Response 4

2/7 Response to "The Anti-Mac Interface"

Questions

1. What are the possible and drawbacks of “stretching our imaginations” to “violate basic assumptions and principles” in different fields such as medicine/ healthcare, education, and law enforcement?
2. How does the internet relieve us from the “see-and-point” principle? Is there more expression involved than simply pointing to something seen on the screen?
3. Does the forgiveness principle always apply during computer use? Are there not many instances where our actions can not, under any circumstances be reversed?

Response - Question 1

The authors suggest that we must stretch our imaginations to violate basic assumptions and principles in order to, ultimately, make the world a better place through improved computer technology. However, does thinking outside the box sometimes carry more negative effects than positive? Various professions including medical and educational professions may experience rash repercussions from such thinking. How do we know that stretching our imaginations to create further “advancements” in computer technology will not be more harmful than helpful?

In the medical field, violating basic assumptions and principles can have undesired effects. Stem cell research and cloning, for example, were thought to be innovative, outside-the-box medical advancements that could save many lives or even create new ones. However, this type of thinking created immense ethical and moral debate around the world. While stem cell research may lead to the ability to “grow” new organs and save lives of those in need of such organs, is it ethical to do so, or is this overstepping our boundaries? Just because a technology can be imagined and created, it isn’t necessarily good or right.

Education is yet another field where thinking outside the box may lead to trouble. Teachers who create new and unconventional teaching methods in attempt to engage the students and foster more permanent learning may be ridiculed and possibly punished for such actions. For example, a high school foreign language teacher of mine took advantage of a modern resource, the internet, and encouraged our class to enter a french-speaking chat room, under her supervision, to practice our written skills in a real-life format. However, parents and administrators saw this as unacceptable and she was punished for her unconventional teaching methods.

Society, in general, foresees creative thinking and invention as positive aspects of our culture. In foresight, we tend to believe that newer, more “advanced” things are better. Customers flock to buy the latest and newest gadgets and appliances. However, we often realize later that such items are flawed as well and are not always better. Imperfections exist in every human creation and can not be avoided. Why then do we insist on stretching our imaginations to come up with more complex technologies? How do we know that larger drawbacks will not ensue?

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