All Can Be Lost

The essay “All Can Be Lost: The Risk of Putting Our Knowledge in the Hands of Machines “, by Nicholas Carr, is in most ways about topic how the rising ubiquity of automation in our surrounding is making us, the humans ‘dumber’ each and every other day. The conclusion drawn from his essay is why we are becoming so dependent on the resources, especially the technology provided to us, to carry out our basic day to day tasks occurring in our lives. The writer is very much consistent on his view point throughout the essay but I along with most of my peers think that the impact of the technology, on our lives can be both positive as well negative. It all depends how we use it.

The essay begins with an example, which likely sets up the whole negative perception, that lasts till the very end. By stating how there was a so-called pilot-error that led to the accidents mentioned in the essay, Carr has started to state his argument. According to him, the continuous use of the autopilot by the pilots led in the drifting of their attention. This continuous drifting can lead to weaken one’s awareness and conscious doubts their abilities in their respective profession. Each and everything has its set of pros and cons and it also applies to any machine. Here the autopilot was at fault but it was not because of the device, it was because of all the trust that the

pilot had in that very device. Most occupations like medicine, economics as well as engineering essentially requires the use of machinery and technology but only to a certain extent, rest is all one’s effort.

According to Carr, continuous use of any technology will eventually make us dumber and suddenly we will start losing all our senses.

We will lose all those set of traits or abilities that are required to excel in one profession. But it is not completely true. Whether be it a doctor in an emergency room or an engineer designing a new car, automation, in today’s world is a major necessity. From basic day-to-day activities to the complex situations, we are dependent on the technology provided to us. Sometimes this over dependence can hamper our growth in our fields. Remember, practice is the only “mantra” to achieve

success

Today’s technology cannot be trusted as the information provided as it can be both either right or wrong. Some of the machines cannot do certain work as they are not programmed to do so. Imagine you have to submit a long thesis on “The Water Cycle” the very next day and you are relying on some site you just found on the net. What if the material present on the site is not correct? Your grade will plunge and this regretful feeling will stay with you for the whole year.

One quote that stood out to me was: “Computers can weaken one's awareness and attention.”. I find this statement to be accurate because I know many people who don’t pay attention to their surrounding when using new technological systems. Especially the younger generation, who spend their research and socializing on the internet. Their attention span is short and always on their phones. But it can lay positive outputs too as they would be involved so much into their research, from which they can learn about new facts and information and would know what is happening among their peer.

He also states that people using the helpful software made quicker progress in the end. Using a computer software does make swifter progress but it depends on how well you use it. Computer software can help you anywhere, whether be it your home or your school, but it can’t be used to do all work without putting in any thought and effort into it by the user. It is necessary for us to pay attention where this resource is being used for.

Why there is a need to find the answer of any question from the book when we are just one click away from it. This is only because of the advancement in technology, in the form of the internet. It completely cuts your work in half. Learning, like planning, is viewed as a waste in an office when an office is treated as a machine. It depends on whether you are working in a factory or not. The companies that are winning today are ones that are creative and innovative. To remain competitive, taking steps to maintain the viability of your knowledge workers may be more important than steps to automate. Both our mind and the machine must compile in good coordination so to obtain the best result.