I have the privilege of writing in the amazing world of Shadowrun, an urban fantasy/sci-fi genre where I get to explore the social ramifications of technology. One of the things I find the most engaging about the possible future is the cybernetic eye–specifically a device that records what you see and can provide internet-based data in a Heads up Display style. Imagine what we could do with that tech. Imagine a doctor working on a patient and sending a live feed to international experts who may assist her in the surgery or even pull down graphic overlays to guide the surgery. The possibilities are endless.
The possibilities are close to reality.
Google recently introduced Google Glass, an eyepiece device that serves as a HUD and a camera, a tool that takes pictures and videos and responds to voice commands. However, this isn’t a fanboy post on why the Glass is awesome. Actually it is more of a warning about what it could mean.
If we have all of the internet’s information only milliseconds away, what is the need for us to know anything? At some point in our near-future it is going to become more important to understand how to retrieve, discern, and apply information than it is to know, or to remember, information in any significant way. We may transition from a place where the signifiers of knowledge are PhD and MA to a place where knowledge is based on bandwidth and understanding of the specific situation. Expertise will be localized as information goes global. So, what does that mean to how we value intelligence?