be able to monitor his situation in the comfort of his home through making use of highly advanced ICTs that can scan blood samples and send the information to doctors for analysis.

Technology & Art - Some fascinating ideas that i took away from this presentation was the fact that art could be very different in the future. With the use of just one stylus, artists can have access to a wide array of paintbrushes. An artist can better visualize his art pieces before actually drawing it by the use of computers with 3 dimensional view. It was also mentioned by Prof that the advance in art technology does not need to be at the expense of more traditional forms of producing art. The two are not mutually exclusive.

Women & Technology - Although this all-girl group presented a topic that would appeal more to girls, I found myself enjoying the presentation. An idea that especially drew my attention was the iphone app that could help girls keep track of their dates. Through the use of this app, a girl could store the characteristics and memories of her date for future reference. Also, why limit this app to girls? Guys should need to keep track of their dates too! With the current rise of extremely innovative iphone applications, I don't think that this technology would be too far away.

Key Takeaways
Since this is end of the entire TWC course, I thought that I would share some of the main ideas that I have learnt through the entire course.
1. Always be a change leader - During the session of global dominance, we learnt that companies, and even countries, that adopt a more open and optimistic perspective are the rising stars and dominate the market.
2. Don't rest on your laurels - I learnt that innovating is a continuous process. If Apple stopped at iphone 3, it would find that most competitors would quickly catch up by incorporating iphone features into their own phones. The trick is doing something else!
3. Assessing the impact of technology - When do we draw the line? In the very first lesson, we talked about technology making us fat and lazy people. By performing proper technological assessment, we should be able to manage the implications of the technology, hence reducing the likelihood of us going down this path! Likewise, other negative implications such as environmental degradation and ethical issues should be closely monitored.
4. Impossible is nothing - We should definitely adopt this mindset as we search for new alternative solutions for present problems. I have learnt from TWC to stop constraining my ideas to certain norms, but to always venture 'out-of-the-box' and look for something completely new and outrageous!

Personal Ratings (for the course): 9.5/10. I really enjoyed taking this course in semester 1. It has provided me with many new ideas and insights. I will definitely miss the intriguing and though-provoking discussions that we had during class. As Prof mentioned, the journey does not end here, and I hope to be able to apply the skills that I have learnt in the future, and be a change leader for society!