elpais.com
Humanity's Enduring Relationship with Light and Technology
A reflection on humanity's evolving understanding of light and technology, using Thelonious Monk's quote and the recent Iberian Peninsula blackout as examples to illustrate our continued tendency to view technology with a sense of magical awe and potential vulnerabilities.
- What is the core message conveyed by Thelonious Monk's quote, and how does it relate to humanity's dependence on technology?
- The article recounts a legend attributed to jazz pianist Thelonious Monk: "It's always night; otherwise, we wouldn't need light." This highlights humanity's inherent reliance on artificial light and our evolving understanding of its origins. The piece then explores how prehistoric humans perceived natural phenomena as supernatural, contrasting this with modern reliance on technology.
- How did the Iberian Peninsula blackout illustrate our tendency to perceive technology as possessing magical properties, despite understanding its mechanical underpinnings?
- The narrative connects the perception of light and technology to humanity's inherent tendency to attribute magical qualities to phenomena beyond immediate comprehension. This is exemplified by the recent Iberian Peninsula blackout, where the failure of electrical systems necessitated a return to manual methods for restoring power. This highlights our dependence on technology and its underlying mysteries.
- What are the potential future societal impacts and vulnerabilities arising from our growing dependence on AI, and how does this relate to the historical perception of the supernatural?
- The essay suggests that our reliance on technology, particularly AI, mirrors the prehistoric attribution of magical powers to unexplained events. The author argues this dependence introduces a 'fantasmal' element of power, where technology exerts control despite its incomprehensibility, demanding unquestioning obedience. This creates a vulnerability in our understanding of technological influence.
Cognitive Concepts
Framing Bias
The narrative frames technological advancements as inherently 'magical' and potentially threatening, emphasizing the loss of control and reliance on unseen forces. The use of terms like 'fantasmal' and 'falsa luz' (false light) creates a sense of unease and distrust towards technology. This framing is evident from the introduction, setting the tone for the entire piece.
Language Bias
The author employs evocative and charged language such as 'fantasmal,' 'falsa luz,' and 'magical' to describe technology, creating a subjective and potentially alarmist tone. The use of such loaded terms influences the reader's perception of technology. Neutral alternatives could include 'unfamiliar,' 'complex,' 'powerful,' or 'advanced' instead of relying on terms with strong negative connotations.
Bias by Omission
The text focuses on the author's perspective of humanity's relationship with technology and the unknown, potentially omitting counterarguments or alternative interpretations of technological advancements. The historical and anthropological context is selectively presented to support the author's thesis, leaving out other potential perspectives or nuances.
False Dichotomy
The text presents a false dichotomy between 'magic' and 'human-controlled mechanisms'. It simplifies the complexities of technological advancements, portraying them as inherently magical or mystical due to our lack of understanding of their inner workings, overlooking the scientific principles behind them.
Gender Bias
The text mentions the historical prevalence of female deities in prehistoric cultures, associating women with magical creation. While this is factually accurate, the text doesn't delve into potential biases within this observation or explore how this might have influenced societal structures. There is no overt gender bias but a potential for implicit bias in its presentation.
Sustainable Development Goals
The article discusses how reliance on technology can mask the fundamental mechanisms that power our world. The disruption caused by a power outage highlights the importance of basic infrastructure and human capabilities, potentially reducing inequalities by bringing attention to the vulnerabilities of overly technology-dependent systems. Restoring power through manual methods emphasized human agency and the need for resilient, inclusive systems.