Hypothetical technology you couldn't adjust to.

[Shoggoth2588]

I never quite got that argument. It seems to stem from some sort of superstitious thinking about soul or something. You are the particles that make you up and the chemical messages that are conducted via nerve cells.
If an exact replica of you is made, that IS you by definition. Every molecule of your body is changed pretty often anyway so...
True, your stream of consciousness will seize and then resume somewhere else, but so does it when you sleep!

...I never really thought about it like that...I guess I never considered the links between consciousness, sleep and, teleportation. It's nothing I have to worry about this lifetime but looking at it that way doesn't make it seem as horrifying.

 

[Tiger Sora]

Internet in your brain. Sounds great but I will never get it until consumption driven capitalism is well and truly dead.
I'm not a raving left winger, but even the IDEA that a corporation could advertise IN MY BRAIN makes me want to vomit.
Watch the second episode of "Black Mirror" or read "Feed" if you disagree, not saying it'll sway you against brain computers, but you'll at least see what I'm so scared of.

Ohh god ya that. I'll never get an implant of some electronic device to which they could track me or stuff like that.

 

[Idlemessiah]

You won't ever get me to use e-books so you don't even need hypothetical technology for something i won't ever adjust to. I like my reading material in paper, thankyouverymuch.

I was trying to think of some tech that I would reject, and you hit right on it. I'm not a big reader (I just don't have time) but I LOVE books.

Books as in text books and reference material I'd be fine with having digitised. Having a macro organised library in your pocket would be awesome.

However novels, I just cannot read fiction on a pc screen. Just isn't right. You need to be able to feel a good book, the weight, turning the pages. Aged books are even better. You can tell a good book by how creased the cover is and how the corners of the pages are bent from multiple page turns. I made a promise to myself a couple of years ago, that when I get a big enough place, I'm going to collect enough books to make a library.

Other than e-books I can't see any plausable tech that I wouldn't accept.

 

[manic_depressive13]

The thing that pisses me off about technology, or rather generations born into technology, is that they take everything for granted. Ever watched the movie Cast Away? He had to struggle to survive and then is rescued to discover that everything he had to work so hard to create or obtain was available at the click of a button. I imagine it's kind of demoralising going from a time when having a photograph taken was a big deal, to a time where people post pictures of what they had for dinner.

 

[Cazza]

I will skip the small stuff. To big scifi stuff.

Teleportation. I would never use that. I guess I could live with it if it were a portal. Otherwise I'm not getting split up and remade somewhere else. In my mind I would be dead and a clone has taken my place.

Holodeck. I watched inception. I would probably program it to always look fake a low graphics setting. I won't want to get obsessed with fake realitys. I know video games kind of do it but not on at level.

Mind uploaded in a computer or computer parts added into my brain. I don't care if it gives me perfect memor, 1000% better vision,earring,smell etc. Modifying the brain is going to far.

 

[Singularly Datarific]

Flying Cars.
Not that I couldn't adjust to flying everywhere, just that I can barely trust the general public with the two axes of motion regular cars give. Adding another four and another dimension means you will have a fifty-car TALL pileup simply because someone above you had an engine failure at a stoplight.

 

[Don Savik]

Flying Cars.
Not that I couldn't adjust to flying everywhere, just that I can barely trust the general public with the two axes of motion regular cars give. Adding another four and another dimension means you will have a fifty-car TALL pileup simply because someone above you had an engine failure at a stoplight.

Thats why they don't have flying cars, because people are idiot drivers as it is, now imagine air traffic control trying to sort out a bunch of idiot soccer moms flying around in the air.

But as for your grandfather OT, he is a silly old man. He wont adapt to modern society.....why? What are the negatives to learning how to use a computer? He isn't going to be trolling on 4chan or anything, worst case scenario he gets hacked. If you are so set in your ways that you would cover your eyes, stick your fingers in your ears and go LALALALALALLALALALALALALALAL to modern technology, then your an idiot. All the old people like that will die out, and everyone will still be using computers.

 

[The Thinker]

Internet in your brain. Sounds great but I will never get it until consumption driven capitalism is well and truly dead.
I'm not a raving left winger, but even the IDEA that a corporation could advertise IN MY BRAIN makes me want to vomit.
Watch the second episode of "Black Mirror" or read "Feed" if you disagree, not saying it'll sway you against brain computers, but you'll at least see what I'm so scared of.

Silly. The Brainwave Nexus will technically be putting advertising in your stovepipe hat you use to link up.

