Outside reading # 5

The Unspeakable Odyssey of the Motionless Boy by Joshua Foer was a lengthy but interesting article about a boy, Erik, who has lock-in syndrome. For me, the most interesting part of the article was the scientific explanation of his diagnosis, and what the doctors are doing to help him. There was one part of the article that alarmed me, the part where Dr. Kennedy explains cochlear implants. I am generally supported of new technology, but I seem to be pretty conservative on this issue. To me, the thought of having perfect memory and being able to live to 150 is scary. I support the argument the writer makes, “I am typing this on my laptop, which is doing all sorts thinking so that my own brain doesn’t have to…”(Foer 218). We have invented many things to make us lazier about using our own brain, but having control over and object just my thinking about it does not sit well with me. I am discomforted by the idea the military has for this discovery:

... Which hopes today’s work with monkeys and quadriplegics will pay off in the future with fighter jest that respond instantaneously to pilots’ thoughts and robotic marines safely controlled by brains on the other side of the world”(Foer 219).

When I read this I think of how this idea could go horribly wrong. A man who has control of our nuclear bombs could think of wanting to bomb another country could mistakenly launch them and send us into a nuclear war. This incident supports the idea about one way the world could end. I watched this one special on the top ten ways the world could end, and one of them was by machines or robots.