Week 1

First lesson in school after 2 years of slavery..

When my brain was warming up, I was bombarded by 2 words: "Shift happens". As the saying goes, the only thing constant is change. What struck me most as i was watching the video was how rapid our lives were evolving because of technology. Given the exponential advancement in technology and our ever increasing reliance on it, it is little wonder how fast our lives are changing.

The second key takeaway is the question posed by Yati.

'Why you white men have so much cargo and we new guineas have so little?'

This question can not only refer to 'cargo' but also extended to the contrast in income and standard of living that is plaguing our modern world. Prof said that this question will the one that will keep haunting us for the rest of the term. I am feeling the effects now.

One point that I wished that could be given more air-time was a message I saw in the 'Shift Happens' video. I quote ' Preparing students for jobs that don't exist yet', 'For students starting a 4 year technical or college degree, this means that half of what they learn in their first year of study will be outdated by their 3rd year of study. It is predicted to double every 72 hours by 2010' (OH OH! PANIC!!). This could provoke some interesting insights and perspectives from our peers given that this issue is something close to our heart.

In conclusion, is technology a friend or foe? Sure it has made life much more convenient and improved our standard of living. However, in the powerpoint slide, ' The Future of the Human Race', we see what humans have become after so many centuries. Ironically, technology has made us obese and lazy albeit on the path to self destruction. Are we staring at our distant future?