If we ever get to the point where we have computer chips inserted into our skin, tracking our every location, every movement, every beat of our heart, I would NOT be able to adapt. If it was not as safe, I could cared less. Partly because I'm Christian, but mostly because I don't want EVERYONE knowing where I am.

Why would being Christian matter?

 

[Nouw]

E-books. I will never conform to reading them because I prefer physical copies over digital ones. I just like having a copy I can see on my shelf!

 

[Canadamus Prime]

That world you describe sounds absolutely terrifying to me. I certainly couldn't handle that, I mean I don't even like the idea of Facebook and Twitter.

 

[uzo]

That is pretty much why we have the Geneva and Hague Conventions. We don't like expanding bullets creating huge entry/exit wounds? Outlawed them. We don't like napalm and flamethrowers torching humans? Outlawed as well. Why not just outlaw guided bullets?

I'm curious about what will happen if/when we encounter alien races and 'indulge' in a little armed conflict.

Ethically, would we argue that you're not allowed to blast alien scum with guided, soft-headed bullets? Hell, they're not even from our solar system ... why should we apply our morality to a species that intends to eradicate not only us but our entire ecosystem (ie Americans ... just j/k).

I mean, soft headed bullets are illegal in warfare I believe ... but don't police forces across the world use them because they're more likely to embed in the target rather than pass through and ricochet, endangering bystanders?

EDIT: Forget to address thread issue. I can't think of technology I couldn't/wouldn't adjust to. Mind you, I remember going to a Faraday Lecture in London in about 1994 and they were talking about mobile digital communications. All I could think was "like hell ... why the hell would I want to be contact all the time??" .. and for that matter, I still think that. I have a mobile, sure, but I never answer it. My friends know better than to call me. Text instead.

 

[darkstarangel]

I know it sounds unoriginal but time travel that can overcome the grandfather paradox will be a headache to keep track of the alternate timelines, especially if you go nuts changing shit. I know you can always undo it by going back to the time the whole mess started & stop yourself from doing it or give yourself pointers on what mistakes to avoid but you still have to go through the whole mess in the first place.

Also, neural internet connection like in ghost in the shell. Besides all the dickheads programming viruses & malware to ruin your day, or life, for shits & giggles, You have adverts & pop ups that just wont piss off. Or worse, online surveys constantly hassling you. And we thought these Indian telemarketers were bad.

 

[cerealnmuffin]

I can adjust, but I'm slow going to seeing the obsession people have with tablet PCs and smart phones. I understand them, but I am not really excited to have a smart phone and I couldn't care less about iphones. I despise using the tiny keyboards or having to peck out the letters as it reminds me how much faster I could type with a standard keyboard.

Also when I went to the dentist, they gave me an iPad to mess around with. I was bored of it within a couple minutes. Unlike the OP's grandfather, I understand why people like them but I am extremely indifferent.

Now as for something that I won't be able to adjust to well erm hard to say, maybe if in order to use a teleporter I had to sit through 30 min of commercials or the holodeck is interrupted by frequent commercial breaks. I quit watching tv because I despise in your face advertising.

 

[The Funslinger]

Those guidance system bullets that came up recently.

Fuck. That. Shit.

War casualties will skyrocket.

That is pretty much why we have the Geneva and Hague Conventions. We don't like expanding bullets creating huge entry/exit wounds? Outlawed them. We don't like napalm and flamethrowers torching humans? Outlawed as well. Why not just outlaw guided bullets?

Because they get a raging semi over the thought of 'Merican troops being able to "aim like super soldiers". They're somewhat blind to the part where by one means or the next, everyone else acquires them. I imagine once that happens, they'll go "waaaah, we're not the only ones mowing people down like psychopaths anymore!" and put it on Geneva. But that's going to take a while...

 

[Moonlight Butterfly]

I would be extremely wary of deus ex style prosthetics just because of how unreliable technology can be I don't think I could arbitrarily cut off my arm just to get fake ones.
That seems kind of creepy to me, but I wouldn't begrudge anyone who had lost a limb in an accident.

 

[Cowabungaa]

At first I thought I was cool with everything.

But then I remembered e-books. Fuck e-books, I can't rustle through the pages on an e-book, e-books don't have that awesome new-book-smell, they don't show signs of use, they have no soul.

But that's minor, I'm cool with the rest.

This whole 0 risk UAV thing that's sweeping the military is making me sick, back in my day at least there was a pilot in the high altitude bomber

Because risking as few lives as possible and reducing collateral damage is awful.

 

[Patathatapon]

If we ever get to the point where we have computer chips inserted into our skin, tracking our every location, every movement, every beat of our heart, I would NOT be able to adapt. If it was not as safe, I could cared less. Partly because I'm Christian, but mostly because I don't want EVERYONE knowing where I am.

