Let's Keep Innovation Innovative

As technology and concepts become obsolete, common sense shouldn't.

A recent series of articles on The Mark suggested “twelve things that will be obsolete in 10 years.” Contributors looked at a range of technologies and concepts that could be out of date soon, including physical items like telephones and CDs, as well as more conceptual things like Media, Baby Boomers, and Adolescence.

The list probably could have been a great deal longer, the speed of innovation being what it is.

Consider Moore's law, which describes a long-term trend in the history of computing hardware. It states that the number of transistors that can be placed on an integrated circuit has doubled approximately every two years. The trend has continued for more than half a century and is not expected to stop until 2015 or later. This shows the speed of progress in the computing world alone, which has turned many other realms on their head.

Tools, equipment, and technologies become obsolete as soon as there is a slight improvement to any of their components. A faster material, a better chemical composition, or a new mechanism will make the old version and all affiliated technologies obsolete. For example, incandescent and fluorescent light bulbs are on their last legs because there is more efficient light technology available. Liquid Crystal Display and Light Emitting Diode screens are quickly being replaced by ones that use Organic Light Emitting Diodes.

It’s important to note that obsolete does not mean disappeared. Just last week, a girl beside me on an airplane was listening to a cassette on a Sony Walkman. And you might have heard that LPs are making a comeback. Old-fashioned can become a fashion statement.

Also to be considered in this conversation is medical science. We can’t leave out the obsolescence of impregnation or the endogenous human form. We can now choose the embryo we want to implant through in vitro fertilization. Will this and other emerging forms of conception make more traditional methods obsolete?

While talking about this article to a colleague, she reminded me of the obsolete human form which in turn reminded me of a visit to MIT’s Media Lab last year. Engineers and other scientists there were working on bionic limbs. They told me that it might soon be possible to choose bionic body parts. Our view of the body has been changing drastically and now with the very technologically advanced and cool-looking bionic body parts available, one can be taller, faster, and stronger. One day not too far away, we may want to choose our parts.

The social networking phenomenon brought on by Facebook, Twitter, and their predecessors (and likely to be continued by whatever comes next) has had a significant impact on journalism and diplomacy. Did Twitter change the culture of journalism by making us all journalists, or is it eliminating the industry to some degree?

A New York Times article describes the growing strength and importance of digital diplomacy using social networking to bring the world together within seconds.

Having so much information at the tip of our fingers also affects education. Most course material is now available online, and many universities offer online courses. It begs the question of how much longer classroom learning will last? We can do almost all of our learning through our mobile phones and computers now. We can even be tutored and tested online.

But does this come at a price? Is this another step towards social isolation for a species that is inherently social? Do we really want to no longer have classes? Will we not miss out on being right there with the professor, and sharing ideas and laughs with others in the room?

Many things and notions are becoming obsolete, some for the better. But it’s a good idea to ensure that our common sense doesn’t meet the same fate; that by embracing the new, we are not shedding the good or betraying our nature.