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The Dialectic of Technology and How to Pedagogically Avoid a Robot Uprising

Mankut's picture
Sun, 02/20/2011 - 18:41 — Mankut
Podcast: 

This podcast looks at how the dialectical nature of the technium gives teachers the responsibility to help students learn the skills and literacies necessary to experiment with and evaluate technology so we can at all costs avoid or at least survive a robot uprising.

The intro and exit music are "The Flowbots Anthem" by Flowbots

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Mon, 02/21/2011 - 14:01 — CABowman
CABowman's picture

Good job on your first

Good job on your first podcast. While reading Kelly's book I always had the movies "I Robot" and "2001: A Space Odyssey." in the back of my mind. While they are just movies meant for our entertainment, similar to the book that you mentioned, "How to Survive A Robot Uprising", the issues are quite plausible. If technology continues to evolve, as Kelly suggests it will, could this be what we have to look forward to? In both films, the technology involved, the robots, have certain wants, and if anything gets in the way of that want, or need, it evolves its processes to destroy that obstical. Take Hal for instance, even though he is just a robot he understands when the astronauts speak of turning him off and retaliates against them, killing one of them. With "I Robot," the main computer system has evolved its understand of the "3 laws" to the point that it will kill and take over mankind in order to protect the people that it beleives is destroying themselves.
I agree with your ideas that our teachers should evaluate the technology that the students use the classrooms and teach them how to "assess and evaluate" technology as they enter the real world. While this may or may not help prevent a robotic uprising, it might give humanity the advantage over them. As you said at the beginning of the podcast, the key to surviving such an uprising is to know your enemy. I believe that it is very important that we do not let technology govern our lives so much, because in an instant, we could lose everything. Whether it be due to technium rising against us, or terrorists using our own technology against us by somehow destroying it (such as taking down the internet or using it to shut off all the powerstations), we could lose everything from money to weapons to food sources.