TECHNOLOGY, THE FUTURE OF HUMANITY.

With the development of science and technology made by the human history, especially
the past one hundred years, people these days are spending more time relying on
technology to solve all types of problems. Does the ability of humans to think for
themselves really deteriorate as they rely more and more on technology? Admittedly, the
improvement of technology and its concomitant contribution to a more convenient daily life
does to certain extent obviate the necessity of many traditional tasks, subtly affecting the
humans ability of thinking. Nevertheless, as a whole effect ,technology progress improves
working efficiency and labor safety, and frees humans from low-level repeated physical
work to high-level decision-making intellectual work. In addition, technology proposes
brand-new problems as well which challenges the humans thinking ability to an even
unexpected extent.
It is true that in many situations, the requirement for thinking seems less demanding than
before due to the development of technology as the brains of computers have replaced
humans role in many tasks. For instance, students no longer need think hard to solve
involving algebraic equations as calculators could do the job for them; engineers do not
have to worry about the side effect of modifying their design drawings at one place as in
the past due to the modern CAD softwares smart updates for all affected parts; people
nowadays could simply forget about their previous pains of finding parking lots when they
go shopping at some remote super-markets as the contemporary online shopping systems
will deliver the customers anything they need right away with the help of modern logistics,
information technology and advanced transportation tools. The development of technology
does so much that humans are no longer required to solve many of the traditional tasks
and consequently humans ability of thinking seems indeed less explored, exercised or
even deteriorating.
But does the improvement of technology really eliminate the necessity of thinking and
deprive humans of their opportunity of solving problems by themselves? With the fading
away of stereotyped problems, such as solving algebraic equation on a piece of sketch
paper, people are now faced with completely new types of problems, such as how to utilize
calculators and computers to solve more complex problems where instead of the regular
manipulation innovation and creativity are tested. Technology on the one hand frees
humans from the boring and repeated work, yet on the other hand brings in more
demanding tasks. at the old days, factory workers had to operate their machines for
repeated parts processing which seemed very laborious, however, nowadays they have to
program CNC machines for automatic parts manufacturing and tool replacement and they
are asked to work on more than one CNC machines as the manager feels the employees
are working less. Technology does replace humans role in many traditional tasks, but
technology puts humans in new positions which are more intellectually based.
In addition, with the emergence of new technologies, a host of new problems also turn up.
The new technology of utilizing nuclear energy for generating electricity brings forward

new questions of its ecological impact when the nuclear plants cooling water,
contaminated with radiation, is discharged into the rivers and ocean. While the
development of antibiotics helped to cure lots of patients with infections, it at the same
time also produced the question of bacterias developed immunity which makes many
previously effective medicines invalid and that whether the development of these
antibiotics indirectly facilitates the mutation of bacteria towards a more hazardous and
dangerous state. All these new problems never existed before the development of these
new technologies and they require far more thinking than the old problems.
In conclusion, while technology frees humans from the traditional laborious work,
eliminating the necessity of thinking for the stereotyped problems, yet technology
meanwhile brings forth new types of problems which are more intellectually intense and
even unprecedented. Humans mind has been working on all kinds of problems throughout
the history to keep up with pace of our world change. With the development of technology,
old problems might become obsolete but new problems with more challenges will never
stop appearing, ensuring the opportunity for humans mind to explore and develop to
higher state and securing the brains role of thinking from deteriorating.