"You were working as a waitress at a cocktail bar-ah, when I met you-ooooo"
However, the name of the 80's band was escaping me, so I pulled up Google. By the time I had typed "you were w", Google had auto-completed "you were working as a waitress in a cocktail bar when I met you" and there was a link to the Human League video right in front of me.
By now, most of us already take this kind of auto-complete technology for granted, but when you stop to think of it, it's really remarkable that technology has advanced this to level. 30 years or so I ago, I'd always figured I'd see some amazing computer technology by this point in my life, but I never expected technology of this sort. I always kind of figured we'd have real artificial intelligence ( AI ) by now. I thought we would have computers that could think. That hasn't happened, and I now seriously doubt that I'll ever see anything like that in my lifetime. However, while computers haven't given us AI, the Internet and Google's search engine have given us a kind of collective intelligence. The knowledge I have rapid access to extends far beyond my own brain. I may not know everything, but if somebody else knows something, I can know it too after about 30 seconds on Google ( with the obvious exception of really complicated stuff like string theory ). This has fundamentally changed the way I think about knowledge. This has fundamentally changed the way I think about memory. This has fundamentally changed the way I think about thinking. I used to take great pride in my memory, but now I hardly bother to remember anything at all. I know that most of the knowledge I might need is just a few keystrokes away, so I don't really take any time trying to commit stuff to memory ( Sure, I still *do* remember lots of stuff, particular sports statistics, but I don't really *try* to remember anything. ). Instead, I spend more time making sure my Google Chrome bookmarks are organized in a way the makes it easy to pull up valuable links. Of course, even if I can't find a link, it seems that Google can practically read my mind to help me find it again.
I'm sure I'm not alone in this. I think all vaguely Internet literate people these days use the Internet as a kind of extended memory. We've all gotten a little more knowledgeable in this way, thanks to the collective knowledge of everyone else on the Internet. We're gradually starting to develop into more of a global collective mind. Now, I don't think we are really in any danger of losing our individuality, and I don't think we're looking to assimilate anyone, but in a small way, we are Borg.
Rich
P.S. On a lighter note, why don't pole-vaulters just use poles that are about 10 meters long? Over the history of the pole vault, the poles have gotten longer and longer, and vaulters have vaulted higher and higher. So, with that in mind, why wouldn't a vaulter just use a mega-long pole? Seriously, the world record in the pole vault is about 6 meter. If showed up in Rio with a 10 meter pole, why couldn't I win the gold in 2016? OK, I'm sure it's more complicated that that. I'm sure it has something to do with how flexible the poles are and leverage and upper body strength and the transfer of kinetic energy to potential energy. But seriously, why hasn't somebody tried this. I'd *love* to see somebody try this. I'd love it so much that I just send out this tweet to pole vault world record holder Sergey Bubka:
@sergey_bubka Figure you're the best person in the world to ask:.Why can't a pole vaulter just use a 10 meter pole?
— MoLewis57 (@MoLewis57) August 11, 2012
UPDATE: I gave this pole vault stuff a little more thought, and I've realized that this does have almost everything to do with the transfer of kinetic energy to potential energy. In order for the pole vaulter to get over the bar, the center of mass of the pole vaulter needs to be raised from a few feet above the ground to about the height of the bar. This means that the potential energy of the pole vaulter needs to be increased quite a bit, and that energy needs to come from somewhere. Part of that energy comes from the pole vaulter leaping and thrusting the pole into the ground with his/her upper body strength, but most of it comes from the kinetic energy of the pole vaulter attains by running. Basically, in order for a pole vaulter to vault 10 meters rather than 6 meters, the pole vaulter would need to run MUCH faster than he/she would run for a 6 meter vault. With that in mind, I wonder if Usain Bolt could become a pole vault champion with just a few months of training.
1 comment:
http://xkcd.com/903/
Z
P.S.: Oh, I guess you're set for August, huh?
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