Why would being Christian matter?

I was told about the rapture and how we would have the choice to accept "the mark of the beast" or get tortured. In this day in age It would be safe to guess it would be a chip implanted into your arm my mom said. If you take the mark, you stay on earth, practically the new hell. If you prefer to be tortured to death and be used as an example, then you can get into heaven by the skin of your teeth.

This is only what I was told, so don't get pissed at me for lack of information, or incorrect information.

 

[Gerishnakov]

I was told about the rapture and how we would have the choice to accept "the mark of the beast" or get tortured. In this day in age It would be safe to guess it would be a chip implanted into your arm my mom said. If you take the mark, you stay on earth, practically the new hell. If you prefer to be tortured to death and be used as an example, then you can get into heaven by the skin of your teeth.

This is only what I was told, so don't get pissed at me for lack of information, or incorrect information.

Never believe what you are told, only believe what you discover for yourself.

Also, check this shit out (everyone) http://www.futuretimeline.net/

There's some stuff on there I think I'd have trouble adapting to, if only just the ever increasing complexity of computers.

 

[Ironman126]

I'm curious about what will happen if/when we encounter alien races and 'indulge' in a little armed conflict.

Ethically, would we argue that you're not allowed to blast alien scum with guided, soft-headed bullets? Hell, they're not even from our solar system ... why should we apply our morality to a species that intends to eradicate not only us but our entire ecosystem (ie Americans ... just j/k).

I mean, soft headed bullets are illegal in warfare I believe ... but don't police forces across the world use them because they're more likely to embed in the target rather than pass through and ricochet, endangering bystanders?/quote]

Warfare yes, but police are not military, at least not in the US and Europe. But that's a matter of stopping power. At the ranges that police engage threats at, soft point, hollow point, or FMJ, chances are the bullet will go through the target, we humans are pretty soft and squishy like that and bullets are fast and small. The reason FMJ rounds are used by militaries comes down to the fact they cause less atrocious wounding. And a lot of military grade weapons will only chamber FMJ rounds, that is to say, they can chamber other rounds, but not without the potential for malfunctions. The production line are also producing military grade ammo that is FMJ. Why retool just for added stopping power? Especially when FMJ rounds are more effective against armor (depending on the caliber, anyway. 9mm Parabellum, regardless of the jacketing, is nearly useless against most types of body armor, 7.62 NATO on the other hand...).

As for the ethics, I'd like to quote/paraphrase Dr. Mordin Solus (or Bioware, as they wrote the character): "Never... [used them on] species with members capable of calculus." I think the US military would agree with me, if only because retooling weapons and production facilities would be a major pain in the ass.

 

[matts]

I have to disagree with you there. Some of us care about what is actually true/real. Though I highly sympathize with your argument I could never be enthusiastic about being completely detached from reality. To me what is real has an intrinsic value. Also, even if we were in the matrix there would still be an objective reality out there.

I have to agree with Korenith on this one. I actually spent a ridiculous amount of time thinking about this a few months back. Not with respect to VR but with respect to dreams. Think about it they usually feel real when you are in them, so how do you know if this reality is real or not? I eventually decided that if I had no way of figuring out which is which I would stop caring and just live as best a I could in whatever world/dreamworld I was in. I would hold much the same view for VR technology. If I can't tell then I don't care.

Also in the matrix movie I would have no problem with machines using me as a battery. I would have a problem with them killing the free human race, but not with the battery/VR idea itself. I mean if the real world sucks so much why would I want to leave my better virtual world? It isn't like leaving would serve a useful purpose.

In a more realistic scenario where I know which is which I would make sure to spend time in the real world, so I don't forget about it. Also because if I know it is real I would care about it more. That being said I would still use VR, and if conciousness uploading was developed would probably go for it (eventually) as it seems cool

Also I wouldn't likely chop of parts to replace them with cybernetics, but will get cool implants when we eventually make them, and if I got into an accident I would certainly get the cybernetic replacement.

Oh I didn't question the fact that there is probably ultimately no way to know for sure if this is the "real" reality and not just a dream or VR. I simply questioned whether or not that was a useful philosophical assumption/axiom. That is to say, one of the fundamental assumptions of my philosophy is that what my senses tell me is an accurate representation of the real world at least most of the time. I just don't think that you will get anywhere philosophically if you do not allow for that first assumption.

p.s. I would love to gets me some cybernetic parts, heck why not an entirely new body O.O,

"I ask thou to CHECK EM for the fun has been DOUBLED"