We've been merging with tools since the beginning of human evolution, and arguably, that's one of the things that makes us human beings.
Interpretation
Human evolution is deeply intertwined with the use of tools, which is a defining characteristic of our species.
The quote by Franklin Foer emphasizes the intrinsic relationship between humans and the tools we create and use. It suggests that our ability to innovate and merge with technology is not just a modern phenomenon, but a foundational aspect of our evolution, shaping what it means to be human and allowing us to adapt and thrive in various environments.
In practice
During a presentation on human evolution, one might quote this to illustrate how technology has shaped our species.
The biggest problem is that Facebook and Google are these giant feedback loops that give people what they want to hear. And when you use them in a world where your biases are being constantly confirmed, you become susceptible to fake news, propaganda, demagoguery.
I grew up using maps and having a sense of direction, and now I have a phone. I used to try to remember numbers, and now I... can just call them up instantly. And that's great. But what's happening right now is that we're in a phase of human evolution where we're merging with machines.
As a writer of fiction who deals with technology, I necessarily deal with the history of technology and the history of technologically induced social change. I roam up and down it in a kind of special way because I roam down it into history, which is invariably itself a speculative affair.
Technological society has succeeded in multiplying the opportunities for pleasure, but it has great difficulty in generating joy.
As a global society, we have the technology, resources and the know-how to make a massive difference to living standards everywhere, including for refugees.
We must develop as quickly as possible technologies that make possible a direct connection between brain and computer, so that artificial brains contribute to human intelligence rather than opposing it.
We live technologically, with man as the master of nature, man as the engineer, and let anyone who raises his voice against it stop using bridges not built by nature.... No electric light bulbs, no engines, no atomic energy, no calculating machines, no anaesthetics-back to the jungle.
Simple things should be simple and complex things should be possible.
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